Page 129 - Soil Degradation, Conservation and Remediation

4.6 Wind Erosion Control Measures 117

Fig. 4.8 Windbreak (Photo courtesy of USDA-NRCS)

(Sambucus canadensis), American hazelnut (Corylus americana), willow sandbar
(Salix interior), silver buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea), etc.
Small trees: American plum (Prunus americana), black chokeberry (Aronia
melanocarpa), chokecherry (Prunus virginiana), crabapples (Malus sp.), Hawthorn,
Arnold (Crataegus arnoldiana), Nanking cherry (Prunus tomentosa), pin cherry
(Prunus pensylvanica), etc.
Deciduous trees: River birch (Betula papyrifera), autumn splendor (Catalpa speciosa),
cottonwood (Populus deltoides), American elm (Ulmus americana), silver maple
(Acer saccharinum), red oak (Quercus rubra), white oak (Quercus alba), black
walnut (Juglans nigra), etc.
Conifers: Eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), eastern white pine (Pinus
strobus), ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), red pine (Pinus resinosa), white
cedar (Thuja occidentalis), white spruce (Picea glauca), etc.

4.6.6 Strip Cropping

The practice of farming land in narrow strips on which the crops alternate with fallow
is an effective aid in controlling wind erosion (Chepil 1957a). Strips are most effective
when they are at right angles to the prevailing wind erosion direction but also
provide some protection from winds that are not perpendicular to the field strip.
Strip cropping reduces erosion damage in the following ways: it reduces the distance
the wind travels across exposed soil, localizes drifting that starts at a focal point, and
reduces wind velocity across the fallow strip when adjacent fields are covered with
tall stubble or crops.