Just outside Lexington, Ky., you can find Peaceful Valley Farm, the longtime Kiser family home. Joe Kiser bought the 162-acre farm in 1965. The farm has thrived since then—even during the current severe drought—thanks to Kiser’s conservation-minded land management.

Kiser operated the farm, which includes cattle and a large garden, for many years using water from a nearby stream.

With technical assistance from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Kiser dug a well in the mid-‘90s, but continued to use the stream for supplemental water as needed. But when the stream ran dry in this summer’s drought, Kiser struggled to keep his livestock and garden watered and had to rely partly on city water. Read more »