CRP ??

[wtpops]

This my sound like a dumb question but what is CRP, well I know what it is but what does the acronym stand for?

[FerretWYO]

Conservation Reserve Program

[Ringneck]

For those reading and don't know what it is, it is a government program to take highly erodable farmland out of production and plant it to grass.

[Lost Arra]

I thought it was just a cozy resting place for pheasant.

[Ringneck]

That's a side benefit  

[NoCams]

Never hunted in it till we went to Illinois a few years back. After that we changed the name from CRP to CPR !!! When all you can see is 140"+ of horns moving thru that stuff and the CRP grass hides the rest of the deer's body you need CPR, haha !!!  

[sweeney3]

CRP, as said, is a program to put marginal land into native grasses and vegitation rather than production.  It is typically a 15 year cycle.  CRP can be fantastic habitat for wildlife.  This time of year, it might not hold so many deer if it's not pretty close a crop field.  They tend to hang out near the crops untill after harvest, then wander back to the CRP after the crop food source has run out.  If you can find crops boardered with CRP brush/thickets, you got a potential hotspot.

[mwosborn]

CRP out here in NE it is great habitat for all kinds of wildlife.  Unfortunately, with the high corn prices we are losing it fast!  It is going back into production as soon as the cycle is up.

[Keefer]

I thought it meant Crop retention Program? Learn something new every day...Thanks,,

[madness522]

I learn something new everday too.  I thought it was a type of grass planted like rye or winter wheat.  

So CRP is the designation for the land not what is growing on it.

[Friend]

CRP and/or set aside programs have their place but have witnessed, in my eyes, major abuse.

Viewed a property in 1987 that had been broken up and sold far below market value due to a bankruptcy. The property consisted of 150 acres with 140 tillable acres at ~$35,000. The land was laden with beautiful slightly rolling fields and full of lush crops. The deer had completely demolished the beans ~t 75 yards X 100 yards adjoining the neighboring woods. There were only 5 acres of woods, so I passed.
Note: Had previously harvested several nice deer on two of the adjoining  properties

A finance professional purchased the property, placed the property in the set aside program, and built a very nice home for which the government ended up paying 100% due to the income received from the set aside program.

Great business decision but haunts me due to the ethical nature.

[JohnV]

That must have been a pretty cheap house because here in Iowa in the early 2000's the government was paying about $100 per acre depending on the quality of the soil for growing corn.  I seriously doubt anyone in Kentucky was getting higher payments as the corn base is not nearly as good as Iowa.  Pheasant populations are at the lowest levels ever in Iowa, party due to winter ice and wet springs but also due to so many farmers taking marginal land out of the CRP program to grow corn where they can make a lot more money per acre.  Without the CRP program you could pretty much say goodbye to pheasants in much of the midwest as well as a drastic reduction in deer numbers as in many areas the CRP provides the best hiding/escape cover.  In my opinion, the CRP is one of the very few government programs that I consider to be worth my tax dollars.  I once read on another website some Iowa bowhunter bemoaning the CRP payments that farmers receive and how he did not support it.  Naturally this person owned no land, would not pay to lease land, and wants to hunt private property for free.  I replied to this person that if he really feels that way...tell it to the landowner the next time he is knocking on a door seeking permission to hunt and see how long it takes to get the door slammed in his face.  The CRP program benefits wildlife and is a worthy progam for all hunters and nature lovers to support.

[wtpops]

Thanks for the info guys. Maddness552, I to thought it was a type of plant, being form the country of California you dont see this kind of program.

[PaddyMac]

It began in the Farm Bill of 1985, I think, and has been expanded ever since. Good program.

[Friend]

JohnV....The house is quite nice and divulging any more information could have its own repercussions since I live in a small community.

My own connections to this situation are already closer than I wish.

There are many loop holes in the system and the actual total return per year in retrospect to your honest estimate actually has an extra digit.

I can comment on this no more.

[Ringneck]

Please PM me on how to get the "extra digit" for my CRP payment. I'm broke and could use it LOL!

[RonD]

I have no problem with farmers receiving taxpayer funds for a CRP progrram. The program can and does provide for not just grasses but included trees as well. This provides excellent habitat for wildlife. What I would like to see is the CRP system as a wildlife preserve with no hunting allowed on CRP land. I have personally seen some farmers using taxpayer CRP funding and creating their own hunting clubs.That to me is inappropriate use of taxpayer funds. Either make them a no hunting preserve or require farmers to open the land to the public with restrictions so that it is not overrun and destroyed. I know opinions are opinions and everybody has one. This is simply the way I feel about some uses of the CRP system.

[TNstickn]

What!!I sure hope its not being suggested that anyone is getting a 1000.00 an acre not to farm there property. Lets see 885 acres of crop fields times 1000.00... yeah, right. I think the protesters are at the wrong place. In 2008 the "rental fees" went from 1.00-200.00 an acre with an aditional 5.00 if you jumped through enough hoops.  My grandfather has propeerty in Missouri that has been in the program since the beginning, also recieved soil quality awards from the state, and thats what sets the "rent" price. Im not saying anyone is lieing, I am saying the math is wrong. There are state by state graphs and all the info. Its not hard to find. I would love to be wrong...all the way to the bank!   :D