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Windbreak

Soil and Water Conservation Practices

A windbreak, also called a shelterbelt, is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion, commonly positioned as hedgerows around field edges on farms. Windbreaks help farmers retain snow on farmland for spring water supply, create microclimates around crops with reduced drying and nighttime chilling, provide wildlife habitat, and can offer harvestable wood in some regions; planted around homes, they can also reduce heating and cooling costs and prevent snow from accumulating on roadways or yards.

Facts
Practice Class
Erosion control and wind protection 1
Origin
Widely adopted as government-sponsored shelterbelts across the American prairies during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. 1
Connections

Associated With

In Discipline

Sources
1. Windbreak (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Windbreak organizations section
    an American initiative to create shelterbelts on the prairies in the USA during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s
  • Lead section
    A windbreak (shelterbelt) is a planting usually made up of one or more rows of trees or shrubs planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to protect soil from erosion.
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