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Rolling Covers, Planting Non-GMOs ‘Green’ Leads to Efficient, Thriving No-Till System
By relying on good farm data to improve their operation, Rick Clark and family are capitalizing on the non-GMO crop market while cutting costs, building soil health and stabilizing yields.
The following article is based on Rick Clark's presentation at the 2019 National No-Tillage Conference. To watch the presentation, click here.
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.
Farming with his father Richard and nephew Aaron, Rick’s diverse no-till system includes planting green and utilizing diverse plant species and rotations.
By focusing soil health, Rick says he knows higher yields will come later. And not only are yields more stable and projected to continue climbing, the Clarks have seen significant savings on their inputs — all while growing 100% non-GMO crops for a local dairy and moving towards organic production.
None of this would have happened without the status quo on the family’s farm. “I challenge everyone to get a little uncomfortable,” Clark told attendees at the 2019 National No-Tillage Conference. “I think you’ll like the way it feels.”
NO-TILL TAKEAWAYS
- To smother troublesome marestail or waterhemp, try seeding 120 pounds an acre of cereal rye and rolling it down to keep the weeds from germinating.
- Beef up your farm’s collection of on-farm data, if necessary, and use it to push your no-till innovation harder.
- Balansa clover has a hollow stem and may terminate better with a roller-crimper pass than crimson clover.
Pulling Up ‘Free’ Fertilizer
The Clarks’ journey to an advanced no-till system began 15 years ago when the family started no-tilling soybeans. Five years later…
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