Carl Majewski, a University of New Hampshire Extension field specialist, has been working to increase awareness of IPM practices for both farmers and non-farming stakeholders.

He’s noticed that throughout the years, farmers are continuously leasing land from non-farming landowners. Majewski pointed out, “These arrangements can provide a lot of opportunities… but there’s potential for conflict too.”

It’s not uncommon for the non-farming landowner and their leasing farmer to have conflicting opinions, usually due to a lack of understanding between the two parties. While one party may prioritize conserving the natural land, the other party may be focused on maximizing crop yield, even if that means applying pesticides.

Majewski mentioned how these conflicts can lead to the land being “neglected, overgrown or unproductive.”

Majewski and his colleagues have been working on a project to help farmers and landowners communicate more efficiently, to learn how to best care for the land. They are hoping to help stakeholders “make better informed decisions on the best way to maintain a healthy working landscape.”

As of early December, the group had hosted two webinars, one focused on landowners and the other geared toward producers. They also discussed related topics at various pasture walks and field meetings throughout summer 2024.

Majewski and Nicholas Warren, a UNH Extension research scientist, wrote and published “Integrated Weed Management for Pastures and Hayfields,” explaining why weeds need to be managed, basic IPM concepts and how to responsibly use pesticides. They hope this publication isn’t viewed as a complete guide, but as a starting point to “inform discussions between farmers and landowners.”

Majewski and Warren distributed 200 hard copies of the publication, which has also seen more than 600 views online. They conducted a survey at the end of the webinars, and found that 88% of participants reported they had a better understanding of weed IPM concepts and that 83% plan to implement sustainable weed management practices the following season.

Overall, Majewski was proud to announce the group was “able to achieve our outcome of increasing people’s knowledge of weed IPM practices.”

The integrated weed management publication can be found at extension.unh.edu/resource/integrated-weed-management-pastures-hayfields-guide-landowners.

by Kelsi Devolve