Madison County Soil & Water Conservation District

10/16/2026

10/14/2026

🌱Madison County SWCD hosted the 2026 Madison County FFA Land Judging Competition at Butler & Sons Farm, alongside the Mock North District Land Judging Competition! Students from schools across North Alabama put their soil knowledge to the test, classifying soils at four different sites: cropland, forestland, pastureland, and a homesite.

🏆Congratulations to our winners:
1st Place: Hazel Green FFA
2nd Place: New Hope High School
3rd Place: Madison County High School
High Score: Ben Mitchell (Hazel Green)

Thank you to Butler and Sons Farm for allowing us to host this year’s competitions! We also appreciate all the hard work our NRCS staff puts into preparing for and helping make these events a success!
🌎🌱🚜🌾🌳

09/24/2026

🌱 Growing more than plants at Montview Elementary! Madison County SWCD is excited to provide an indoor hydroponics garden for students to learn about agriculture, science, and the importance of growing food. We love bringing hands-on learning into the classroom! 💧🥬📚

09/23/2026

🌾CAREERS IN AG FIELD TRIP🌾

Madison County SWCD was excited to welcome Heritage Elementary School 5th graders to the Tennessee Valley Research and Extension Center in Belle Mina for a fun and hands-on “Careers in Ag” Field Trip! Students spent the day exploring the many career opportunities in agriculture through interactive activities, games, and plenty of learning along the way.

The day included a tour of the farm, where students learned about the research and work being done by Auburn University. They also got to experience agriculture up close by picking their own corn, soybeans, and cotton! 🌽🌾

Students then put their knowledge to the test with “How Well Do You Know Your By-Products?” They explored commodity tables featuring corn, cotton, soybeans, wheat, and cattle while trying to identify where different everyday products come from. There were definitely some surprises along the way—including learning that cows help bring us marshmallows and guitar strings! 🎸🐄

To wrap up the day, students took on “Risk & Reward,” where they stepped into the shoes of a farmer. Working in groups, they made decisions about fertilizer, irrigation, and pest control and saw how those choices could affect their yield and profit. 🌱💰

We are so thankful for the incredible volunteers and ag partners who helped make this experience possible! A special thank-you to Hazel Green FFA for lending a hand and helping make the day such a success. We love providing students with opportunities to learn about agriculture and the many possibilities it has to offer! 🌱

09/17/2026

07/16/2026

The Madison County Soil & Water Conservation District is proud to have both a district supervisor and a district staff member representing Madison County in Alabama's Emerging Leaders in Conservation program.

As we near the completion of this two-year leadership experience, we're grateful for the opportunity to learn, grow, and bring new ideas back to better serve and advocate for our farmers, landowners, and conservation community. We look forward to putting what we've learned into practice.

Read more about the program in the article below! 🌱

https://www.nacdnet.org/2026/07/13/alabamas-emerging-leaders-in-conservation-initiative/

05/20/2026

📚Ag Learning Station📚

St. Mark Child Development Center Huntsville received their very own bookshelf filled with accurate conservation and agriculture books! 📚🌱

These books introduce students to topics like pollinators, gardening, farming, soil health, water cycles, and so much more. We are proud to continue planting the seeds of agricultural literacy and helping young minds grow through hands-on learning and reading opportunities.

This bookshelf marks the 55th bookshelf placed throughout our county!
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Thank you to our NRCS District Conservationist, Cedric Williams, for tagging along and reading “Right This Very Minute”.
The story follows the journey of food from farms to tables, highlighting farmers, truck drivers, bakers, fishermen, grocery workers, and many others. It helps children understand how connected agriculture is to everyday life and teaches appreciation for the people who help provide our food “right this very minute.” 🚜

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

05/15/2026

📚Ag Learning Station📚

Union Chapel Christian Academy received their bookshelf full of accurate conservation and agriculture books! 📚🌱

These books cover a variety of topics, including pollinators, gardening, farming, soil and water cycles, and so much more. We love planting the seeds of agricultural literacy and inspiring the next generation to learn more about the world around them!
💚🌱📖🌻🐝 💧🌎

05/13/2026

🌱💧Another garden growing strong!🪴

Madison County SWCD is excited to install an indoor hydroponics garden at James I. Dawson Elementary School — our 4th school garden this year and the final installation before summer break! These hands-on systems help students explore science, agriculture, and healthy growing right in the classroom. 📚🥬

05/13/2026

🌱Had a wonderful time returning to Studio 60 Senior Center Adult Daycare to judge the soil babies everyone created a few weeks ago! Commissioner Craig Hill joined us for the judging, and we were so impressed with all the creativity and hard work.

Everyone went home a winner with medals, smiles, and lots of pride in their creations. Thank you to everyone at Studio 60 for another fun and memorable day!
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Madison County Commission District 3