While no-tilled crops are widely considered to be among the best ways to sequester carbon, the actual amounts may actually be tied to soil type, soil drainage and soil depth.

Is there a benefit to moldboard plowing a no-till field once every 10 years? A recent article, “Changing Tillage, Changing Nutrient Management,” in the Spring 2008 issue of Plant Nutrition Today suggested that continuous no-till can lead to accumulation of phosphorus (P) at the soil surface, causing higher P concentrations in runoff.

Determining how much fertilizer to apply this spring is a lot like determining how much oil your tractor needs.

I hope you were able to attend the National No-Tillage Conference and pick up a lot of new ideas for your farm. The trick is to pick out the high-quality ideas that will work in your system.

A common question often asked about no-till is whether any nutrient stratification occurs due to a lack of soil mixing. Many no-tillers wonder if stratification is a problem for effective crop access to soil nutrients.