Fall harvest reveals wildlife benefits of soil health

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Judging by the number of pheasants stirred up from his fields during corn harvest, Craig Stehly was anticipating a bountiful hunting season.

Wildlife soil health 1.jpg — Craig and Gene Stehly plant corn on 22-inch rows and then leave a 44-inch gap for cover crops on their farm near Mitchell, SD. Craig Stehly said he noticed lots of pheasants in the green cover crop spaces during harvest this fall.
Submitted photo

Wildlife soil health 2.jpg — Gene and Craig Stehly use a variety of regenerative agriculture practices, which provide food and habitat for wildlife on their farm near Mitchell, SD.
USDA-NRCS South Dakota photo

Pheasant — Ring-necked roost pheasants are more obvious when leaves dry and fall.
Jerry Davis/For Agri-View

Wildlife soil health 3.jpg — A pheasant hunt in a sorghum field in northeast South Dakota.
Submitted photo

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To learn more about the connection between soil health and wildlife, visit www.sdsoilhealthcoalition.org.