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Nebraska

West Fork Big Blue Watershed

April, 2005

CSP Enrollment Documents for Applicants

Description of Watershed

The total area in the watershed is 832,962 acres. This watershed is located in Adams, Clay, Fillmore, Hall, Hamilton, Saline, Seward, and York Counties in southeast Nebraska. There are 1433 farms in the watershed with an average size of 540 acres.

The land uses in this watershed consist of irrigated cropland, dryland cropland, and pastureland. The watershed area is mostly level to gently rolling, with steeper slopes along the major drainages. Large depressional areas formed historical wetlands in this area referred to as the Rainwater Basin.

Photograph of watershed area in Nebraska

The soils are mostly deep, well drained to moderately well drained silty soils that formed in loess. In basin areas, a claypan subsoil and poor drainage are typical.

Cropland in the watershed totals 706,400 acres. Primary crops include corn and soybeans. Other crops include grain sorghum, wheat, and alfalfa.

Pastureland and rangeland in the watershed totals 66,100 acres. Cool season pastures consist mainly of smooth bromegrass and Kentucky bluegrass. Warm-season pastures are a native tallgrass mix of mostly big bluestem, little bluestem, switchgrass, and Indiangrass.