No-Till Farmers See Big Payoff
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| Retha Colclasure |
| 5/19/2009 |
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| Farmers want a healthy, bountiful crop that will help them keep going for years to come. To do that, more and more of them are paying closer attention to the condition of the soil. Cover crops and no-till farming are two methods that farmers can use to improve their soil. And after this winter, those farmers are seeing a big payoff. When Glenn Bauer takes his tractor to this land near Regan, he`s doing everything possible to minimize the impact on the soil, right down to using a tractor that evenly distributes its weight. But it`s what he`s finding below the soil that`s really making a difference. "With our no-till and our cover crops, I think we are getting a lot better infiltration," Bauer says. That means low-lying areas in the field aren`t filled with water, because the water soaked in. "We`re not going around, we aren`t duplicating or going over the ground twice," says Bauer. "We save seed and fertilizer, and we get production off all of our acres, not just where there`s no potholes." Bauer`s no till system not only helps water be absorbed into the soil better, it also builds up soil health. "It`s all part of building your soil health, and I think when you increase your soil aggregates and your infiltration rates, and you get the profile in, that`s a good return in the fall," says Jay Fuhrer, of the Natural Resources Conservation Service. In addition to using a no-till system, Bauer planted cover crops on his land after he harvested it. The roots and organic matter from those plants will break down into the soil, and open up paths for water to soak in. "The tap roots did create a street and avenues for moisture to go into profile quickly," Fuhrer says. Once it`s there, the moisture can be stored in the soil, and help plants get through almost any kind of weather North Dakota has to offer. Bauer says he`s using cover crops as a way to cut back on the amount of fertilizer he has to apply. He hopes putting nutrients back into the soil will help him cut back by 25-percent. |
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