Free Water Testing at Farmfest

The Minnesota Agriculture Water Resource Center (MAWRC) is testing water for nitrates at Farmfest at no charge. The MAWRC is in the tent just east of the Wick Forum Building at Farmfest. Executive Director Warren Formo said some are bringing well water samples and others water collected from tile outlets. Remember drinking water that is above standards can be dangerous for young children and babies.

Warren said some farmers are monitoring nitrate nitrogen in their tile drainage as a nitrogen management tool. Quite simply if you know how much nitrogen you lost you can determine if you need to apply more nitrogen in season. Warren added very few wells had nitrates higher standards. The ones that did were very shallow wells or had other structural issues.

If you are going to Farmfest and would like your water tested, let the water run for a little while, put a sample in a zip-lock bag, refrigerate the sample and bring it to Farmfest. .