The late harvest may have frustrated no-till grain farmers, but it could help the soil.

Regardless of a farmer’s chosen tillage methods, he’s likely felt the pain and frustration of a slow, tedious harvest. However, for producers who have chosen no-till farming, their challenges might be a bit less painful.

Soil scientists with the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service are currently working on a project that will help farmers know how tillage methods impact soil quality.

Farmers who cut back on high-cost fertilizer inputs in 2009, and then had record yields, are wondering how much fertilizer is actually needed. For 2010, let fall soil tests be your guide. Adequate levels of such nutrients as phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) can go a long way in boosting yield potential, especially if next season brings more "normal" weather conditions.

Many no-till corn and soybean growers are harvesting record crops. However, they may be facing compaction issues because of saturated soils at harvest. "Many farmers will be unable to get back in their fields after harvest," said Randall Reeder, an Ohio State University Extension agricultural engineer. "Many fields have ruts and severe compaction issues."

The same weather conditions that have delayed Ohio corn and soybean harvest are also keeping wheat out of the ground.

A tillage study was established in 1981 at the University of Nebraska Rogers Memorial Farm, 10 miles east of Lincoln, to gain experience with various tillage systems. In 2009, the long-term no-till fields were the highest-yielding plots by far.

Scientists have found that it might be more cost-effective, energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable to use corn stover for generating an energy-rich oil called bio-oil and for making biochar to enrich soils and sequester carbon.

A Purdue University no-till researcher's motto, "No plant left behind," sums up his research on achieving increased grain yield for corn at higher plant densities.