Conservation Farming
No one knows better than you that the future of your farm depends on balancing practices and profits that sustain your land, resources and family. The stakes are evolving based on weather patterns, technology, market demand and more. What actions are you taking to remain resilient?
8 steps you can take towards sustainability
- CROP ROTATION
- REDUCED TILLAGE
- NO TILL
- COVER CROPS
- WATER MANAGEMENT
- NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
- FORAGE AND BIOMASS PLANTING
- DATA AND RECORD KEEPING
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“We are talking about fuel produced in 2025, but that is going to use the crop we are growing this year,” Mitchell Hora says.
A Minnesota grower asks Ken Ferrie, Farm Journal Field Agronomist, how to improve upon the soil fertility on 90 acres he is renting for the first time this year.
It’s been said high-yielding corn needs 25" of moisture per acre per year. In 2023, when Mother Nature didn’t cooperate, management strategies to retain moisture coupled with new traits made a difference at harvest.
The NewLeaf Symbiotics team says reluctance to try biologicals is often a result of feeling overwhelmed by the options available, making education key as the space continues to grow.
Planter technology once focused on acres per day, but plant spacing and uniformity have moved to the forefront and there’s been an explosion of technology to help manage the furrow. Smart investments will maximize corn yield on every soil type.
Data — a word that packs a punch but can be hard to define. From planting to irrigation, it’s necessary to have a digital record of these field activities to participate in sustainability and crop traceability programs.
Rick Rice, AMVAC director of application technology, says grant programs aren’t meant to forever subsidize a particular practice, but instead act as a catalyst for new participants to see its benefits.
“It’s in these challenging markets farmers need to think about driving more efficiency using technology,” says Darryl Matthews, a recently retired tech executive. Certain technologies can provide a short-term ROI.
Farm Journal Test Plot research proves practices that reduce soil disturbance and sequester carbon perform best in a vertical farming system, as opposed to horizontal tillage, which creates yield-limiting soil layers.
Biome Makers said it pairs artificial intelligence with its soil database to decode soil biology and provide growers with more actionable information.