Blowing dust from summer fallow is a major soil loss and air quality concern in winter wheat (Triricum aesrivum L.) production areas of the inland Pacific Northwest (PNW). The objective of our 3-yr onfarm study in a 286-mm precipitation zone in eastern Washington was to determine the effects of tillage mulch depth during fallow on surface soil roughness, residue retention, seed-zone water stora...

Incorporation of manure into cultivated soils is generally recommended to minimize nutrient losses. A 3-yr study was conducted to evaluate sediment and nutrient losses with different tillage methods (moldboard plow, heavy-duty cultivator, double disk, and no-incorporation) for incorporation of beef cattle manure in a silage barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cropping system. Runoff depths, sediment lo...

Because the adoption of conservation tillage requires long-term evaluation, the effect of tillage and residue management on corn (Zea mays L.) grain and stover yields was studied for 13 seasons in east central Minnesota. Three primary tillage methods (no-till (NT), fall chisel plow (CH), fall moldboard plow (MB)) and two residue management schemes (residue removal versus residue returned) were ...

No-till acreage has increased in recent years, but many farmers alternate no-till with other tillage practices, limiting public and private benefits from sustained no-till adoption. Revealed preference data are used in an ordered logit regression analysis to determine the effect of soil characteristics, climate, regions, farm characteristics, and producer demographics on producers’ choices to u...

Introduction ............................................................................................................................2 Organic Farming & the Tillage Dilemma .........................................................................3 Mulch Tillage .........................................................................................................................5 Ridge Ti...

Soil microorganisms are important for climate regulation as well as for plant nutrition. In agricultural soils the microorganisms are affected by management choices, like which type of tillage that is used. Moldboard plowing, the most common tillage practice, increases mineralization which leads to soil organic carbon (SOC) loss, and may thus reduce soil quality. Conservation tillage practices ...

Methods In 2013, ISU FARM conducted two trials in Pottawattamie County that investigated the effect of various tillage systems on soybean grain yield. In Trial 1, a fall vertical tillage system and a fall disking were compared with a no-till system. In Trial 2, a fall vertical tillage system was compared with no-till. Vertical tillage systems are marketed as systems that lightly till the soil w...

Introduction ............................................................................................................................2 Organic Farming & the Tillage Dilemma .........................................................................3 Mulch Tillage .........................................................................................................................5 Ridge Ti...

No-tillage cultivation offers significant advantages over con­ ventional tillage in terms of water, energy, and particularly soil conservation (Francis et al., 1987). However, continuous no-tillage farming on sandy Ultisols may lead to high bulk density that has a pronounced effect on soil strength due to traffic compaction and lack of plowing (NeSmith et al., 1987). This increase in soil stren...