ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — When you think of winter, you usually don’t think about farming, but it’s a busy time on Florida farms as growers get their soil ready for planting.
Farmers are under more pressure to not just grow our food but to do so in ways that are more environmentally sound.
"There’s a lot of activity going on right now for sure," Brian Jones said from his tractor.
Before crops grow, the soil has to be prepped.
"What we’re doing now is preparing for the planting of our potatoes," he said in December.
Jones and his family treat the soil every winter.
The way Jones farms his family’s 1,000 acres in western St. Johns County has changed over the years to be more earth-friendly.
"Right here where we are is the St. Johns River, less than an eighth of a mile away," Jones noted, "so environmentally speaking, the impacts could be catastrophic if we don’t do what we’re supposed to and what we want to do to better our land and better our yields."
From the cab of his tractor, I learned that Jones is one of those farmers doing all kinds of things on his farm to use fewer resources, with the goal of less pollution.
"So what we’re doing right now is putting fumigant into the soil," he said.
That fumigant "helps with disease, fungus, pests. It also helps us as a herbicide," he explained.
Jones’ tractor actually injects the fumigant into the soil. "And we’re dropping it 12-14 inches in the ground," he said.
With special equipment, Jones only needs to apply this once a year, and that means "we’re not having to do as much spraying throughout the year," he said.
One of those tractors running behind him is putting down fertilizer. Farm fertilizers often get blamed for running off and contaminating waterways, but Jones says this newer method puts it right where the plant will be instead of spraying or spreading it.
"That is great because you’re reducing the amount of fertilizer," Gary England with the University of Florida said. "So any potential of fertilizer getting into the water is vastly reduced."
England said it ends up saving farmers money, too.
Jones – along with some other area farmers -- has also been installing an innovative irrigation system which enables him to use less water.
"On our farm alone, we are saving millions of gallons of water," Jones said.
But how does he know that?
"We know that through power bills, through water usage," he smiled.
And by using less water, "it’s a huge upgrade for this area because there’s now zero water leaving the farm during irrigation."
Jones said with the previous irrigation systems his family used, the water in the ditches would be really high because of all the water run-off. But where they've installed new irrigation systems, the water in the ditches is pretty low.
And that means less water run-off into nearby waterways.
But all of this equipment and enhancements cost Jones and other farmers a lot of money.
"With this, the thousands of dollars this technology costs, it probably took one year to pay for itself," Jones said.
That’s a chunk of income.
England noted, "Short term profit would be difficult if they took on that entire cost."
However, state and federal agencies will help cover the technology and equipment costs -- 75 percent of it -- if farmers are willing to invest in conservation methods.
"So there’s still a substantial amount that the farmers are having to invest," Jones said, "but we see the value in it, as in it will pay for itself over time."
Farmers are also required to meet certain environmental regulations. Jones said the farmers in the St. Johns, Putnam and Flagler counties are leading the state in that regard.
England said, "These growers are very progressive in this area. This is one of the oldest commercial ag production areas in the state. Their experience shows them what to do in order to continue."
He continued, "They know the importance of the river. They know their land, they have to be stewards of their land in order to stay in business."
And even though it’s tough to meet government regulations and shell out money for conservation technology, Jones said it has to be done.
"We want our farms to stay here and this is one way to ensure that, by taking care of our land and our environment," he said. "That's all while producing food for my family and your family and all the families in the U.S."