The average No-Till Farmer reader seeded slightly more cover crop acres in 2018 than during the previous year — although the percentage of readers who seeded covers took a slight dip, according to the most recent No-Till Farmer Operational Benchmark Study.

When Michael Thompson was 18 he envisioned himself joining his parents in their farming operation in northwestern Kansas and becoming a dedicated, 100% cash grain farmer. However, life and generations of conventional farming got in the way.

Yield doesn’t drive Rick Clark’s no-till system. Instead, the fifth generation no-tiller intensely focuses on building soil health as the driver of his family’s 7,000-acre operation near Williamsport, Ind.

Nitrogen fixing legumes can save $37 per acre on fertilizer costs, but there can be big differences in varieties and growers need to do their homework, says Grassland Oregon.

With corn prices looking a little more bear than bull these days, many growers may be looking for places to trim their input costs. For most growers, covers are a somewhat easy target, as there’s a good chance they’re the most recent, and least proven, management practice on the farm. But before any hasty decisions are made, experts advise that growers give cover crops their fair due.