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26-645: The Great Plains Shelterbelt was a project to create windbreaks in the Great Plains states of the United States, that began in 1934. President Franklin D. Roosevelt initiated the project in response to the severe dust storms of the Dust Bowl , which resulted in significant soil erosion . The United States Forest Service believed that planting trees on the perimeters of farms would reduce wind velocity and lessen evaporation of moisture from

52-680: A long-term strategy and therefore ineligible for emergency relief funds), FDR transferred the program to the WPA . The Great Plains Shelterbelt was allowed under the 1924 Clarke–McNary Act and was carried out by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Project headquarters were in Lincoln, Nebraska , and Raphael Zon served as the technical director. The U.S. Forest Service and Civilian Conservation Corps assisted. "The Shelterbelt Program of 1935–1942 ... [was] later known as

78-463: A shelterbelt is to screen a farm from a main road or motorway. This improves the farm landscape by reducing the visual incursion of the motorway, mitigating noise from the traffic and providing a safe barrier between farm animals and the road. Fences called "windbreaks" are also used. Normally made from cotton , nylon , canvas , and recycled sails, windbreaks tend to have three or more panels held in place with poles that slide into pockets sewn into

104-470: Is done especially with fruit, as the flesh of the fruit around the seed can quickly become prone to attack from insects or plagues. Seed washing is generally done by submerging cleansed seeds 20 minutes in 50 degree Celsius water. This (rather hot than moderately hot) water kills any organisms that may have survived on the skin of a seed. Especially with easily infected tropical fruit such as lychees and rambutans , seed washing with high-temperature water

130-413: Is less of a help than it is for the smaller seeds of grasses and legumes . Hand sowing may be combined with pre-sowing in seed trays . This allows the plants to come to strength indoors during cold periods (e.g. spring in temperate countries). In agriculture , most seed is now sown using a seed drill , which offers greater precision; seed is sown evenly and at the desired rate. The drill also places

156-403: Is required. A seed rate of about 100 kg of seed per hectare (2 bushels per acre) is typical, though rates vary considerably depending on crop species, soil conditions, and farmer's preference. Excessive rates can cause the crop to lodge, while too thin a rate will result in poor utilisation of the land, competition with weeds and a reduction in the yield . Open-field planting refers to

182-440: Is the process of casting handfuls of seed over prepared ground: broadcasting, that is, broadcast seeding (from which the technological term is derived). Usually, a drag or harrow is employed to incorporate the seed into the soil. Though labor-intensive for any but small areas, this method is still used in some situations. Practice is required to sow evenly and at the desired rate. A hand seeder can be used for sowing, though it

208-446: Is vital. In addition to the mentioned seed pretreatments, seed germination is also assisted when a disease-free soil is used. Especially when trying to germinate difficult seed (e.g. certain tropical fruit), prior treatment of the soil (along with the usage of the most suitable soil; e.g. potting soil , prepared soil or other substrates ) is vital. The two most used soil treatments are pasteurisation and sterilisation . Depending on

234-496: The Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations , these effects can be understood as resulting from the loss of momentum caused by the drag of leaves and branches and would be represented by the body force f i (a distributed momentum sink). Windbreaks reduce the wind's average air speed and make it less variable, resulting in the wind mixing less effectively than it does upwind. Additionally, all these changes to

260-542: The CCPI (Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative) is provided as a project of the Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service . Windbreak A windbreak (shelterbelt) is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion . They are commonly planted in hedgerows around

286-476: The Great Plains, stretching in a 100-mile wide zone from Canada to northern Texas, to protect the land from wind erosion . Native trees, such as red cedar and green ash , were planted along fence rows separating properties, and farmers were paid to plant and cultivate them. The project was estimated to cost $ 75 million over 12 years. When disputes arose over funding sources (the project was considered to be

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312-601: The Prairie States Forestry Project." By 1942, 30,233 shelterbelts had been planted, which contained 220 million trees and covered 18,600 square miles (48,000 km). As of 2010, "Many shelterbelts in Kansas and throughout the central Great Plains are old and are no longer providing the benefits that they used to", according to Kansas State Forester Larry Biles. As of 2004 in Nebraska, Today,

338-539: The [U.S.] government to address an environmental problem". The "Number One Shelterbelt" is located in Greer County , in southwestern Oklahoma. Oklahoma's first State Forester, George R. Phillips, had the distinction of planting the very first tree in the federal program's very first shelterbelt in 1935." The first tree was an Austrian pine planted on the H.E. Curtis farm near Willow, Oklahoma , on March 18. The project called for large-scale planting of trees across

364-408: The decrease in pressure across the shelterbelt's width; as it emerges again, that airstream is interrupted further as its air pressure adjusts to the surrounding area. This results in slower wind speed further downwind, reaching a minimum at a distance of about 3 to 5 times the windbreak's height. Beyond that point wind speed recovers, aided by the overlying, faster-moving stream. From the perspective of

390-553: The edges of fields on farms . If designed properly, windbreaks around a home can reduce the cost of heating and cooling and save energy . Windbreaks are also planted to help keep snow from drifting onto roadways or yards. Farmers sometimes use windbreaks to keep snow drifts on farm land that will provide water when the snow melts in the spring. Other benefits include contributing to a microclimate around crops (with slightly less drying and chilling at night), providing habitat for wildlife, and, in some regions, providing wood if

416-445: The effects of pesticide drift . When wind encounters a porous obstacle, such as a windbreak or shelterbelt, air pressure increases on the windward side and decreases on the leeward side. As a result, the airstream approaching the barrier is interrupted, and a portion of it moves over the barrier, resulting in a jet of higher wind speed. The remainder of the airstream then moves through the barrier to its edge downstream, pushed along by

442-489: The form of sowing used historically in the agricultural context whereby fields are prepared generically and left open, as the name suggests, before being sown directly with seed. The seed is frequently left uncovered at the surface of the soil before germinating and therefore exposed to the prevailing climate and conditions like storms etc. This is in contrast to the seedbed method used more commonly in domestic gardening or more specific (modern) agricultural scenarios where

468-623: The growth and vigor of many of the trees has declined due to close spacing, age, and invasion of undesirable, short-lived trees. The Nebraska Forest Service and the Upper Elkhorn Natural Resource District, in cooperation with the Schleusener family, has established two demonstration areas within this windbreak to show methods of improving the condition of the remaining trees and to encourage new growth and establishment of desirable trees. The area closest to

494-520: The intent is to have precise; even spacing between individual seeds in the row, various mechanisms have been devised to count out individual seeds at exact intervals. In sowing, little if any soil is placed over the seeds, as seeds can be generally sown into the soil by maintaining a planting depth of about 2-3 times the size of the seed. For hand sowing, several sowing types exist; these include: Several patterns for sowing may be used together with these types; these include: Hand sowing or (planting)

520-466: The panel. The poles are then hammered into the ground and a windbreak is formed. Windbreaks or "wind fences" are used to reduce wind speeds over erodible areas such as open fields, industrial stockpiles, and dusty industrial operations. As erosion is proportional to wind speed cubed, a reduction of wind speed of 1/2 (for example) will reduce erosion by 87.5%. Sheltered, windless areas created by windbreaks are called wind shadows. Windbreaks can mitigate

546-654: The roadway will remain unaltered as a living reminder of the Prairie States Forestry Project and the efforts of Nebraskans to protect our valuable farmland. In 2010, federal grants were made available for shelterbelt maintenance and restoration in Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska as part of the Central Great Plains Shelterbelt Renovation and the Central Great Plains Forested Riparian Buffer CCPI proposals. Funding for

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572-521: The seed at a measured distance below the soil, so that less seed is required. The standard design uses a fluted feed metering system, which is volumetric in nature; individual seeds are not counted. Rows are typically about 10–30 cm apart, depending on the crop species and growing conditions. Several row opener types are used depending on soil type and local tradition. Grain drills are most often drawn by tractors , but can also be pulled by horses . Pickup trucks are sometimes used, since little draft

598-479: The seed is applied beneath the soil surface and monitored and manually tended frequently to ensure more successful growth rates and better yields. Before sowing, certain seeds first require a treatment prior to the sowing process. This treatment may be seed scarification , stratification , seed soaking or seed cleaning with cold (or medium hot) water. Seed soaking is generally done by placing seeds in medium hot water for at least 24 to up to 48 hours Seed cleaning

624-752: The soil. By 1942, 220 million trees had been planted, covering 18,600 square miles (48,000 km) in a 100-mile-wide zone from Canada to the Brazos River . Even as of 2007, "the federal response to the Dust Bowl, including the Prairie States Forestry Project which planted the Great Plains Shelterbelt and creation of the Soil Erosion Service , represents the largest and most-focused effort of

650-530: The trees are harvested. Windbreaks and intercropping can be combined in a farming practice referred to as alley cropping , or being deployed along riparian buffer stripes. Fields are planted in rows of different crops surrounded by rows of trees. These trees provide fruit, wood, or protect the crops from the wind. Alley cropping has been particularly successful in India, Africa, and Brazil, where coffee growers have combined farming and forestry. A further use for

676-587: The wind's behavior result in changes to the region's environment. For instance, the surface energy budget of the ground may be impacted, as the slowed wind dissipates heat from the sun less effectively; this trend may reverse further downwind, and about 8 times the windbreak's height downstream, the windbreak may result in cooler surface temperatures. Planting Among the major field crops, oats , wheat , and rye are sown, grasses and legumes are seeded and maize and soybeans are planted. In planting, wider rows (generally 75 cm (30 in) or more) are used, and

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