Soil Health

Soil Health: The Next Big Step in Agriculture

Farmers must adopt conservation agricultural practices to begin building the environment for healthier soil microbes.
As you look back through agriculture there have been some real turning points. Agriculture saw the first real leap into production agriculture in our country with the Industrial Age, when mechanized agriculture really changed the face of our country. Larger and larger farms were created as it became possible to produce crops on many more acres.
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Case Closed: Soil Tests Confirm No-Till Success

Better equipment, residue-producing crops and plenty of persistence have keyed Steve Hoffman’s no-till transition in the Texas Panhandle.
Organic-matter readings from soil tests pretty much sum up the success Steve Hoffman has seen converting his farm in the Texas Panhandle to no-till practices.
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Pay Closer Attention to Micros to Preserve Higher No-Till Yields

Soil lab tests indicate many growers are mining their soils and neglecting micronutrient levels, which could hurt crop yields and profits in the long run.
EVEN THOUGH micronutrients play a crucial role in plant development, some recently publicized analyses of soil and tissue tests across several states show a large percentage of growers are running a deficit with some micros.
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9 Surefire Solutions to Challenging No-Till Problems

Renowned soil scientist Jill Clapperton explains how certain cover-crop species and other management practices can help resolve tough no-till problems.
Cover crops have been touted for feeding soil biological life, halting erosion and promoting an overall healthy, sustainable no-till system. But in some situations, with the right species, cover crops can help resolve additional challenges no-tillers are looking to fix.
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More Crops, Much More Residue

With most corn belt no-tillers growing only corn and soybeans, many of the major benefits of crop rotations are being overlooked. Even so, a recent University of Illinois study on the impact crop rotations have on soil quality may have raised more questions due to the favorable results found with continuous corn.
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From the Desk of John Dobberstein

More Than What Meets the Eye

Cover crop adoption has been a little slower in parts of the Great Plains, possibly more over fear of the unknown than actual poor outcomes seen by growers. But researchers reviewing decades of cover-crop studies say there are plenty of benefits to covers, whether you farm in the warm southern Plains or cooler prairies of western Canada.
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