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Laura Barrera

Laura Barrera is the former managing editor of No-Till Farmer and Conservation Tillage Guide magazines. Prior to joining No-Till Farmer, she served as an assistant editor for a greenhouse publication. Barrera holds a B.A. in magazine journalism from Ball State University.

Articles

ARTICLES

Should You Rely on Technology to Guide Your Nitrogen Decisions?

A soil scientist explains the accuracy of different nitrogen advisory tools, their limitations, and whether they’re likely to provide a return on investment.

By Laura Barrera posted on November 3, 2020 | Posted in Nutrient Management

NITROGEN (N) IS ONE of the biggest influencers on corn yield. In fact, University of Illinois plant physiologist Fred Below called it the second most important factor in his “Seven Wonders of the Corn Yield World,” ranked just behind weather.

9 Tips for Succeeding with Cover Crops in the South

Four South Carolina growers share why they started cover cropping, the challenges they’ve faced and how the practice is helping them improve their soils.

By Laura Barrera posted on August 5, 2020 | Posted in Cover Crops, Soil Health

Jason Carter was always told that you can’t improve your soil organic matter in South Carolina. “You’re right, without cover crop, you can’t,” says the Eastover, S.C., no-tiller.

Should You Rotate Your Cover Crops? 4 Issues to Consider

Some covers planted back to back, year after year, can cause problems for no-tillers with root and soil diseases if selection and timing isn’t carefully managed, says Dave Robison.

By Laura Barrera posted on January 26, 2020 | Posted in Cover Crops, Crop Protection

Growers probably know crop rotation is a good thing as it helps prevent pests and disease, improves soil health and reduces fertilizer inputs — all of which can boost crop yields and the bottom line.

Diversifying Crops and Livestock Saves Soil While Boosting Profitability

Gail Fuller learned it takes more than no-till to see a change in soil health, and since losing his crop insurance, he’s no longer focused on chasing yields for commodities, but building healthy soil for healthy foods.

By Laura Barrera posted on December 29, 2019 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops, Nutrient Management, Soil Health

Gail Fuller has always been driven by erosion. He decided to give no-till a try not long after he began farming full-time in the 1980s, because he hated seeing soil leave his farm in Emporia, Kan., where slopes range from 1-5%.

Feeding the Soil Brings Dramatically Positive Results

At a soil health conference at Clemson University in October 2019, Doug Newton, a no-tiller from Clio, S.C., sat down with West Union, Iowa, no-tiller Loran Steinlage and discussed their experiences with no-tilling, cover cropping and creating fertility with plants.

By Laura Barrera posted on December 27, 2019 | Posted in Cover Crops, Soil Health

Doug Newton, a no-tiller from Clio, S.C., sat down with West Union, Iowa, no-tiller Loran Steinlage and discussed their experiences with no-tilling, cover cropping and creating fertility with plants.

11 Tips for Getting Started with Cover Crops

With two decades of cover cropping experience under his belt, Illinois farmer Adam Dahmer shares his advice and suggestions for those new to the practice.

By Laura Barrera posted on October 31, 2019 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops, Crop Protection

Adam Dahmer was born into a farming operation in Marion, Ill., that was already 100% no-till 3 years before he was born.

Understanding the Limits of Soil Health Tests

A study of three commercial soil health tests looked at whether they could distinguish different management systems and provide useful insights to no-tillers.

By Laura Barrera posted on October 9, 2019 | Posted in Soil Health

Several years ago, the Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative (CCSI), a program focused on improving soil health in Indiana, began receiving questions from farmers about soil health tests.

Cover Crop Veteran Shares Secrets of Interseeding Success

Cover crop and no-till veteran David Brandt explains why no-tillers need to consider their herbicide program, cover crop seeding method and choice of species to make interseeding work.

By Laura Barrera posted on July 11, 2019 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops, Soil Health

David Brandt knows cover crops. The Carroll, Ohio, no-tiller has been using them on his 600-acre farm since 1978 and today has a cover crop seed company to help others improve their soil health and land management practices.

Experiments with ‘Extreme Biomass’ Provide Soil and Water Protections

Pennsylvania no-tiller Jim Hershey shares his thoughts on maximizing cover crop benefits by interseeding and delaying termination.

By Laura Barrera posted on May 28, 2019 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops, Nutrient Management, Soil Health

Lancaster County, located about 90 minutes west of Philadelphia, is the largest livestock-producing county in Pennsylvania. It’s also the county with the most impaired streams, making it a major contributor of pollution to the Chesapeake Bay.

Curbing Nitrogen Runoff in the Chesapeake Bay with Data, Precise Placement

With over 10,000 acres of cover crops, Trey Hill explains how he’s updated his equipment for better fertilizer placement, while data from Encirca helps him decide on nitrogen amounts.

By Laura Barrera posted on March 29, 2019 | Posted in Cover Crops, Nutrient Management

In an effort to curb nutrient pollution in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland farmers have been met with strict regulations on when, how and how much fertilizer they can apply to their fields.

View All Articles by Laura Barrera

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Strip Cropping and Interseeding Cover Crops with Marty Weiss

Capturing sunlight and keeping living roots in the ground as long as possible is the goal of Beaver Dam, Ws., no-tiller Marty Weiss. The co-chair of the Dodge County Farmers for Healthy Soil & Healthy Water talks about strip-cropping and interseeding cover crops at a field day in the summer of 2020.

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