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What I've Learned From No-Tilling: Cattle, Cover Crops, No-Till and Improved Soil Health Provide Returns

By Martha Mintz and Jerry Doan
Some of the soils I helped farm as a child in southwestern North Dakota are probably somewhere in South Dakota now. I grew up in the era of wheat and summer fallow. A lot of the ground around here is very sandy and marginal. Did it ever blow when we were tilling. I remember as a kid getting sent with a disc or a drag to try and make it stop blowing. It seemed so futile, and it was.

  • Winter Cover Crop Mix Improves Crop Productivity, Clemson Study Finds

    Clemson researchers have found a cover crop mixture that can reduce costs for South Carolina farmers, rejuvenate farm soil and help conserve the state’s water supply if included in crop rotations. “Farmers in the southern United States grow cover crops primarily for biomass production and erosion control. We wanted to determine which cover crops would be most beneficial during the winter seasons in South Carolina," said Clemson graduate student Ricardo St. Aime.

  • Basalt Rock Dust Could Help Soils Store More CO2, Increase Yields

    Adding basalt rock dust to farmers’ fields could help soils to store four times more carbon dioxide (CO2) and increase crop yields, according to new research by academics at the University of Sheffield. The study, published in Global Change Biology, found that adding the dust increased yields of the cereal crop sorghum by as much as 20 percent. Read more in this article from Technology Networks.

  • Considerations for Planting Green

    An increasing number of growers are ‘planting green’ or have asked questions regarding this practice. ‘Planting green’ means the corn or soybean is planted directly into a growing cover crop (most often a small grain like rye or wheat) without killing it by herbicide or mechanical means first. Read more in this article from University of Nebraska Extension.
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Seeding Practices

  • Considerations for Planting Green

    An increasing number of growers are ‘planting green’ or have asked questions regarding this practice. ‘Planting green’ means the corn or soybean is planted directly into a growing cover crop (most often a small grain like rye or wheat) without killing it by herbicide or mechanical means first. Read more in this article from University of Nebraska Extension.

  • [Podcast] No Insecticide Means More Predation, Less Slugs

    Dealing with slugs can be a real nuisance for many growers. Dr. John Tooker, Penn State University, discusses how seed treatments influence predator populations in the field, how soybean yields respond when slugs are present in fields with both treated and untreated seed, why predator populations are important in your fields and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

  • Plan for Prevent Planting

    It’s tough to think about prevented planting, but coming up with a plan for those fields now is critical for following through with effective management. Bottom line is that something needs to be growing on those fields in 2020 to use water and prepare them for 2021. Read more in this article from AgWeek.
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Grazing

  • University of Idaho Studying Cover Crops

    The weather is different these days than when Eric Odberg was a kid. There’s less snow, wetter springs and hotter, drier summers, he says. Read more in this article from the Capital Press.

  • Integrating Covers, Livestock is a Profit Opportunity

    Cover crops have been gaining a reemerging acceptance over the last decade, with very few producers disagreeing about the potential soil health benefits of adding cover crops to their farming operation. However, with low commodity prices producers are trying to reduce expenses on inputs, especially on inputs with a varying or unknown return. Read more in this article from South Dakota State University Extension.

  • Cover Crops in High Country Pastures

    Glenn Elzinga converted leased BLM land to organic, improving forage quality by improving the soil. When Elzinga began looking at the soil and the forages that they provided for his cattle, he wanted to do better. Read more in this article from Lancaster Farming.
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Featured Video

Can Cover Crops Help Farmers Deal with Extreme Weather

Chris Kucharik, Professor of Agronomy & Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin, discusses what weather trends he's seeing and how they could impact farmers, what additional rainfall levels will mean for growers, and how cover crops can play a role.
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Soil Health

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  • [Video] Soil Biology Basics

    Soil health is the basis for all types of agriculture. In this webinar, Mark Schonbeck with the Organic Farming Research Foundation discusses the role of soil health in crop nutrition, how the soil food web works, how bacteria and fungi play into soil health, and more.

  • [Podcast] Wrangler Jeans Endorses Cover Crops

    The new “Rooted Collection” from Wrangler Jeans are made from cotton grown on farms that use cover crops. Roian Atwood, Senior Director of Sustainability with Wrangler & Lee, talks about the opportunity for land stewardship in cotton systems, consumer pressure on corporate decision making, how grazing systems add value to natural systems, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

  • Winter Cover Crop Mix Improves Crop Productivity, Clemson Study Finds

    Clemson researchers have found a cover crop mixture that can reduce costs for South Carolina farmers, rejuvenate farm soil and help conserve the state’s water supply if included in crop rotations. “Farmers in the southern United States grow cover crops primarily for biomass production and erosion control. We wanted to determine which cover crops would be most beneficial during the winter seasons in South Carolina," said Clemson graduate student Ricardo St. Aime.

  • Basalt Rock Dust Could Help Soils Store More CO2, Increase Yields

    Adding basalt rock dust to farmers’ fields could help soils to store four times more carbon dioxide (CO2) and increase crop yields, according to new research by academics at the University of Sheffield. The study, published in Global Change Biology, found that adding the dust increased yields of the cereal crop sorghum by as much as 20 percent. Read more in this article from Technology Networks.

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