Soil core demo at Tel-tvm’ 
Soil moisture sensor reading at Outback Farm 
Soil moisture sensor reading at Tel-tvm demo tour 
Rainwater catchment at Tel-tvm’ – photo by Katrina Hudson 
Making marigold garlands during Tel-tvm’ demo tour – photo by Katrina Hudson 
Food forest at Outback Farm 
Preparation for planting at Kasama Farm 
Mulch demo at Raptor Creek Farm 
Mulching demo with straw and red plastic in tomatoes at UW Farm 
Demo Tour with OSU Dry Farming Program 
Soil moisture sensor reading at UW Farm Demo Tour 
Melon tasting at WWU Outback Farm Demo Tour
Background
Growers across the West Coast are facing increasing water unpredictability driven by climate change, prolonged drought, and shifting water policies. For small-scale and historically underserved farmers, limited access to funding, technical assistance, and water rights often means they must adapt with fewer resources. And yet, many are leading the way—developing low-cost, resource-efficient strategies out of necessity and ingenuity.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Each farm operates with its own mix of constraints—whether it’s limited irrigation access, challenging soils, or extreme weather. This diversity is exactly what makes these six farms’ stories so valuable.
2024 Water Resilience Case Studies:
Farm-Tested Strategies, Toolkit-Inspired Solutions
- Oregon State University’s Dry Farming Program, Corvallis, Oregon
- Kasama Farm at Headwaters Incubator Farm, Gresham, Oregon
- Outback Farm at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington
- Tel-tvm’ (Siletz Tribal Farm), The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians Health Clinic – Food Sovereignty Program, Logsden, Oregon
- Raptor Creek Farm, Josephine County Food Bank, Grants Pass, Oregon
Coming Soon…
- The University of Washington (UW) Farm in Seattle, Washington
In 2024, the Dry Farming Institute partnered with six farms across the Pacific Northwest to explore a range of water-resilient approaches tailored to each farm’s conditions. These case studies are our way of sharing their lessons learned to a broader community.
“Farming can be isolating. It was nice to feel supported—to know there are people you can reach out to when you need help.”
Raptor Creek Farmers
The case studies are also part of a broader initiative to support farmer-led innovation. Based on lessons from these six farms and a decade of dry farming work in Oregon, we are sharing the process, tools, and resources that have been most helpful – a Water Resilience Toolkit—a flexible, farmer-centered guide to help others explore and adapt similar strategies on their own land.
“(in monitoring soil moisture to determine when to irrigate) 80% of the time I was not right (based on what I felt)……It’s hot. I’m hot. But underground, it’s different.”
Tel-tvm’ Farmer
These case studies bring our Water Resilience Toolkit to life—illustrating real-world applications of the tools and strategies we’ve developed below. These stories don’t just highlight practices—they celebrate the people behind them. Farmers are not just adopters of new ideas; they’re explorers and knowledge-keepers for their communities.
Partners in Resilience
This project is part of a collaboration between American Farmland Trust, the Dry Farming Institute, Oregon State University Extension, the Washington Water Trust, the USDA California and Northwest Climate Hubs and Oregon Climate and Agriculture Network. This project was supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Extension, Education, and USDA Climate Hubs Partnership program (Award #2023-67019-39349) in 2024, focused on providing effective, translatable, and scalable approaches to address climate change through regional partnerships.