If you’re wondering where to start with conservation practices on your farm, consider reduced or no tillage.
That production method shift might quickly give you the results you want to achieve, such as improved crop yields and soil quality, says Charles Shapiro, emeritus professor of agronomy and horticulture at the University of Nebraska.
“Not tilling can help you protect soils throughout the year,” Shapiro says. “Then consider adding cover crops as your second practice.”
While those are his go-to recommendations in many agronomic situations, Shapiro says ultimately the conservation practice you adopt first needs to depend on your location and fields.
“Consider what’s most vulnerable on your farm,” he says.
A Long-Term Gain
Borg Family Farms near Allen, Neb., adopted no-till more than 35 years ago. They recently added some cover crops, says Debbie Borg. The family raises corn, soybeans and alfalfa and integrates cattle and chicken manure as nutrient sources for the row crops.
“No-till takes some time to get used to, and the fields can be hard to look at the first couple of years,” Borg says, noting no-till fields aren’t attractive in a traditional cosmetic sense.
On the upside, she says, no-till has helped her family reduce their labor, fuel and production costs.
Just switching from continuous conventional till to seasonal no-till saves a little more than 3.2 gal. of fuel per acre, according to a 2017 USDA-NRCS report. Additionally, a farmer who plows 15 acres per hour, for instance, would save roughly 67 hours of work with each eliminated pass over a 1,000-acre operation by adopting no-till.
Water and Soil
Fields managed using no-till for multiple years generally have a higher water-holding capacity than conventionally tilled fields. This is particularly valuable in drought-prone areas. No-till adoption also reduces soil erosion and increases soil organic matter.
“The improvements don’t happen in one year,” Borg notes. “It’s a marathon and sometimes there’s a little pain, but once you get over it, there are many benefits.”
Fuel Saved = Money Saved
On average, farmers practicing continuous conventional till use just over 6 gal. of diesel fuel per acre each year. Continuous no-till uses fewer than 2 gal. per acre, according to NRCS.
If the off-road diesel fuel price is $2.05 per gallon and a 1,000-acre farmer switches from continuous conventional till to continuous no-till, the savings would be 4,160 gal. of diesel fuel. That’s more than $8,500 each year.
