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This Month
Happy New Year from all of us at Wild Farm Alliance! As we step into 2025, weβre filled with gratitude for your commitment to fostering relationships between agriculture and wild nature. This year, we renew our resolve to support thriving ecosystems on farms across the nation. Together, we can champion practices that protect beneficial insects and birds, enhance biodiversity, and ensure that farms continue to provide habitat for wildlife. Whether youβre a farmer, advocate, or supporter, your efforts make a difference in creating resilient landscapes for future generations. Letβs make 2025 a year of impact and growthβfor farmers and natural ecosystems alike!
In this newsletter, we share a statement about the recent Federal funding freeze. We also release an updated edition of our Managing Pests publication, featuring guidance on using habitat to attract natural enemies. This edition includes five newly added major crops and a researched list of the best plants known to support beneficial predators and parasitoids. We give information about upcoming field days, a WFA presentation at the California Small Farm Conference and a virtual pollinator event from Pollinator Friendly Alliance. We invite you to send a valentine to a loved one to support habitat for wildlife. Finally, we share new research from our partners at The Songbird Research Team and an article about encouraging cavity-nesting birds on farms by our friend Anne Bloomfield.
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Enjoy this monthβs News from the Wild!
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Threat to Federal Agricultural Conservation Funding Under the Trump Administration
On Monday, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced a pause on all federal agency grants and loans, sparking legal challenges and widespread concern. The National Council of Nonprofits, represented by Democracy Forward, sued to block the action, and within a day, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan temporarily halted its implementation, citing potential "irreparable harm."
This freeze threatens essential public services, from medical research and education funding to food aid and shelter support. At Wild Farm Alliance, we are deeply alarmed by its potential impact on nonprofits, technical assistance providers and academic institutions across the country who support farmers to implement agricultural conservation practices. The pause could disrupt U.S. Department of Agriculture programs that fund critical conservation efforts, harming farmers and ranchers working to improve soil, air, water, plants, and wildlife.
Additionally, Wild Farm Alliance and other organizations reliant on federal funding may face direct consequences. Amid this uncertainty, it will be critical in the coming months and years to stay engaged and focused on the issues that matter most to you.
If you are concerned about this action, please contact your members of Congress and let them know how it will impact you and your community. You can find their contact information by searching here. Below is a sample message that you can email or leave on a voice message.
βMy name is _______ and I live in your district in [town or city]. I am alarmed by the recent attempt by the Trump administration to pause federal funding for agricultural conservation, including financial assistance to farmers for improving soil health and biodiversity on their operations, at a time when almost three of every four farmers who apply are turned away. I urge you to defend funding for programs such as the Environmental Quality Improvements Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).β
Thank you for taking action!
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Managing Pests with Predator and Parasitoid Habitat Publication
Learn how to utilize habitat to attract natural enemies and manage pests in WFAβs updated edition. Now covering 10 of the major crops grown in California and a researched list of plants that support beneficials, this guide shows how habitat can help growers better integrate lasting solutions into their pest management regimes. Farmscaping with habitat for natural enemy predators and parasitoids can save on input costs. When managing with other cultural practices that keep crops healthy and donβt encourage pests, growers can get off the pesticide treadmill while bringing nature back to the farm.
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Sperry Farms Field Day
DΓa de Campo de Manejo Sostenible de Plagas con Sperry Farms
WFA is co-hosting an almond orchard field day with East Stanislaus Resource Conservation Service in Spanish on February 20 in Waterford, CA. If you speak Spanish, please join us. Or share the event details with Spanish-speakers in your network.
Jueves, 20 de febrero de 2025 - 8:00 am a 1:00 pm PST 19937 Yosemite Blvd, Waterford, CA 95386
Este evento es gratuito e incluye almuerzo, pero se requiere inscripciΓ³n previa. Γnete a Sperry Farms y Wild Farm Alliance en el campo para aprender sobre prΓ‘cticas de manejo sostenible de plagas en huertos de almendros incluyendo la incorporaciΓ³n de hΓ‘bitats.
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Triple F Ranch Field Day
Tuesday, February 25 Β· 8:00 am - 3:00 pm PST 6520 7th Ave, Hanford, CA $20 per ticket includes lunch
Triple F Ranch owner Richard Felipe shares his successes and challenges in supporting beneficials on his farm. Youβll get a chance to interact with Richard and other speakers and growers, including WFA staff. Experience sheep grazing the orchard farm and learn from advanced consultants in the business. Whether you are a seasoned regenerative farmer or looking to cut costs on inputs, there is something for everyone at Triple F Ranch. Learn how to maximize soil health, cut the use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and enjoy the great outdoors! Special talks on compost, birds, bats, cover crops, biological insects, grazing sheep, and equipment.
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WFA Joins the California Small Farm Conference
A week of learning, insight and inspiration for the small farm community. The 37th annual California Small Farm Conference is a hybrid event coming Feb 23-28, 2025 that features over 40 online workshops and more than a dozen in-person gatherings around the state.
WFAβs Jo Ann Baumgartner gives a presentation with UCCEβs Breanna Martinico called Boosting Beneficial Birds and Insects: Nest Boxes, Hedgerows and Other Natural Enemy Habitat on Sunday morning, February 23, at 8:00am PT.
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Best Practices for Pollinators Summit
March 3rd, 4th and 5th, 2025 - Virtual Online All three days $60 plus event fee
Join Pollinator Friendly Alliance for three days of live presentations with a wealth of experts and topics on ecologically sound land practices that promote pollinators, climate resilience, clean water and lands. Summit topics provide practical knowledge and innovation on pesticide reduction, habitat installation, conservation, pollinator biology, climate resilience and more.
Join every talk, or attend just your favorites.
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Send a Valentine & Let Love Bloom for Wildlife!
Celebrate the season of love by making a gift that keeps on givingβto both your loved ones and the planet. This Valentineβs Day, instead of cut flowers with a fleeting lifespan, send a wildlife-supporting gift that will blossom for years to come.
When you donate $20 in honor of someone special, weβll help farms design and install native hedgerow plants, creating vital habitat for beneficial insects and wildlife. With each $20 donation, weβll send a Valentineβs Day card to your recipient, complete with your personalized
Deadline: Donβt waitβorder by February 6, 2025 to ensure your Valentine cards arrive on time.
Learn More and Make a Donation Here
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Songbird Research Team Posters
New posters from The Songbird Research Team showcase initial findings from data collected over the past two years. The researchers highlight some of the exciting connections they are uncovering between vineyard habitats, nest boxes, road noise, and bird communities.
Take a look for a meaningful snapshot of the progress their research is making.
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Encouraging Cavity-Nesting Birds on Your Farm
By Anne Bloomfield, Applied Farmscape Ecology Manager
Farms provide vital habitat for both common and declining species of birds. If you are a farmer, you likely have many important things you should be thinking about like crop planning or ordering irrigation supplies. In this article, I will share simple, straightforward steps to provide habitat for and support cavity nesters on farms. You will learn how to identify cavity nesters, what habitat they need and actions you can take to help. Also included are resources to help you get started on your journey with cavity nesting birds.
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Bringing Nature Back to the Farm
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