Cover Crops

Soybean Farmers Detail ‘Sustainable Practices’ That Can Pay Off

Fri, 08 May 2026 12:57:17 GMT

Cover crops were nearly scratched off Laurie and Jim Isley’s list of practices on their Michigan farm a few years ago. The reason? Production costs were adding roughly $35 an acre to their budget, which was already stretched beyond thin.

“Things were really limited for us, so we looked at that practice really, really hard,” says Laurie, who farms with her husband near Palmyra, Mich. “We can absolutely be environmentally sustainable, but the bottom line is we’re not going to stay in business unless we are profitable.”

The use of cover crops is back on firmer economic ground now, she adds, thanks to cost-share programs such as Farmers for Soil Health (FSH), which help make soil health investments possible for income-strapped growers.

Making Cover Crops Cash-Flow

The biggest hurdle for cover crops has always been the upfront cost versus the delayed gratification of better soil structure. The Farmers for Soil Health initiative is currently bridging that gap for growers in 20 states. Isley says the program offers up to $35 per acre in cost-share, plus technical assistance.

For many farmers, the frustration with government or industry programs often lies in the “fine print.” Isley highlights two specific features of the FSH program that make it a more useful tool for many row-crop growers:

The “No Look Back” Policy: Unlike many programs that only reward “new” adopters, FSH is open to almost any grower. “You are eligible for this program whether you are planting cover crops for the very first time, or whether you’ve been planting them for 10, 15 or 20 years,” Isley says.
Short-Term Commitment: “It’s a one-year contract, but you can re-enroll in it year-after-year (with up to 2,000 acres per operation) through the length of time Farmers for Soil Health continues,” Isley notes.

Beyond the dollars, the program addresses the “how-to” hurdle. Each state has designated advisers to help with cover crop species selection, seeding methods (including the use of drones), and termination timing.

“It isn’t just, ‘Go forth and find cover crops,’” Isley says. “Sometimes you just need some expert help in order to get started on something. Even if you say, ‘I’m only going to do 100 acres this year,’ that’s still 100 acres you’re going to get that $35 an acre on to get started.”

High-Oleic Soybeans: A Revenue-Side Opportunity

While cost-shares help manage expenses, Matthew Chapman is looking at the other side of the ledger: revenue. For his east-central Indiana farm, high-oleic soybean contracts have been a game-changer.

“This project’s really been a home run for the whole soybean industry,” Chapman notes. He says that backed by checkoff investments and partnerships with industry giants like Bayer, Corteva, and Beck’s, the specialty beans have already delivered over $400 million in total returns to U.S. farmers.

Chapman started off growing high-oleic soybeans on 20% of his acreage and eventually scaled to 100%. The premiums — ranging in his area from $0.75 to $1.25 per bushel last year — were a huge boost to his bottom line. But he says they have some requirements that farmers need to consider.

“Oftentimes you’re going to need to store this crop, depending on how far away your purchaser is,” he notes. “Your weed program and your plan need to start in the fall. There’s just a lot to consider ahead of time.”

The market is also evolving. High-oleic oil is prized by restaurants for its long fry life and trans-fat-free profile, and new markets are emerging. Chapman notes that his 2026 crop is destined for dairy feed — the beans will be roasted, cracked and fed whole.

United Soybean Board (USB) projections suggest that by 2027, about half of the U.S. high-oleic soybean crop could be headed to the dairy sector. Industrial uses are also gaining traction in asphalt, bioplastics and fire-resistant hydraulic oil, especially in sensitive environments like mining or near waterways.

Navigating The Carbon And Fuel Frontier

While the federal process for carbon intensity (CI) modeling is still unfolding, farmers see opportunity in markets tied to carbon scores and renewable fuels.

USB is currently funding research to ensure farmers aren’t left behind as these markets mature. One surprising finding from Iowa State University: simply planting earlier can reduce nitrous oxide emissions, a major contributor to CI scores.

“That really costs us nothing to do,” Isley says. By documenting this “free” practice change, farmers can potentially lower their CI scores and increase the value of their grain in renewable fuel markets.

However, participation requires data. Chapman emphasizes that farmers need to be the masters of their own information.

“Whenever you’re selling the data off your farm, which is what this is, it starts with knowing what we have,” he says. “It’s hard to sell something unless you know what you’ve got when you start off.”

In southeast Kansas, farmer Charles Atkinson sees this playing out in the biodiesel and renewable diesel sectors. He believes that using the product on the farm is the best way to support the market.

“It’s a product that we’ve developed, that we’ve raised, and it should be No. 1 on our priority list to use it,” Atkinson says.

The “Plan A Through F” Mindset Is Needed

Beneath all the programs and markets, the three growers say long-term profitability still depends on flexibility: having enough tools and plans on the shelf to adjust to whatever the season and markets throw at them.

The need for flexibility shows up in day-to-day decision-making. Atkinson describes his operation, based near Great Bend, as one that constantly shifts among no-till, cover crops, chemistry options and even occasional tillage, depending on the year’s weather, pests and markets.

“It seems like we have plan A, B, C, D, E and F, and depending on what gets thrown at us and what Mother Nature gives us, we have to figure out what plan to run,” he says. “Last year, I had a beautiful plan together. It was all going to work. And I think we were down to plan D before we got finished up.”

Chapman takes a similar view. He says farmers like having “a lot of tools in the toolbox,” even ones they rarely use.

“As the world’s always changing, we want to be proactive and we want to do stuff that we can voluntarily do on our farm,” he says. “Move towards that goal of leaving the farm better than you found it, and hope the day never comes that something’s your only option.”

Isley says programs such as Farmers for Soil Health, along with EQIP, CSP and state or watershed initiatives, help move more growers toward that toolbox mentality by reducing risk.

In her view, profitable sustainability isn’t about any single practice, but about using the right mix of programs, premiums and practices to fit each farm.

“I think we often are hesitant to look for help, because we want to be self-reliant,” she says. “But sometimes it really makes a difference if we look for technical assistance and for those resources that are out there and available to us.”

Isley, Chapman, and Atkinson shared their perspectives in a webinar, “How Sustainable Production and Economic Viability Can Coexist,” on Thursday. The program was hosted by Agri-Pulse in partnership with the United Soybean Board.

Betting on Biomass: How Two Farmers Turn Cover Crops Into Weed Control

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 20:38:13 GMT

When herbicide-resistant waterhemp began rewriting the rules of weed control for farmers in Illinois, Frank Rademacher didn’t respond by using more products. Instead, he doubled down on no-till and cover crops, betting that a living carpet of rye and roots could do what herbicides alone no longer could.

Rademacher, who farms with his father in Champaign County, recalls the initial transition was a steep learning curve, complicated by making too many changes at one time.

“When we got into cover crops heavy, that was also basically the same year we switched everything over to no-till, and the same year we switched all of our crops to non-GMO,” he says. “Boy, that was a mistake on a lot of fronts, because your weed populations really shift in the process of switching to no-till, at least initially.”

Despite the early hurdles, cereal rye became the foundation of Rademacher’s weed-control program. On his east-central Illinois fields, drilled cereal rye—planted early at roughly 50 pounds per acre—has provided enough biomass to simplify herbicide programs in his non-GMO soybeans.

“There [have been] a lot of times where we have just done like a one-pass herbicide program, so no post spray, and that was in non-GMO beans, and they were really clean,” Rademacher says.

Match Cover Crop Species to Farm Goals

Hundreds of miles away in Virginia, Paul Davis follows a similar philosophy. No-tilling since 1999 and using covers since 2005, Davis views weed control as inseparable from soil health.

“They do so many things,” says Davis, who farms in New Kent County. “Providing erosion control, providing something growing all winter to scavenge any nutrients... making nitrogen, especially this year for my corn crop.”

While Rademacher leans on cereal rye for soybeans, Davis centers his program on a cereal rye-vetch system ahead of corn. Both farmers aim for enough biomass to smother weeds while keeping the cash crop competitive and thriving.

Managing the Fine Line Between Weed and Crop Control

The balance is delicate, particularly with corn. Rademacher warns: “As it relates to corn, the line between enough biomass to fight weeds all season long, and the line between that and having no crop at all can be a pretty fine line. It’s pretty easy to have really good weed control, but also really good crop control.”

To avoid tying up nitrogen, Rademacher opts to use wheat or barley ahead of corn rather than the more aggressive cereal rye.

Davis manages these tradeoffs by decoupling his grass and legumes in the spring. He kills the cereal rye early with a grass herbicide to prevent the Carbon-to-Nitrogen (C:N) ratio from becoming too high.

“I don’t want the cereal rye to go that long, because once it gets a hollow stem, it takes a lot of bacteria eating nitrogen to break that hollow stem down,” he explains.

By late March, Davis terminates the cereal rye but feeds the vetch, letting it grow until it blooms. By mid-May, the vetch forms a two-foot-tall mat that suppresses weeds and allows him to scale back on products.

“That’s really where I’ve cut my herbicide program back the most, in my corn rotation with the heavy vetch stand,” he says.

The Biomass Trap and Termination Timing

Both farmers emphasize that covers complement, rather than replace, good chemistry on their fields. Rademacher warns that a “middle ground” of biomass can actually be detrimental.

“There is kind of a point where you’ve got enough biomass that inhibits some of your herbicide from hitting the ground—too much residue, but not quite enough to get really good weed control to replace that impact,” he says.

He is also “hyper vigilant” about the weather during termination, noting that nighttime temperatures should be above 50°F to ensure the plants don’t shut down. He also cautions about the spray mix used. He sometimes sees termination failures when farmers add clay-based residuals like atrazine in poor temperature windows.

Davis scales his herbicide use based on biomass volume. “If you’re planting into [6,000 to 8,000 pounds], you definitely can reduce your herbicide program,” he says. However, “If you have a weak stand of rye... don’t plan on cutting your herbicide program back.”

On a related front, Davis and Rademacher have been able to reduce their insecticide use. After noticing spider webs in his fields 12 years ago, Davis stopped using them entirely. “I haven’t used an insecticide since—not on corn, beans, wheat, pumpkins, anything,” he says.

Rademacher reports that beneficial predators on his farm now control pests like slugs. “We’ve got such a huge beneficial population... because we haven’t used insecticides now on anything going on six or seven years,” he says.

Weed Control As Part Of A System

Both farmers say weed control is now the product of a broader system they’ve adopted: no-till, continuous roots, high-residue covers, and a more complex biological community above- and below-ground.

To get started with cover crops, Rademacher tells farmers to begin where he believes there’s room for error: with soybeans. “I would get cover crops to have soybeans figured out,” he says. “Just plant… whatever [your] local NRCS recommendations are for cereal rye rates.”

Davis would start out using covers ahead of corn, using a focused cereal rye–vetch program and learning to time termination for both weed control and nitrogen. He stresses growing enough biomass to matter, killing the cereal rye before it gets too lignified, and then letting vetch build the mat that suppresses weeds and feeds the crop.

His main advice to farmers is to think long-term. “It takes five or six years before you really start seeing the benefits,” he says. “God didn’t make Earth in one day, so don’t expect miracles in one day.”

Davis and Rademacher shared their experiences incorporating the use of cover crops on their farms during an online GROW farmer forum addressing the topic of using cover crop mixes for weed suppression. GROW stands for Getting Rid Of Weeds. The organization is a scientist-led network coordinating research to help farmers across the U.S. fight herbicide-resistance with a greater diversity of weed control strategies to complement chemical use.

Is Zero Tolerance For Weed Escapes The New Standard?

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 21:08:35 GMT

Across the country, Extension weed scientists are rewriting the rules of acceptable weed pressure in corn and soybeans. For many, tolerance for a few late-season escapes of tough weeds—like Palmer amaranth and waterhemp—is a thing of the past. Increasingly, the Extension community is encouraging farmers to draw some harder lines. One of those is for zero tolerance for weed seed production.

“We have really kind of shifted to this idea largely because of herbicide resistance. That is a huge threat for our crop production systems,” explains Sarah Lancaster, Kansas State University weed management Extension specialist and assistant professor.

Lancaster emphasizes that effective weed control is no longer about picking one or two individual tools to address weeds and prevent seed dispersal. Instead, it is about stacking as many tools as feasible into a single season.

“If you think about this as a multiple-choice answer, it’s not about using A, B, or C. The right answer is D—use all of the above,” she says.
Herbicides, cultural practices, strategic tillage, cover crops, rotations, and sanitation all play a role in stopping weeds.

During a recent episode of The Crop Science Podcast Show, available here , Lancaster addressed specific tools and practices to help farmers work toward the “zero tolerance” goal this season. Here are five for consideration:

1. Herbicides Will Still Be A Core Tool For Weed Control.

Despite the push for diversification, Lancaster believes herbicides remain the central tool for row-crop farmers.

“In our conventional broad-acre ag systems, herbicides are still going to be the most efficient, most economical way to [control weeds]—I’m going to say for the rest of my career,” she says.

However, decisions about product selection, rates, application timing, and application quality are increasingly critical—even more so under stress conditions like heat and drought. In western Kansas, Lancaster sees farmers adjusting their practices to meet these challenges.

“When it gets hot and dry, our farmers are really good at modifying their herbicide applications to make sure they’re still going to be efficacious in those very difficult conditions,” she explains. “They know that if they skimp on the water, they’re wasting their time, so they do a good job of accounting for that, modifying their adjuvants, and knowing when to adjust.”

2. Use Cultural Practices To Make The Crop Competitive.

Lancaster stresses that managing the crop can be just as important as managing the weeds.

“Other things that we talk about would be cultural control practices, looking at planting dates and row spacings,” she says. “How do we manipulate that crop to make it as competitive as possible and maybe support our herbicides a little bit better, so that we have fewer weeds to control?”

For growers, this means considering narrower rows, if suitable for the cropping system, and using optimal planting dates to favor the crop over the weeds.

These tactics don’t replace herbicides, Lancaster adds, but they make every herbicide dollar go further.

3. Consider Using Strategic Tillage In No-Till Systems.

In Kansas, no-till is widely adopted to conserve soil and water, but Lancaster points out that it can reshape the weed spectrum and the tools required to manage it.

“Here in Kansas, no-till is a very important soil conservation practice, but it brings its own set of weed management challenges,” she notes. “The number one reason that tillage is a good thing is to kill weeds. When you remove that, you’re 100% reliant on herbicides.”

She believes there are scenarios in no-till where strategic or occasional tillage has a place. One example is the return of perennial warm-season grasses in long-term no-till fields, such as tumble windmill grass.

“That’s an example of a situation where strategic or occasional tillage is becoming a more accepted, more common idea for managing some of these key weeds,” Lancaster says.

Her bottom-line message is to use tillage strategically whenever tough weeds require it.

4. Technology Can Help Improve Control, Reduce Rates, Cut Costs.

Lancaster sees real promise in camera- or sensor-based systems that spray only where weeds are present, such as “See & Spray” or “Weed-It” systems. She finds the technology is especially beneficial on fallow ground or in stubble.

She notes that in some cases, these tools are what make no-till financially viable. Referencing one farmer she works with, Lancaster sayss they used this technology to stay aggressive on weed control while actually reducing input costs.

“They’ve looked at the economic numbers, and now they know that they can kill the weeds with herbicide applications and drop that herbicide cost below the cost of running a sweep plow,” she says. “It’s allowed them to gain those benefits of conserving moisture.”

5. Prioritize Prevention and Sanitation.

Lancaster urges farmers to lean into prevention and sanitation—two tools she believes are often undervalued. In Kansas, where many farmers also raise cattle, she sees clear risks in how feed and manure are handled.

“Livestock manure is very valuable, but if it’s not been composted well, or if that animal has had a diet that’s full of weed seeds, that’s going to introduce a whole other set of problems,” she warns.

People, vehicles, and animals are potential vectors for weed seeds. Lancaster advises farmers to be intentional about cleaning all equipment—including combines—to prevent spreading seeds from one field to another.

She extends this advice to anyone moving between multiple farms, especially.

“I remind students that if they’re a field scout in the summer, they need to be careful to not make their four-wheeler or their work boots a weed seed dispersal instrument,” she says. “It only takes one instance of seed introduction to have a serious problem for a long time.”

Inside the Room: What Farmers Heard as USDA Rolled Out Its $700M Regenerative Ag Plan

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 21:55:25 GMT

When USDA quietly selected a small group of farmers to help roll out a new $700 million regenerative agriculture pilot program, most producers never knew the meetings were happening. Missouri farmers Jon and Brittany Hemme did, because they were invited into the room, sitting face-to-face with two cabinet secretaries and hearing firsthand how Washington plans to reshape soil health policy.

“We are very average farmers,” Hemme says. “It was a very humbling experience that we were chosen. My biggest takeaway is that I truly believe they’re trying to do the right things, bringing better health options to people through the way food is produced.”

Reinventing a Small Dairy to Stay Viable

Jon is one of three Hemme brothers continuing a dairy operation their father started 30 years ago. Today, the Hemmes operate the only dairy left in Saline County. Survival hasn’t come easily. As small dairies disappeared, the Hemmes reinvented their business model, adding on-farm processing and direct-to-consumer sales.

“That’s where our direct market part of our business came in, the creamery,” Hemme says. “Being able to go to processing and then direct market that end product has made us a viable operation yet as a small dairy.”

Their Hemme Brothers cheeses are now sold throughout Kansas City and central Missouri, but what also caught the attention of USDA was how they manage their land.

“We started planting cover crops the first time in 2017, got really aggressive by 2018 to where we tried to have all of our acres covered in one way or another,” Hemme says.

That shift began at the request of a landlord nearly a decade ago. Hemme says it pushed him to learn what regenerative agriculture really meant and how it could pencil out.

“We initially started just looking to try to reduce inputs to where we could keep a little more of our income,” he says. “For quite a few years we managed them that way trying to reduce our herbicide and we were successful, but that takes a lot of time and management. Here recently we’ve kind of mainstreamed it to where the main reason for them is erosion control.”

A Text Message From USDA

That work that started nearly a decade ago led to an unexpected invitation from Washington.

“We got a text message on Dec. 8 saying: ‘Would you and Jon want to come to USDA and be a part of Secretary Rollins’ announcement?’” Brittany Hemme says. “Thought it was a joke maybe at first, because it was so random. But we were on a plane the next morning and then with them in D.C. on Dec. 10.”

In the midst of the madness of the holiday season and school activities for their kids, the Hemmes went ahead and said yes, knowing this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A First-of-its-Kind $700 Million Pilot Program

Not knowing exactly what USDA was going to unveil, at the event, USDA and HHS announced what they call a first-of-its-kind, $700-million Regenerative Agriculture Pilot Program, administered through NRCS. The goal is to test a farmer-first model that improves soil health while maintaining long-term farm viability.

“We’re doing things a little bit differently than typical Washington, D.C.,” said U.S Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins during the announcement at USDA. “We have encouraged the states to think differently and creatively as our laboratories of innovation about how to solve the many health issues facing America ... but really today is about the next step in making America healthy again, and that is talking about regenerative agriculture.”

During thee announcement, Rollins said the focus of USDA and HHS for the new pilot program was on protecting soil and is critical for farm productivity and longevity.

“Protecting and improving the health of our soil is critical not only for the future viability of farmland, but to the future success of American farmers,” she said. “We must protect our top soil from unnecessary erosion and boost the microbiome of the soil.”

But it wasn’t just USDA unveiling the new program. Rollins was standing beside Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who called the program a milestone tied to promises outlined in the MAHA Report.

“Among the recommendations of the report was the promise to make it easier for farmers in this country, farmers who are dependent on chemical and fertilizer inputs, to give them an off-ramp,” Kennedy said in December. “An off-ramp where they can transition to a model that emphasizes soil health. And with soil health comes nutrient density.”

An ‘Off Ramp’ for Farmers

When “U.S. Farm Report” recently caught up with the Hemmes to get their reaction, Jon says one of the key takeaways from the announcement is the structure of the pilot program and why that matters.

“It’s a five-year program, a five-year contract,” he says. “You can address multiple things in the same contract that you want to address. The farmer gets to pick his goal. They’ll develop a plan to help them achieve that goal, and then they’re going to quantify it with a soil test up front and one at the end.”

Along with the announcement, the Hemmes then had the chance to take part in a closed-door roundtable discussion with Rollins, Kennedy and Dr. Mehmet Oz, who serves as administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under Kennedy.

“They notified us that we would be in a roundtable discussion with Secretary Kennedy, Secretary Rollins and Dr. Oz; that made us pretty nervous,” says Jon, laughing.

Brittany says one word stood out during that discussion.

“He said ‘off-ramp’ several times,” she says. “I really appreciated that, because this is voluntary. There’s nobody forcing anyone to do this program. It’s not all or nothing. You can work with USDA NRCS and come up with a plan that is going to work for you on your farm, in your context.”

With no cameras in the room, Hemme says the conversation felt genuine.

“They wanted some feedback from farmers,” he says. “They allowed us to each go down the line and explain our operations, our motivations behind using regenerative agriculture, and then they followed it up with some really good questions.”

Those questions included market access and how long the transition takes.

“You could see him, the wheels turning,” Hemme says of Kennedy.

What Was (And Wasn’t) Discussed

Before Kennedy joined the cabinet, some farmers worried his focus would be on restricting tools like glyphosate. The Hemmes say that never came up.

“It’s been more voluntary, putting something out there instead of coming in with a stick,” Jon says.

“There was mention of tools in the toolbox, and there was no mention of taking any of those tools away,” Brittany adds.

As Brittany has watched Jon’s regenerative journey on their own farm, she says regenerative agriculture is often misunderstood.

“Some of the negative connotation has come in from an all-or-nothing mindset,” she says. “They demonize certain tools in the toolbox, and that’s unfortunate. True regeneration is what works in your context.”

Lessons From Their Nearly Decade-Long Journey in Regenerative Ag

For Jon, this really isn’t unconventional or something new. He says regenerative ag, to him, all comes back to building resilience in your soil.

“It is conservation, but it’s also trying to build resilience into your soil,” he says. “If you follow the soil health principles, minimize disturbance, keep residue on the surface, a living root in the soil, you will start to build carbon. You’ll hold more water, perform better in dry conditions, and handle weather shifts.”

But in the nearly 10 years of diving into regenerative ag, Jon says that journey didn’t come without mistakes.

“I was very aggressive when I started out, and I kind of set myself back,” Hemme says. “If I were to give any advice, it would be to start slow and safe.”

He points specifically to cover crops. He says by trying to put cover crops on every acre at the start, he learned the hard way that if you let those cover crops get too tall, it can actually negatively impact crop production.

“If you’re too aggressive up front, you almost constipate your soil,” he says. “Eventually that residue has to leave.”

As the Hemmes say, they still want to pinch themselves over a trip that seemed like a dream, it was those direct conversations with President Donald Trump’s cabinet members that made them believe USDA’s support of regenerative ag will be a practical approach and one any farmer can try or do.

What else should you expect when it comes to regenerative ag? That’s exactly what “AgriTalk” Host Chip Flory asked Richard Fordyce, USDA Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation, just last week.

USDA Launches New $700 Million Regenerative Ag Pilot Program

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 22:33:18 GMT

USDA wants farmers to focus on soil health and producing more nutritious food. To that end, Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins, along with Robert “F” Kennedy Jr., Health Secretary, and Doctor Mehmet Oz, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator, announced a $700 million pilot program aimed at supporting regenerative farming. USDA says the Regenerative Pilot Program’s goal is to help American farmers adopt practices focused on improving soil health, water quality and boost long-term productivity.

“We are committed to restoring America’s natural strength by empowering producers with simple outcome-based tools,” Rollins says. “Producers at every stage, from beginners just starting with cover crops to advanced operators with years of conservation experience, many of those are represented by our farmers today, will find a pathway through this pilot.”

Rollins says the program will be funded through existing programs at USDA and allow farmers to pursue “whole-farm planning” instead of a piecemeal approach. The pilot will be administered through the agency’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

“Each producer’s results will be measured and credited back to the farmer through an outcomes report, recognizing and rewarding improvements they achieve on their own land,” Rollins says. “This initiative puts American farmers first as part of the solution to make America healthy again.”

Building Off MAHA

The announcement follows the Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy released in September.

Kennedy said the initiative promises farmers an “off-ramp” to transition away from chemical fertilizer inputs, “to a model that emphasizes soil health, and with soil health comes nutrient density through voluntary action.”

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is also investing in research on the connection between regenerative agriculture and public health, as well as developing public health messaging explaining this connection.

“We cannot truly be a wealthy nation if we are not also a healthy nation. Access to wholesome, nutritious and affordable foods is a key tenet of the Make America Healthy Again agenda, which President Trump has directed this administration to execute across all government agencies,” Oz says. “I commend Secretary Rollins and Secretary Kennedy for today’s efforts to strengthen our nation’s food supply.”

“This is another initiative driven by President Trump’s mission to Make America Healthy Again,” Rollins adds. “Alongside Secretary Kennedy, we have made great strides to ensure the safe, nutritious, and affordable food our great farmers produce make it to dinner tables across this great country.”

How Does it Work?

USDA released details about the program in a release. It says the program will be administered by NRCS, allowing producers to bundle multiple regenerative practices into a single application, saying it will both streamline the process and allow for operator flexibility.

In FY2026, USDA is dedicating $400 million through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and $300 million through the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) to fund the first year of regenerative agriculture projects.

USDA says farmers and ranchers interested in regenerative agriculture are encouraged to apply through their local NRCS Service Center by their state’s ranking dates for consideration in FY2026 funding. Applications for both EQIP and CSP can now be submitted under the new single regenerative application process.

Regenerative Reaction

Farm groups and outside influencers are weighing in on the new pilot program announcement. Farm Bureau and President Zippy Duvall welcomed the approach while pointing out its still light on details.

“We value USDA’s acknowledgement that farmers have long practiced regenerative agriculture on their farms, both through federal conservation programs and on their own,” Duvall says. “Building on these efforts by leveraging existing voluntary and incentive-based programs to advance additional regenerative goals sounds like smart government to me, especially when farmers remain in the driver’s seat.”

New High-Yield, High-Protein Winter Wheat Variety Set for Farms in the Northern Plains

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 19:55:00 GMT

Winter wheat harvest — with its amber waves and sun-bleached grains — is a fixture in the Plains states of America. That iconic activity may peak as the combines pass each summer, but the work for big yields began a decade ago.

“Every variety that is made, this is the place where it starts from,” explains Sunish Sehgal , a professor and winter wheat breeder at South Dakota State University, as he points to parent wheat plants growing in a campus greenhouse. “To develop a new variety, we start by crossing two parents.”

Winter Wheat breeder Sunish Seghal checks a field of SD Vivian.

(Clinton Griffiths)

For the last decade, Sehgal has been working to launch next-generation winter wheat varieties for South Dakota farmers. Whether in the greenhouse or in the field, he makes 800 of these genetic crosses every year — hoping to make elite varieties even better.

“We have to continuously make new varieties in order to increase the profitability of our farmers and also to meet the challenges the farmer faces in today’s environment,” Sehgal says.

A Challenging Environment

In South Dakota’s temperamental weather, those challenges are seemingly endless. Sehgal points to new races of stripe rust constantly emerging, issues with head blight, tan spot and insect pressure like hessian fly — just to name a few. Add a variable climate on top, and it makes for a difficult puzzle to solve.

“We face drought every four out of five years,” Sehgal adds. “I need to look at all of these aspects to identify an individual [variety] which will actually survive in this environment, and thrive in this environment, while being profitable for the producers.”

After testing thousands of varieties and a decade of trials, a new variety is on its way. Next season, in 2026, South Dakota producers will be able to plant SD Vivan – a high-yielding, high-protein winter wheat with strong resistance to the state’s agronomic challenges.

“Usually, when the varieties are high-yielding, they tend to have lower protein,” Sehgal explains. “The unique thing about SD Vivian is that it is able to maintain its protein content, even at a higher yield.”

Growing the Future

He made his first crosses for this variety back in the greenhouse in 2015. Today, he’s investigating how artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning might speed up his variety selection process. Until then, it’s a labor of love and determination to make a difference for farmers.

Sehgal makes 800 crosses a year in this greenhouse on SDSU campus.

(Clinton Griffiths)

“I’m honored to be able to be the part of the story where farmers, through their checkoff, fund the wheat breeding program,” Sehgal explains. “I am able to contribute and return them something back in the form of advanced genetics, which will make their farm more profitable and more sustainable.”

Some Farmers Are Increasing Cover Crop Acres to Cut Fertilizer Costs and Boost Soil Health

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 20:28:16 GMT

How can you trim fertilizer costs and still provide adequate nutrients for corn and soybeans next season? One solution is to consider planting some cover crops this fall, recommends David Hula, reigning world corn yield record holder.

“Nitrogen, potash, boron, sulfur… those are mobile nutrients, so if you plant a cover crop it’s going to pick up those nutrients, and then when you kill that cover crop, you can recycle that residue that was left over, or the residual nutrients that were left over,” explains Hula, who farms near Charles City, Va.

Cover crops can scavenge for nutrients from previous crops, store them and then release them for use the following season – a process that can help reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers.

Hula adds that corn and soybean growers don’t need to be using no-till on the farm to benefit.

“You can strip-till into those cover crops, or early in the spring you can work the cover crops in to get the benefits,” he says.

Randy Dowdy says one of the benefits he’s seen is that microbial activity likes to colonize around a living root mass.

“You know, it always helps our early season tissue sample values go up where we’ve got a cover crop,” says Dowdy, Hula’s partner in Total Acre . “So if guys can, at least on bean ground where they’ve harvested, get some cover crop established and get it up, from a biological play and nutrient availability play for next season, it’s a no brainer.”

Experience Has Increased Farmer Confidence
The survey data show that cover crop plantings are on the rise among farmers who already have experience using them, according to results of the September Purdue/CME Ag Economy Barometer. And, those growers will plant cover crops on a higher percentage of their total acreage this fall, reports Jim Mintert, emeritus professor of economics at Purdue University.

He says the survey trends point to broader adoption across acreage: This year, 57% of cover crop users planted them on 26% to 50% of their acres, compared to only 25% in 2021 who reported planting cover crops on more than one-fourth of their acreage.

“What the survey says is, if you use cover crops, you’re using them more intensively now than you did in the past,” Mintert adds.

He believes the increased use of cover crops by those farmers indicates they have figured out how to capitalize on the benefits.

“It’s like this learning curve, where maybe the folks that have learned how to use them are adopting them on a wider portion of their farm acreage. I think that is what we’re picking up,” Mintert says.

Where And Why Cover Crops Are Being Used
Cover crop use by farmers across the U.S. increased 17% between 2017 and 2022 – from 15,390,674 acres to 17,985,831acres – data from the 2022 Census of Agriculture show. In total, cover crops were planted on 4.7% of all cropland in 2022.

Regional differences in the use of cover crops are related to factors such as climate, soils, cropping systems, and state incentive programs, according to USDA-Economic Research Service.

(USDA-ERS)

For example, Maryland, which has the highest rate of cover crop use, has programs that encourage farmers to grow cover crops to help improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay.

“Water quality is a big deal for those of us on the East Coast, and there are some programs available through NRCS and others that could be a little bit of a revenue stream for a grower and you can reduce some expenses,” says Hula.

Warm Conditions Could Help Stand Establishment
With the current fall conditions across the Midwest, Hula would encourage growers new to using cover crops there to experiment with them on some acres.

“A lot of times, Midwest growers are worried they’re going to run out of time to get a cover crop planted, but with as warm as it is, you have a good chance to get some growth established this fall and a good root system going before conditions turn cold,” he says.

Moisture is needed to get cover crops established well, and that is a concern in some areas this fall, cautions the Midwest Cover Crops Council. It says good soil moisture at seeding and 0.5” to 1” of rainfall after seeding will improve germination and stand establishment.

The Council has recommendations for which cover crops are a good fit by state and especially well-suited to farmers who are new to growing them. Learn more here .

Hula and Dowdy address cover crops in more detail in their Breaking Barriers with R&D during their discussion on AgriTalk:

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Ohio Farmers Mimic Mother Nature To Build Soils and Yield Success

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 21:23:27 GMT

Every acre Les Seiler and his family farm in northwest Ohio has a cover crop planted on it, with the goal of keeping a living root in the ground year-round

“We try to mimic Mother Nature with what we do,” says Seiler. “Through no-till and cover crops we’re building our soil health, which is the No. 1 thing in our world.”

That’s not always been the case, admits Seiler, who farms with his brother, Jerry, and two of their sons near Fayette, Ohio.

Seiler recalls when he bought the land around his home in 2010, he initially decided to strip-till the ground that fall. It was a decision he soon regretted.

“All winter long, I watched that rich, black dirt blowing into the ditch bank right in front of my house, all because I had these nice, pretty strip-till mounds,” he says. “That was the last strip-tilling we did where we built mounds.”

The following spring, the Seilers switched their machine over to low-disturbance coulters, so they could still inject fertilizer, and they went heavier into cover crops. While they’ve moved on from that piece of equipment, their focus on using cover crops and no-till only intensified.

“We don’t use that fertilizer deep placement machine anymore because we can grow a lot of our own nutrients with cover crops,” he says.

Seiler shares two benefits he’s achieved with cover crops and no-till:

1. Biomass stays on the farm. Seiler says when the cover crops are terminated, he wants all the biomass to break down over time and be accessible to their corn, soybean and wheat crops.

“I do not want my biomass to leave the farm. I don’t want it to blow in the ditches,” he says. “I want it all to stay right where it’s at, and let the biological activity – which starts with the earthworms – break this biomass down and put it into a plant-usable form.”

Wind erosion removes the most fertile part of the soil, therefore, lowering soil productivity, Iowa State Extension reports. In addition, wind erosion can reduce seedling survival and growth, increase soil crusting, increase the susceptibility of plants to disease pathogens, and even create hazardous conditions on roads and highways. See Dust Storms Shouldn’t Happen in the Corn Belt

2. Nutrient and equipment investments can be reduced. Seiler says he still uses commercial fertilizer but has been able to reduce the amounts needed to reach his yield goals. He estimates he has reduced his nitrogen use by 20% to 30%.

“I stay flexible on my nitrogen program and will adjust some based on the season,” he says. “I expect to raise 200- to 220-bushel corn this year, and I’m putting on less than 190 pounds of N.”

Seiler adds that he will use a variety of technology and products, depending on the season, to boost corn performance.

“We have technology and tools today that my dad never dreamed of having. We can use in-furrow applications of products and micronutrients, things that can help a corn crop get off to a healthier start and mitigate stress in the process,” he says.

Change Requires A Different Mindset

Seiler says transitioning to cover crops and no-till was a process, and success didn’t happen overnight.

“Have we ever had a failure with this? I would say, no, but we’ve had plenty of learning experiences,” he laughs. “I’m a believer in soil health. That’s my goal. That’s how I’m going to farm, and I know these things can be made to work.”

For farmers interested in using cover crops and other conservation farming practices, Seiler recommends:

1. Start on a small scale. Seiler recommends committing as few as 10 acres and up to 50 acres to cover crops and no-till, starting out.

“You have to build your confidence over time,” he says. “In the process you figure out what your limiting factors are and what works, and you apply those learnings to the next year.”

2. Find a mentor. Seiler suggests connecting with like-minded farmers at meetings, joining conservation networks like Farmer Advocates for Conservation, and seeking out supportive retailers who understand regenerative farming.

“Find somebody that’s having success with this and talk with them. There are farmers who are doing this successfully that you can learn from,” he says.

Seiler cites two individuals who have been important mentors to him – David Brandt, an Ohio farmer who was a pioneer in the use of no-till and cover crops to improve soil health; and Jim Hoorman, who is an independent soil health specialist and former Ohio State University Extension educator.

“Once you have some confidence to do these practices, you can take them to the next level, but you have to have some confidence in yourself,” Seiler says. “You can’t worry about what the guy at the coffee shop is saying.”

3. Invest in other people by sharing what you learn. In the process of growing corn and soybean crops that are sustainable, Seiler and his brother routinely share their knowledge with others.

The farm actively hosts field days in conjunction with area soil and water conservation districts, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and The Nature Conservancy. They also have an Ohio State University water quality monitoring site on the farm. Seiler has shared his soil health knowledge at conferences and through videos and webinars.

“I know we’re saving soil, spending less on inputs, and we’re more profitable,” Seiler says of the conservation practices his family uses today. “Those are things I can feel really good about.”

Your Next Read: 3 Questions Every Farmer Should Ask About Biological Products

Research to Results: Salin 247 Robot Advances Iowa Corn Strip Cropping Knowledge

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 20:10:50 GMT

A former Corteva Agriscience research scientist and the CEO and founder of Salin 247, an ag tech startup focused on autonomous planting and spraying equipment for corn and soybeans, have joined forces in Iowa to advance research on strip cropping corn and cover crops.

Using Salin 247’s four row, autonomous planting robot, Bob Gunzenhauser is planting strip crop test plots in a field near Corydon to evaluate the practice and collect data on its potential to boost corn yields.

The concept is rather interesting, especially if you’re farming corn and raising livestock: corn is planted in strips at two different seeding rates with cover crops interseeded in opposite strips, and then the plan is to push fertility via in-season nitrogen application at V4-V6 with drop nozzles.

In a real world scenario, a farmer could harvest the corn and leave the cover crops and corn stalks behind to graze livestock on. Soil health would be one ancillary benefit, as would reduced compaction via the lightweight, battery-powered robotic planter.

Here are some videos of the Salin 247 robotic planter Gunzenhauser shared:

Small plots with varying seeding rates and shut offs for alleyways built in thru the prescription, cruising along at 2 MPH. @ptx_trimble pic.twitter.com/emAgf7T0WE
— Bob Gunzenhauser (@BobGunzy) April 16, 2025

Salin247 autonomous running a test plot outside of Corydon, IA today. Including corn/cover strips and Nitrogen x Seeding Rate small plots. @jasonmauck1 @zebulousprime @PfanstielJunior pic.twitter.com/MdWLY4eR9w
— Bob Gunzenhauser (@BobGunzy) April 16, 2025

Gunzenhauser says the trial will also variable rate apply zero to 240 lb. of nitrogen per acre and three different seeding rates to demonstrate the Salin 247 autonomous planting technology and how it can enable small plot research. The data will also be used to build economic, optimum nitrogen rate response data for south-central Iowa farmers, he adds.

“Mainly I think Bob is doing this to get the data and to show the value of strip cropping, which is increasing corn yield because of the sunlight effect,” says Dave Krog, CEO and founder, Salin 247. “There’s data out there that shows generally the outside two rows of a corn strip benefit from extra sunlight, but we want to advance this research.”

In 2023, Salin 247 commissioned a similar experiment on its own test plots, and the total average yield on the check rows came in at 235 bu. per acre. The corn strips ended up yielding just over 300 bu. per acre, and Krog says August was very dry that year, so theoretically the plot could have had higher yields if it were irrigated.

(@BobGunzy/X.com)

Gunzenhauser also invited some students from the local Mormon Trail high school ag program, he has a connection with the student’s teacher, to show them how applied research is conducted in field trials. He is also hoping to enlist their help in harvesting the small plots this fall.

While a small, robotic Salin 247 planter was showcased in planting this trial, Krog says his system has applications beyond small plot seed sowing.

“Strip cropping is just one example of something unique you can do with small, autonomous equipment,” he says. “Our platform, we’ve built a small, autonomous toolbar. We can take the planter off and put a liquid or dry system on, we have a cultivator for the organic guys, and we’re working with Yetter on a strip-till pressure study.”

Gunzenhauser and Krog will lean on the local cooperative to deliver some mid-season sprays for the plots, and then return in the fall with the high school students to harvest the plots and calculate the yields. He says he plans to keep us updated on the results.

Your Next Read: Elevate Your Corn Planting Game Instantly With 7 Proven Tips

Cover Crops Gain Acceptance From Farmers When Their Agronomic Advisers Already Use Them

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 15:32:38 GMT

Agronomic advisers are increasingly recommending the use of cover crops to their farmer customers and helping them find success – especially when they have experience with cover crops on their own ground.

That’s just one of the key findings in a new survey from the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE), and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA). A report on the survey was released by the three groups on Wednesday.

Specifically, 22.3% of the advisers who said they use cover crops themselves reported between 25% and 50% of their clients are using covers, compared to a 9.1% rate of adoption among clients of advisers who did not personally use cover crops.

“Advisers play a key role in informing farmers about cover crops and providing technical assistance to help them succeed with covers,” says Rob Myers, director of the University of Missouri Center for Regenerative and regional director of extension programs for North Central Region SARE, in a prepared statement. “Understanding their attitudes toward cover crops, how they get their information, and how they perceive cover crop benefits will help guide efforts to support those advisers.”

More than 650 farm advisers from across the U.S. participated in the survey. Among the key findings:

The farm advisers surveyed used a wide range of information sources to learn about cover crops. Advisers who reported that they learned about cover crops on the job rather than through formal academic or training channels preferred training sessions (63.9%) and webinars (57.4%) for learning new cover crop insights, but they also liked learning from farmers one-on-one (58.3%) and by visiting field trials (30.6%).

A Valuable Weed-Management Tool

How to use cover crops as a weed management tool is one of the best key learnings Byron Hendrix says he’s gained from helping farmers adopt their use in Illinois corn and soybeans.

“Because herbicide resistance is becoming such an issue, we’ve seen cover crops come in, and they’ve helped tremendously at out-competing these resistant weeds like Palmer amaranth (pigweed) and common waterhemp, says Hendrix, a certified crop adviser and owner of Agronomy 1^st LLC and an Illinois Soy Envoy . “Once we kill that cover crop off successfully, we have a very clean looking field to plant into. So that’s a great tool that’s come about, and we’re getting better at using cover crops. That’s the key, right?”

Hendrix says he recalls when cover crops were initially adopted by farmers in his area, they were unsure of how to use them effectively. “We didn’t know exactly, are they for weed resistance? Or, are we utilizing them for more of a nitrogen benefit in the soil, you know, that type of thing?”

That same uncertainty was an issue for agronomic advisers, and it became less of an issue once advisers understood how to make cover crops work effectively, says Ryan Heiniger, executive director for the CTIC.

“This survey opened a window into how cover crops fit into crop consulting businesses and other advisory services,” says Heiniger, in a prepared statement. “We also observed that seeing is believing, which is borne out by the fact that approximately 70% of the respondents who farm themselves use cover crops on their own operations, and those cover crop users are more inclined to advise their clients on the practice.”

Higher Adoption Rates Are Expected

In addition, a majority of the farm advisers (56.9%) who participated in the survey said they expect to see cover crop acreage continue to increase. That’s true for Hendrix and his retail business.

“We’ve got multiple great things happening with cover crops now, and more and more people are actually implementing those practices,” Hendrix says.

Looking to the future, survey participants said they expect farmers to continue increasing use of cover crop mixes (46.7%) and trying ways of combining other soil health practices with cover crops (52.9%). The advisers said they expect a moderate amount of interest in newer cover crop topics like planting green (29.2%), grazing cover crops (32.2%) and others.

For more information on the CTIC/SARE/ASTA National Cover Crop Survey Report 2024-2025, visit SARE’s website .

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One Montana Farmer’s Conservation Solution: Get Back to His Prairie Roots

Tue, 10 Dec 2024 14:54:23 GMT

A few years ago, Jeff Sather was dealing with burnout and the routine of doing things how they’ve always been done.

“Spray this chemical, put on this fertilizer and hope and pray you get a crop,” he says.

Sather Farms sits in Larslan, Mont., the far northeast corner of the state. When it comes to the ranching side of his operation, Sather felt like he’d made great progress after taking a course in the art of “ranching for profit.” Through that work, his 10,000 acres of pastureland was finally working for him.

What wasn’t working for him? The 4,500 acres of crop ground he was farming.

He started looking for a solution. He took online courses and went to the Montana Soil Health Symposium.

“In spring 2020, I heard these guys talking about how biology in the soil works and how they could cut fertilizer and phosphorus use,” he says. “That was what I wanted to do, so I went home and told everyone we weren’t buying fertilizer that year.”

“I knew that was our end goal so I thought we’d might as well go there now.”

Partnerships That Unlock Potential

Sather had heard about farmers in his area receiving financial and technical assistance from the USDA NRCS to implement conservation. It seemed like a logical place to start.

Completing conservation enhancements through NRCS’s Conservation Steward Program meant he could afford a no-till disk drill to plant seed with minimal soil disturbance.

But the dominos kept falling for Sather. The no-till disk drill could be used with a stripper header that would leave stubble standing after harvest. In Montana, stubble is critical.

“Because we’re high and flat with long winters and the wind always blows, anything that’ll catch snow is in your benefit,” he says.

That’s when the biggest domino fell for Sather Farms. In an effort to find financial assistance for that equipment purchase, he connected with Marni Thompson, then a NRCS soil health specialist.

In 2020, Sather Farms enrolled in an Environmental Quality Incentives Program contract aimed at solving their most challenging soil health concerns.

Sather’s path to regenerative farming was now in overdrive.

Jeff Sather uses cover crops as part of a five-year intensive soil health partnership with USDA-NRCS.

(USDA-NRCS)

On 600 acres, Sather and Thompson got to work. The partnership put these key soil health practices into place:

Using a no-till disk drill to limit soil disturbance
Implementing a diverse rotation with no fallow ground
Planting diverse, full-season cover crops
Integrating livestock through grazing cover crops
Using a stripper header to maximize organic residue
Testing soils regularly

Betting On Diversity

Of the soil health principles, Sather is putting his chips into diversity. He calls it intensive cropping of his cash crop rotations.

“We were growing yellow peas and spring wheat before and maybe some lentils,” he says. “Now we grow peas, lentils and spring wheat, durum wheat, winter wheat and hull less oats for gluten-free flour.”

Sathers planted some safflower and flax, and he’s looking into adding old-fashioned oats or maybe another crop.

Montana doesn’t have an extra-long growing season, so Sather has started intercropping to stack those crops into the same field in the same year.

He’s grown lentils and flax in the same field, harvested them at the same time and then used a cleaner to separate them. Last year, he intercropped flax and chickpeas.

“We are looking at adding a grass, or some kind of perennial mix in the rotation, so we can plant the grass and keep it in grass for up to six years. Then we would take it back out to farm again as a quicker way to improve soil biology and organic matter,” he explains.

By implementing his rotational matrix, he’s seeing surprising benefits, including an increase in residue material and a decrease in pathogens.

Planting lentils and peas along with flax has allowed Sathers to avoid spraying a fungicide because he’s eliminated the likelihood of blight becoming a problem.

“Peas and lentils are not a high-carbon plant, and their stubble basically disappears before winter even happens,” he says. “But by adding in flax, when we harvest we leave more residue behind and a higher carbon that will still be there next year.”

Multiple years of experimenting with this mixture is starting to pay off, even with current drought conditions in Montana.

“The cool part about intercropping is it might be flax one year and the next year might be a lentil,” he says. “You end up with two different crops you can market.”

Soil health practices are helping Sather Farms weather the drought that Montana has faced for the past several growing seasons.

(Sather Farms)

Reaping the Benefits

Thompson had taken some initial soil health tests prior to the pair’s work. Now, every June, she’s back at it, collecting more data to see the benefits of Sather’s intensive soil health focus.

“It’s tough in Montana because the environment is dry and it’s windy, so soil health moves pretty slow,” she says. “But we did see some really cool things happening in comparison between benchmark data and where he’s at now.”

Slake tests show Sather’s soil is staying intact and the water around is remaining clear, signs his soil biology is holding the soil together.

“In a PLFA soil test, we are keying in on the increase of mycorrhizae fungi because that is lacking in our area,” Thompson says. “In his soil test, we are seeing an increase in those, which is huge because they are very susceptible to chemical and physical disturbance.

“We are seeing the increases in mycorrhizae fungi because he is bought in to these practices and incorporating the soil health principles,” she adds.

Agronomic Armor

Coincidentally, Sather says his work with NRCS hass coincided with the tap drying up for his region.

“We went into a drought in 2020 and now we are in a long-term drought,” he says.

Sather knows what the data is showing him in terms of the health of his soils, but anecdotally it’s adding up to a protective armor for his crops, which he can see every growing season.

“A couple of the years, the guys who used the heavy fertilizer with their seed, their crops really never even grew, where mine put on with biology and fish hydrolysate came up and look good,” he says. “It still ran out of moisture and wasn’t worth combining, but it looked better than some of the crops across the field or across the fence line.”

That visual confirmation made Sather feel like he’s on the right track.

“Now we’re just hoping, praying one of these days it’s going to start raining again.”

Jeff Sather is working to establish a “farming-for-profit” model for his cropping acreage by investing in soil health practices.

(Sather Farms)

Farming for Profit

Sather feels like he’s on track to reaching a profit-centered approach on his crop acres that is yielding benefits not only for his soil but also for his brand, Prairie Roots , a brainchild of his wife, Marisa, to direct-market their food products.

“I might not have the bumper crop yields everybody else might have in the area, but I’m still making a profit on every acre,” he says.

While Sather is concerned about the health of his soil, interested in preserving a legacy and choosing to grow healthier food products for consumers, he knows none of those interests trump his ability to keep farming.

“Mom and Dad rent me everything they own, so I need to make profit to be able to pay them rent,” he says. “I need to be able to make a profit to afford to stay here.”

If the Sather legacy is going to survive in Montana agriculture, he knows he must make a profit in order to set up his sons for a future on the farm. Along the way, he’s bringing his sons on his regenerative journey, hoping they will learn how to steward the land for the future.

“I’m just working on trying to get my system figured out and learning as much as I can to hopefully continue to improve yields,” he says.

America’s Conservation Ag Movement is a public/private collaborative that meets growers across the country where they are on their conservation journey and empowers their next step with technical assistance from USDA-NRCS and innovation solutions and resources from agriculture’s leading providers. Learn more at www.americasconservationagmovement.com .

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The Scoop Podcast: Unlocking Conservation Agriculture: Retailer's Role at the Ground Level

Tue, 01 Oct 2024 17:00:00 GMT

New research from Syngenta, in partnership with America’s Conservation Ag Movement, outlines the key obstacles in adopting conservation agriculture practices, and how the path of least resistance forward is via ag retail.

Dayna Gross, manager of programs and partnership for sustainable and responsible business team at Syngenta, discusses how the company’s goal is to make changes as easy as possible for the grower. And she shares why the retailer is a critical part in engaging farmers to make whatever their next step is.

“Our goal has always been to make these changes to conservation ag as easy as possible for the grower,” Gross says. “Retailers are one of the best ways to really make change happen on the ground. Retailers have trusted long term relationships with farmers.”

She gives examples in The Scoop Podcast:

As a gleaning from the recent research, it showed what resonates with the retailer in messaging most likely resonates with the grower.

Gross highlights how many farmers are familiar with conservation ag practices, and to bring more opportunities forward for them requires intentionality and resources. This could include smaller touches over time rather than one big push for change.

“When you’re ready, Syngenta will be there with solutions,” she says. “And we ensure this doesn’t take away a ton from your day to day work because we all know how busy farmers are. What we like to think about is, how can we help and meet people where they are. It’s about what’s working really well on an operation, and maybe help fill in some of those places where there are gaps.”

She says there are three opportunities Syngenta has several case studies with success:

Soil health
Biodiversity
Optimal crop production

One tool they are unveiling to help make possible changes easy to assess is the Cropwise Sustainability app. In 20 minutes, a farmer can walk through a series of questions to identify options and opportunities.

“We have global commitments around rural prosperity, higher yield, lower impact,” Gross says. “And we can’t do it alone. Along with our history as a solutions provider, we can better serve retailers and farmers in adopting practices and addressing the barriers that might be holding them back from trying something new.”

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Carbon Tech Banks on Deeper Roots

Fri, 27 Sep 2024 18:21:34 GMT

One startup is working to remove the obstacle of adopting a new practice to be eligible for carbon market incentives by making plants increase their carbon sequestration by design. Named Cquesta, the company has licensed nine patents from the Salk Institute to modify root architecture.

“Our goal is simple: use traits to help plants grow deeper roots,” says Cquesta CEO Michael Ott. “Deep roots are universally desired in ag because they enable plants to tolerate stress, such as a drought, much better. Additionally, farmers can generate carbon credits just from using the new seed and don’t have to change agronomic practices to participate if it’s not right for their operation, which should help with scaling and adoption.”

First, Cquesta is partnering with CoverCress. The next crops it’s targeting for development are canola, soybeans and then corn.

The company just closed its first round of investment, nearly $5 million, led by Hess Corporation.

This year the company aims set up gene editing operations for field trials and develop its MRV system to monetize carbon outcomes when the technology is deployed commercially. Key measurements are root architecture—depth and width—and carbon sequestration levels.

“We have the ability to modify roots to whatever the seed company or farmer desires. We can go deep, shallow, wide or narrow. We’re focused on deep roots and working with farmers to improve soil quality,” Ott says.

Ferrie: Farmers Are Strip-Tilling Covers Now. Is That A Good Idea?

Fri, 27 Sep 2024 15:12:20 GMT

With good weather conditions across much of the Midwest, farmers are working on fall tillage and fertility applications.

Ken Ferrie says many growers in central Illinois are telling him how challenging tillage is this fall. Many fields are dry and the ground is hard, making equipment tough to pull and achieve full shatter.

“Farmers are burning up points, shear bolts and diesel fuel,” he says.

His agronomic crew at Crop-Tech Consulting, near Heyworth, Ill., was putting in tillage plots this week and had some similar challenges as local farmers.

“I was the parts runner for the team and went to three different places only to find that everyone was out of grade five shear bolts,” he says, noting that’s an indication of how tough area soils are.

For farmers in a vertical tillage program, he says to remember the golden rule: “You need full-width shatter, meaning you will need to add ballasts to the tractor and shift down if need be. In some cases, you may need to

flip the outside shanks on your seven-shank rippers and make them five shanks to get the job done,” he adds.

Is Strip Tillage A Solution?
Some farmers are strip tilling through cover crops, a move that Ferrie believes is partly due to their disappointment over yield results in fields this season. He believes strip tillage in those fields can potentially help corn yields by reducing some of the allopathic issues and carbon penalty issues that are present.

“It does allow you to let the covers grow longer, and while it does reduce some of the agronomic issues, it doesn’t completely remove them,” he cautions.

Strip tillage ahead of soybeans has some of the same benefits: Beans get out of the ground faster and are not as affected by the carbon penalty of a decomposing cover crop. However, if the decision to use strip tillage ahead of soybeans is a practice change, it needs to be weighed against the original plan.

Ferrie says If the plan was to plant narrow-row soybeans, and you’re now switching to wide-row beans, there are a couple things to think through:

1. First, evaluate the potential impact on yield outcomes in 2024.

Based on Farm Journal Test Plot plot research in previous years, narrow-row soybeans tend to yield more than wide-row beans.

“This yield gain is higher in dry years when the 30-inch rows have trouble closing, like in this year, when the narrow-row beans were out-doing wide-row beans by 6 bushels to 8 bushels per acre in our side by side trials,” he says.

2. Second, and perhaps more importantly, consider the impact of tilling covers on weed management.

“Due to prolonged sunlight reaching the ground, our wide-row beans here tend to have late breaks in waterhemp,” Ferrie reports. “When these waterhemp break, many times it is too late to fix them with a herbicide because we’re already in the mid-R growth stages in the beans, especially if we planted them early.

So, you’re left with few options – possible cultivation, weed zapping or walking the weeds out.”

For growers already using 30-inch rows with soybeans, this is likely a non-issue. But for growers going to 30-inch rows for the first time and, on top of that, growing non-GMO soybeans, Ferrie says to be cautious.

“Have a long talk with your chemical supplier on how you’re going to manage these weeds,” he says. “A cover crop will help with the winter annuals but not the late-breaking waterhemp.”

As a point of reference, Ferrie says the combination of cover crops and dry weather conditions locked-up soybeans this season for three to four weeks, which led to more weed issues in 30-inch rows.

“Again, strip tilling through the covers will help some but will not eliminate all the issues,” he emphasizes. “I am seeing a lot of nice strip-tilled fields, though. This stretch of good weather has created a window to create some of the nicest strips we’ve seen in a while. This will be a big plus for next spring,” he adds.

Ferrie provides additional insights on strip tillage in cover crops, as well as a brief report on initial test-plot results, in this week’s Boots In The Field podcast available below:

Strip-Tillers Need a Plan B After Tough Post-Harvest Conditions

Your Guide To Hybrid Tillage Tools

Strip Tillage Promotes Soil Health

Corn Maverick: Cracking the Mystery of 60-Inch Rows

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 21:21:50 GMT

Terra incognita. When Bob Recker turned off every other row on his no-till planter, doubled the plant population, and punched seed into Iowa soil, he crossed into the uncharted territory of 60” row corn. Success or failure, Recker was about to bathe his corn—and weeds—in sunlight, and attempt to maintain yield with only half the growing space.

In 2017, Recker kicked open the door on 60” row corn, and exposed a ton of questions on sunlight capture, weed suppression, cover crops, and much more. According to Recker’s triune agricultural gospel, or triple bottom line, every farmer must make money, grow food and take care of the soil—and he believes 60” row corn could become an avenue toward improving all three facets on the right operation, without trimming yield.

A Jug of Sunshine

Recker’s question: If every other row is a zero yield, can a corn field gobble enough sunshine to reach equivalent yield, as compared with standard 30” rows? The query is typically rendered by most growers as a snowflake-in-hell proposition—i.e., it ain’t happening.

However, Recker pays little mind to the confines of consensus. A retired John Deere engineer, Recker has fueled a post-machinery career as an independent researcher with an increasingly large sustainable bone. Owner and founder of Cedar Valley Innovation in Waterloo, Iowa, Recker is intensely focused on improving farming’s triple bottom line—money, food and soil: “I retired in 2008, knowing that I wanted to give something back to the American farmer for feeding me for so many years. I started studying and became more interested in smaller data sets, even down to the yield of a single corn plant.”

Recker’s initial approach to 60” rows was a combination of heavy experimentation with a mix of configurations, and a heavy focus on photosynthesis and the edge effect. In a field of corn, the outside row, along with the on-deck row, both see significant yield benefits from sunlight. However, go inside beyond those two rows, and the shaded plants generally revert to broad acre yields.

“Randy Dowdy is correct: You can’t buy a jug of sunshine,” Recker explains, “but you can still leverage corn’s ability to use sunshine because it is universally available.”

Experimenting with narrow corn strips, Recker tried 12-, 8-, 6-, 4-, and 2-row corn, particularly noting the promise of 4-row corn: “Maybe God meant for corn to be grown 4 rows wide on 30” rows, with a skipped row on either side.”

“Whatever the configuration, we all know the edges always yield so well. Even discounting the fanciness on variety, fertility and population, the edge rows always yield big. I’m trying to figure out how to harvest sunlight and that’s where the 60” rows came from. I was challenged by a friend to try wide rows, and it seemed crazy, but I was willing to try and find out what would happen.”

Nature Abhors a Vacuum

Prior to 2017, Recker tried alternate 20” and 40” rows, noting a slight yield increase. In 2017, he planted eight varieties on 16 half-mile rows, each separated by 60” (almost five acres total), on commercial corn production land in Iowa. Accounting for the adjoining 30” corn planted at a 34,000 population, Recker doubled all the 60” corn to a 68,000 in-row population to accomplish the same field population.

“American farmers have scar tissue from people promoting things that don’t work, so I wanted to avoid claiming a yield benefit or drag due to a different population. I kept the elements simple, treating one variable at a time. My corn got all the same treatments as the adjoining commercial corn and we planted the same day. My commercial grower/collaborator is excellent and highly vigilant in weed control, and that made a big difference.”

Recker’s 2017 60” corn, with half the ground space empty, produced a surprising result—statistically equivalent in yield to the rest of the field. “It started gaining interest from farmers because it was so easy to do, required no equipment changes and provided easy equipment access to the corn,” Recker describes.

Yet, as corn surges on sunshine, weeds thrive on solar power all the more: Nature abhors a vacuum. “Yes, you’re giving weeds a great chance to get established in the open space,” Recker says. “You must have a residue base already in place or a good weed control strategy.”

For a grower solely focused on growing corn, Recker recommends adherence to 30” rows, but for someone interested in taking advantage of the open row space, Recker urges consideration of cover crops, companion crops or grazing potential. “No BS. Do 30” if you only want corn, and don’t do 60” without something in between the rows. Done right, you can get much healthier crop dividends, and a grazing opportunity may be the biggest bonus.”

In 2018, Recker recorded 30 growers trialing 60” corn across nine states. He obtained results from seven plots without cover crops, and five plots utilizing cover crops. All told, the 12 plots showed an overall yield decrease of 5%, with a plus/minus of 10%, according to Recker. “If you’re enthusiastic about cover crops or grazing, the results are very interesting. Or if you think this could be fine-tuned and done better, it also grabs your attention.”

“I’m not expanding my 60” row research. I’m just encouraging people to do their own experiments and urging them to adapt and adopt this to fit their system, rather than me tell them how to farm. It could be a big deal for cover guys on the right farm. I’m convinced sustainable practices are the right thing, but they must be profitable and not a logistics nightmare.”

Jack Boyer

Practical Farmers of Iowa ( PFI ) seized on Recker’s proposition in 2018, conducting trials on four farms to see if yields would keep pace with conventional 30” rows, and determine if 60” rows could reap significant biomass growth from interseeded cover crops. Results of the trial were mixed on yield. At two locations, farmers saw equal yields between 30” and 60” rows; at two other locations, farmers observed yield declines. Most of the 60” ground showed heavy cover crop growth, but weed control was a challenge, and possibly contributed to lower yields.

(See here for a pdf download of the PFI study.)

Tama County producer Jack Boyer participated in the PFI study, and has also worked with Recker on multiple research projects. Boyer grows corn, seed corn and soybeans, and is 100% no till: “I’ve been working on 30” rows, trying to get cover crops planted earlier, like at sidedress in June. But 60” rows caught my eye because they allow a diverse crop mix and plenty of sunshine.”

As part of the PFI corn study, Boyer planted four segregated strips of 12 30” rows and four strips of 6 60” rows (eight strips covered roughly 3 acres). The overall results were equivalent, with the 60” rows (205 bpa) outperforming the 30” rows (200 bpa) by 5 bu.

In between the 60” rows, Boyer planted cow peas (warm season species), anticipating fast movement and weed suppression, but the weather dipped and the peas sat tight. In addition, the pea presence (legume) ensured Boyer couldn’t use a herbicide without killing the cover—complicating his management. When waterhemp emerged, Boyer pulled the handbrake, came back with a herbicide, killed the covers, and replanted with a multi-species mix after burndown, finally wrangling a degree of good weed control.

“The weeds love sunshine, too, and unchecked, they’ll proliferate with a vengeance. You have to pick a cover crop combination that comes up quickly and spreads quickly to make sure weed seed can’t get started,” Boyer says.

“Overall, the 60” covers grew 10 times the aboveground biomass of the 30”, and the amount of nitrogen captured by the 60” was 10 times that of the 30”. My advice to other growers is to stay with 30”, unless you are really interested in grazing cattle after harvest or improving soil health,” Boyer adds.

In 2019, Boyer has an 10-acre plot of replicated 30” and 60” corn, and has utilized the weed lessons from 2018. “I applied a half-rate of chemicals with a short half-life so the covers wouldn’t be bothered, and later went in with a no-residual cleanup herbicide, planted covers, and got decent weed control.”

Boyer’s consistent plot research has revealed data which may move him away from future 60” study. A mix of annual ryegrass, cow peas and rape seed has performed well under a 30” canopy, according to Boyer. “As individual covers, they didn’t work, but together they appear to have some kind of synergy, and they may be an ideal cover situation for 30” rows. All I’m doing is experimenting and learning. I don’t have cattle so extra biomass is not important to me. Again, if you’ve got cattle, grazing covers could be a serious reason to look into 60”.”

Loran Steinlage

On 750 acres of Fayette County ground, Loran Steinlage perpetually breaks the mold, and has moved his operation toward regenerative practices, on a trajectory from interseeding to companion cropping to relay cropping, with an eye on space for livestock despite a lack of pasture ground. Steinlage, explains Recker, is a “real deal” farmer and doesn’t adhere to convention: “Loran is willing to try stuff and always has something unique going on. You’re not going to find anyone exactly like him and he’ll always tell it like it is.”

In 2017, Steinlage planted a plot with alternating corn rows of 30” and 60”, with cover crops in between. He noted standard cover crop growth in the 30”, but lush, knee-deep biomass in the 60”. “It’s pretty clear to me that if you’ve got livestock, 60” is the perfect opportunity to get a post-harvest grazing option very quick. We can maintain yield from what we’ve seen, and get good tonnage for livestock the very day we harvest,” he says.

Steinlage is all no till and 100% interseeded on corn acreage. Once again, in 2019, Steinlage is testing a 60” plot. “I do something different each year and I’ll push even with minimal success. Right now, we’ve seen phenomenal no till organic corn on corn with almost zero purchased inputs,” he describes. “I hope to bring livestock back on the farm, but minimizing inputs is my focus at present.”

“I try to set up everything for relay cropping in the fall, but Mother Nature unfolds her hand in the spring, and we really don’t know our rotation sometimes until June 1.”

Steve Walder

Steve Walder grows a mix of conventional and organic crops in Vermilion County, Ill., in addition to fulltime work as an engineering manager at RhinoAg . Walder has consistent giant ragweed control issues in organic corn. “I heard about 60” rows and controlling these weeds was my initial thought because I knew I’d be able to get between the rows much easier and have 50% fewer rows with weeds. Secondarily, cover benefits were a factor that would help keep organic inspectors satisfied and build soil health and nutrient levels, which are particularly important in organic crops.”

Walder planted 12 acres of 60” organic corn in 2018, and noted a 20% reduction in yield. “Normally I’m at 34,000-36,000 planting population, but part of the yield problem was my populations were off because my planter can’t go up high enough to accommodate a doubling. In the past I have seen similar yield loss on these acres from the giant ragweed pressure.”

In 2019, Walder tried 5 acres of 60” plots, adjusting planting population to 25,500 on 30” and 51,000 on 60”. “This year after harvest I’ll know better if my yield comes close to the 5% percent average drop that others have seen.”

Walder intends to try 60” rows again in 2020: “It takes multiple growing seasons to get a real idea. There are so many variables with weather and you can’t rely on just a couple of years of data. Long term, with the right hybrids and optimal population, and the right cover crops, that 5% yield drag may disappear. This takes time and years of research to get it right.”

Easy to Kill

Beyond 60” rows, Recker urges growers to constantly tinker and experiment on a small percentage of a given operation. For example, he advocates taking a 4% chunk (40 acres) of a 1,000-acre farm and trying unique management. Further, within the 40 acres, he recommends using 4 acres for any outside-the-box growing practice—even if deemed bizarre by conventional agriculture. “Understanding comes from failure. Do the research on a small piece of ground, and then ask the right questions. What does it do for income? What does it do for the total output of the farm? What does it do for the soil?”

Recker isn’t wed to 60” rows—he’s wed to sunlight harvest. “If we find a cover crop or companion combination along with a yield increase, people will adopt any configuration. I’m not there yet. I don’t know what configuration is ideal, but maybe it’s 30”-60” or something else. I’ve done some crazy stuff that usually doesn’t work, but I’m not afraid to go find answers. I’m convinced that in the near future, the yield winners across the country are going to be using different row configurations.”

“Somewhere out there is a soil scientist or agronomist, that is just like me, wanting to do more and leverage their abilities into this,” he continues. “My network of farmers and researchers is often the crazy bunch because they are willing to listen and think about what might be possible.”

As automation and driverless technology increase across agriculture, Recker says the importance of row configurations will become prominent. Smaller equipment, he believes, may be a catalyst. “Things are going to change; they always do,” he adds. “Autonomous vehicles will be the economic, agronomic and sociological winners. The vineyard industry already uses automated equipment to get up and down the rows, and is already close to 60” spacing. That tells me something about what may happen with row crops.”

Recker never sugarcoats his findings, welcomes criticism from all corners, and coats his reflections with a healthy dose of self-deprecation, but the maverick researcher has little patience for the incurious: “What have you got to lose? Do something no one else is trying and pay attention to the details. Don’t listen to the crowd because an idea is like a young plant just sprouting—it’s very easy to kill.”

For more, see:

Descent Into Hell: Farmer Escapes Corn Tomb Death

Against All Odds: Farmer Survives Epic Ordeal

Killing Hogzilla: Hunting a Monster Wild Pig

Breaking Bad: Chasing the Wildest Con Artist in Farming History

Blood And Dirt: A Farmer’s 30-Year Fight With The Feds

American Farmer Snuffed Out Saddam Hussein

Future Shock: Farmers Exposed By US-China Long Game

Wild Pig Wars: Controversy Over Hunting, Trapping in Missouri

Agriculture’s Darkest Fraud Hidden Under Dirt and Lies

In the Blood: Hunting Deer Antlers with a Legendary Shed Whisperer

Cover Crops to the Rescue

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 21:17:39 GMT

When Don Morse began growing cover crops, one of his main goals was to tackle the growing populations of marestail (horseweed) and waterhemp that defied traditional control measures.

“I can give you a half dozen reasons to plant cover crops now, but weed control was a big reason I started using them at the time,” recalls Morse, who farms 90 miles north of Detroit, Mich.

Application Practices

Today, he uses cereal rye across 3,100 acres of corn and soybeans.

Between Labor Day and Oct. 1, Morse aerially seeds cereal rye into no-till corn and soybeans. That timing allows for good stand establishment before winter.

He prefers aerial seeding over the use of a ground rig. “We have a really good aerial applicator with a great skill set, and I think that’s what makes it work so well,” he says.

For seeding, he uses 75 lb. of cereal rye per acre. The seed runs about $12.50 an acre, and the aerial application costs about $16 per acre. He adds that for a ground rig, the seeding cost runs about $12 an acre.

In the spring, he no-tills soybeans into actively-growing cereal rye. In no-till corn, the cover crop is terminated prior to planting.

“I don’t want the rye to get any higher than my knees on corn ground, or we start getting a nitrogen penalty,” he says. “If you haven’t used cover crops before, I’d start with them in soybeans as there are fewer potential concerns.”

Iowa State Extension encourages farmers to evaluate the length of their growing season before planting rye. Longer is better for weed management.

Reduced Herbicide Use

Lance Dobson, who farms near Lexington, Mo., says he is using cover crops, primarily, cereal rye, across 100% of his acres now.

“We saw an opportunity with the cover crops to take advantage of some of that forage through cattle,” he says. “It’s also helping increase the nutrient cycling and soil health along the way, and helping us build another cash crop through the cattle.”

He expects additional benefits with cover crops from a reduction in inputs, going forward.

“We’re reducing our synthetic fertilizer use with cover crops and building organic matter,” he says. “We’re (also) able to do a one-pass herbicide on our soybean rotation — a $20 herbicide pass, excluding application costs. So that’s what we’re kind of moving towards.”

Cereal rye is helping Morse pull back on herbicide rates as well.

This past spring, on 400 acres of no-till soybeans, he left metribuzin out of his preemergence application, though that wasn’t his original plan. Wet conditions kept him out of the field until just before the soybeans emerged.

He did opt to make a post-herbicide application in the field, though few broadleaf weeds were present.

“Probably only half of that field really needed the post application,” he says. “I was tempted to not apply anything, but I wasn’t that courageous.”

Based on the positive results this year, he anticipates using less metribuzin on his 2025 soybean ground.

In a similar vein for corn, Morse says he has cut 4 oz. of mesotrione out of his herbicide program and has seen no negative consequences.

“We’ve been getting improved weed control, and now it looks like we’re going to be able to cut some herbicide use, so this is making financial sense,” he says. “We’ll keep watching and evaluating our weed control to see how far we can go with it.”

Your Next Read: How To Boost Your Sustainability Efforts By Aerially Applicating Cover Crops

Next Gen Spotlight: Missouri Farmer Diversifies to 'Roll With the Punches and Grow'

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 15:30:03 GMT

After graduating from the University of Missouri in 2011, Lance Dobson returned to his family farming operation in Lexington, Mo. Today the farm consists of a corn and soybean rotation, but they are looking at ways to diversify. Cattle have been added into the mix following the decision to plant a cereal rye cover crop ahead of soybeans to use as forage. Dobson also started a seed dealership for Beck’s Hybrid to diversify his own income.

Q: Why did you feel a need to diversify?

A: I think it’s important. As human beings, it’s much easier to focus on just one thing. Life has a rhythm, and you know what to expect during every part of the year. However, diversification allows you to roll with the punches and grow. As we get out of our comfort zone, it usually leads to good results. Whether it’s exercising or farming, hopefully diversification in our day will yield results that improve our longevity. I think we’re seeing the need for it right now given the direction our commodity prices are going. So, maybe we need a few more cash avenues or options on the farm.

Q: Why did you become a seed dealer?

A: When I first returned to the farm, I didn’t have a lot of ownership in the operation. I was mostly just an employee helping with the daily operations. After a few years, I really wanted to take on something of my own. I wanted something I could take hold of and build. I had an opportunity sent my way to start a seed dealership, and so I took it. At that time, we were also going through a downturn in the farm economy, and so it was another way to diversify my cash flow. Since then, it’s helped me build a lot of relationships with neighbors and given me the opportunity to figure out how we can all help each other grow our operations.

Lance Dobson introduced cattle and planted cereal rye cover crop ahead of soybeans to use as forage.

(Dobson Farms)

Q: What lessons have you learned from diversifying the operation?

A: Try something new just enough to get a good experiment going so you can see how it could play out on a larger scale, but don’t get in over your head. You don’t want the test to be so big that it’s a real disaster. Right now, it’s hard to try new things when financials are already constrained, but find a way to try. It’s one of the best ways to find new successes. Yes, there will always be failures, but just go learn from them. I think once you make that jump, you’ll be happy you did in the long run. There’s so much personal growth that happens when we can try new things.

Q: What else do you hope to accomplish in the next five to 10 years?

A: A goal for our farming operation is to be more self reliant and resilient. Today, a lot of the constraints we have are based on commodity prices, which we don’t have any control over, and our input prices, which we also don’t have any control over. So, if we can build our farm to where we don’t rely as much on herbicides, or synthetic fertilizers, I think we’ll be in a better place. Similarly, I’d like to build our operation so we don’t rely as much on straight commodity prices. Maybe that means we do more direct-marketed goods, or we sell our corn as value added, somehow differentiating what we’re growing from commodity yellow corn, I think we’d create a lot more resilient and sustainable business.

Your Next Read — Next-Gen Spotlight: Arkansas Farmer Always Willing to Try Something New

How To Boost Your Sustainability Efforts By Aerially Applicating Cover Crops

Fri, 23 Aug 2024 21:02:52 GMT

Planting cover crops is one of the many ways growers can implement conservation practices on the farm. While the cost may be a deterrent for some, the long-term benefits are vast.

“Quick growing cover crops stabilize soil, protecting it from wind, rain, and snowmelt erosion,” said Andrew D. Moore, chief executive officer of the National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) . “By mitigating erosion and runoff, they ultimately enhance water quality by minimizing sediment in waterways.”

Along with minimizing erosion, the practice also:

Improves soil structure, allowing for increased moisture and aeration
Retains and recycles of soil nutrients
Increases organic matter
Breaks insect and disease cycles
Increases soil carbon sequestration

Additional Benefits Through Aerial Application
One of the common ways to seed cover crops is aerially. According to NAAA, aerial applicators seed 3.8 million acres of cover crops - that translates to 1.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide sequestered annually. EPA says that’s the equivalent of removing approximately 412,000 cars with carbon-combustion engines from the roads each year.

There’s evidence to suggest using aerial application to plant cover crops provides additional benefits as well. In addition to eliminating soil compaction concerns, the method provides more flexibility in timing.

For example, according to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) , planting cover crops after harvest limits the species that can be used due to cold weather. But with aerial application, pilots can begin seeding prior to harvest without the risk of damaging the existing crop. This also allows the cover crop to achieve a good stand before residue is introduced.

UNL suggests beginning to aerially apply cover crops when soybean leaves start to yellow and drop or when leaves begin to senesce in corn. For non-irrigated crops, it may be more important to time seeding after a late August or early September rain instead of a specific development stage. Peoples Company adds local conditions should take precedence over general timing recommendations.

Selecting A Pilot
If aerial application of cover crops makes sense for your operation, Peoples Company recommends asking prospective pilots three questions to ensure uniformity in your crop:

Do you do dry pattern testing?
Have you handled the species being planted before?
Can you assure the seed will be applied uniformly?

Aerial Application's Role In Achieving A More Sustainable Future

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 18:19:30 GMT

One of the most promising conservation practices aerial applicators can assist farmers with is cover crops. Cover crops are grasses, legumes, small grains and other low-maintenance crops planted specifically to improve soil health and biodiversity.

By sowing cover crop seeds aerially prior to the cash crop’s harvest, more time is allowed for the cover crop to control erosion, retain and recycle soil nutrients, build organic matter to improve soil health, enhance water quality and moisture availability and break disease and insect cycles.

What are the benefits?
Cover crops seeded via aerial application significantly preserve soil and water quality. Applying the seeds aerially without running a tractor through the fields doesn’t compact the soil and provides more aerated conditions for the cover crop seedlings to develop, bind the soil in place and prevent erosion from wind and water runoff.

These crops enrich the soil with essential nutrients and help reduce the need for synthetic fertilizers. They, therefore, mitigate fertilizer runoff and safeguard bodies of water from pollution.

Cover crops also increase the soil’s water-holding capacity, which reduces drought susceptibility. Their foliage provides shading and slows down evaporation rates. When grown with aerial application methods, cover crops can sequester substantial amounts of carbon dioxide. The farmers who plant them may be eligible for tax credits.

The applicator’s role
Aerial applicators can help expand cover crop acreage by facilitating their timely and efficient seeding. This then helps farmers to embrace the practice on a larger scale—enhancing the sustainability of agricultural practices. Numerous academic institutions and government agencies recognize aerial application’s ability to apply seed earlier in the year, which results in better growth and overwintering of cover crops.

Aerial applicators can play a pivotal role in the overall adoption of cover crops. Everyone in agriculture strives toward a more sustainable future, and aerial applicators are a practicing and ready partner in the goal of adopting precision agriculture and environmental stewardship techniques as a part of today’s modern farming practices.

Millborn Seeds Acquires Luhrs Certified Seed

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 16:31:46 GMT

Millborn Seeds has announced its expansion through the acquisition of Luhrs Certified Seed in Imperial, Neb.

“Millborn aligns well with our goals and values at Luhrs, so we knew Millborn was the right fit,” says Tom Luhrs, owner of Luhrs Certified Seed. “We want to improve the seed supply chain for all producers, and that’s what Millborn is all about.”

Millborn shares one of its goals is to invest in equipment and facilities, making Luhrs’ seed production facilities, including two cleaning lines and a large processing capacity, a good fit for the company. This infrastructure will allow Millborn’s go-to-market brand, Renovo Seed , to expand into the Western Plains.

“Millborn’s goal is to create an integrated supply chain and provide the highest quality seed products for our customers. The addition of Luhrs Certified Seed allows us to reach farmers, ranchers and dealers in the Western Plains faster, and with the highest quality product,” says Matt Fenske, CEO of Millborn. “We’re excited to add the Luhrs personnel to our team and get involved in the Imperial community.”

As the company has been making acquisitions in South Dakota and Nebraska, it also recently expanded its footprint outside of the U.S. with the addition of a location in Canada .

Financial Discounts for Regenerative Ag

Fri, 26 Jan 2024 17:23:49 GMT

Pilot programs are exploring the opportunity to offer farmers improved financing terms based on their adoption of regenerative agriculture. The goal is to bring an expanded scale via financial incentives structured differently than dollars per acre for adoption.

Money Back To the Farmer
In March, Indigo and Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (Farmer Mac) introduced their incentive program to provide a 0.25% interest rate rebate to U.S. farmers with eligible Farmer Mac farm mortgages to maintain existing or adopt new sustainable practices (reduced tillage, cover crops, crop rotation or nitrogen optimization) and provide annual agronomic data.

Currently the Indigo and Farmer Mac program is available in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio and South Dakota.

“Farmers join the program for three years, during which time they benefit from an interest rate rebate and are also qualified for additional revenue by joining a specific Indigo sustainability program, such as Market+ Source or Carbon by Indigo,” says Roman Tarnovsky, vice president and global head of sustainability markets at Indigo.

Via this partnership, lenders determine farmer interest and refer farmers to an Indigo representative. The companies would like to expand the program.

“We’re interested in studying practice adoption, market-based outcomes and how mortgages might play a role in the future of agricultural practice changes. Indigo has been a valuable partner in trying to better understand the risk and return profile of regenerative and sustainability practice adoption, and we continue to fine-tune program parameters in order to learn more about how the market values these activities,” says Jackson Takach, chief economist and senior director at Farmer Mac.

Promoting Resiliency
“We recognize there is missing infrastructure and missing economic incentives to support producers in the U.S. who are using soil health practices,” says Aria McLauchlan, co-founder of Land Core, a 501c3 organization with the mission to advance soil health policies and programs.

Working on the hypothesis that adopting such practices builds resiliency to extreme weather, Land Core is partnering with Compeer Financial to use the science to build programs and explore productivity impact on farmers who use cover crops, crop rotations and reduced tillage.

This is a new project built on a predictive risk model factoring in the benefits of soil health-focused management practices, while accommodating for the natural variability in agriculture.

“This is designed to be a practical tool for lenders, insurers and practitioners,” says Harley Cross, co-founder and director of strategy at Land Core. “There’s a real opportunity to acknowledge the work being done by the farmer and quantify the benefits while also giving needed financial discounts.”

He offers some analogies: Good drivers receive lower insurance rates. Non-smokers pay less for their life insurance.

“But those who have healthy soil aren’t getting a good soil discount even though they are de-risking the entire supply chain — bankers, investors and more,” he says.

Land Core’s goal is to provide data to help direct specific offers to expand regenerative agriculture in geographies with lower adoption or greater opportunity. Its database is layered with satellite imagery, soil maps, weather data, etc., to inform offers on a county-by-county level.

“We are working with financial institutions to explore which offers are going to be the most effective, with ideas such as reduced financing rates, deferring payments for the purchase of cover crop seed, or covering the cost of education and technical assistance for producers,” Cross says.

The Land Core Risk Model tool will be open source and available for non-commercial use. So far, the tool’s modeling has focused on the risk mitigating effects of soil health practices in dry conditions for corn.

Land Core aims to expand over nine states in the next three years. Its leaders say they think structuring the financial offers is an effective way to reach farmers because it’s not asking them to sign up for another program.

“We see opportunities for farmers to get more from investments they’ve made in soil health,” McLauchlan says. “The goal is to quantify the risk reduction and recognize the intrinsic value farmers are creating.”

Iowa Study: Soil Conservation Practices On The Rise

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 20:02:40 GMT

Beginning in the 2017 growing season, The Iowa Nutrient Research & Education Council (INREC) has worked over the past six years with Iowa State University and local ag retailers to study the progress of conservation practices used on the state’s crop acres.

The survey uses records from ag retailers to measure the use of cover crops, nutrient management and conservation tillage and no-till by Iowa growers. When comparing their latest data from the 2022 growing season with 2017’s records, researchers found a significant increase in the adoption of these practices – most notably in the number of cover crop acres planted.

“Iowa cover crop planting has skyrocketed to a record 3.8 million acres over the first decade of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy, and that clearly demonstrates that Iowa farmers and landowners are taking on the challenge of improving Iowa’s water quality by accelerating this important conservation work,” said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig. “With the help of ag retailers and other conservation professionals, as well as both public and private sector partners, programs, and incentives, I know our farmers and landowners will continue to push these statewide cover crop numbers ever higher.”

In 2022, Iowa growers planted 3.8 million acres of cover crops – which is 16.6% of all corn and soy acreage. This is compared to 1.6 million acres of cover crops in 2017, or 6.9% of acres. Rye accounted for 81.2% of the cover crops planted over the past 6 years.

The survey also looks at nutrient management practices such as timing, rate, source and placement. It found 45% of nitrogen applications have occurred in the spring before planting, followed by fall-only applications at 20%.

As for phosphorus applications, there has been a notable increase in growers applying the nutrient only when the soil is at or below optimum levels for it – increasing from 74.3% of applications in 2017 to 95.4% in 2022.

The number of no-till acres in the state has remained relatively steady throughout the duration of INREC’s survey, averaging 35.8% of fields. It does, however, account for more overall corn and soy acres in the state than conventional tillage and conservation tillage practices.

INREC is currently preparing for its seventh year of the survey, which will be conducted this winter, and the Iowa State University Center for Survey Statistics & Methodology has randomly selected 150 ag retail locations to participate.

To review the data from each of the six current surveys, click here .

Ferrie: Farmer Asks How to Use Red Clover as a Cover to Reduce Nitrogen Rates and Costs

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 20:58:26 GMT

In this week’s Boots In The Field report, Farm Journal Field Agronomist Ken Ferrie answers several questions from a farmer based in southwest Ontario, Canada, who had participated in Ferrie’s Beyond The Basics agronomic series.

All three of the farmer’s questions focused around the topic of nitrogen (N) use, with regard to using it in conjunction with red clover. The farmer says he typically broadcasts red clover on his winter wheat in the spring, lets it grow after wheat harvest, then kills the red clover in the fall and tills it into the soil.

Following are the specific questions the farmer asked and how Ferrie responded. You can also listen to this Boots In The Field podcast in its entirety here .

Q: How much nitrogen can I expect from red clover the following year, and when will it become available?

A: “Red clover has a 14 to one carbon nitrogen ratio, which means it will decompose and recycle quicker than soybean stubble, which has a 30 to one carbon nitrogen ratio,” Ferrie says. “That means recycling will happen quickly in the spring when things warm up. Based on our plots here in Illinois, a good stand of red clover should give you between 50 and 100 pounds of nitrogen, and I would use 75 pounds as a rule of thumb.”

Q: The second question the grower asks has to do with him wanting to try some reduced N rates this spring to assess what the red clover is supplying for next year’s nitrogen. The farmer’s question is, should he reduce the preplant 28% N application that gets worked in after spraying, or should he reduce the sidedress pass?

A: Ferrie says the answer depends on a couple of things – how much you’re already putting down in the preplant versus the sidedress application and how much volunteer wheat or grasses are in the red clover cover.

“It’s not uncommon to have a good mixture of volunteer wheat and red clover when we interseed like that from volunteer wheat,” Ferrie says. “By October, this wheat typically has some good size to it. So it’s probably at that 60 to one or higher carbon-to-nitrogen ratio. Chiseling this cover in will speed up its decay, and the nitrogen in the red clover will be available earlier in the season. But, if there’s a lot of volunteer wheat in this mix, it will take longer to decay and will cause a large carbon penalty in the spring and could slow down next year’s crop.”

“In either case, I would plan to pull the rate back in the sidedress nitrogen,” Ferrie says. “This keeps the N rate high early in the season when that crop’s trying to get established and it’s ready to go into the rapid growth stage. Sidedress nitrogen should be N that your crop needs in July and August. I would pull in-season nitrate tests before sidedressing to kind of help you answer the “so what” question at the end. I would also recommend multiple rates in the sidedress applications – a low, medium and high rate – so you can kind of build yourself a response curve. One additional note, N plots can mess with moisture and test weight. So I recommend you use a scale cart this fall to get accurate numbers. Yield monitors do struggle in this area.”

A third question the farmer asked had to do with nitrogen stabilizers. The grower wanted to know if Ferrie and his agronomic team at Crop-Tech Consulting have done any work using stabilizers to lower the N rate and, therefore, lower input costs.

Q: The specific question is, could we reduce the rate of N with a stabilizer and cut our costs?

A: “To answer this, we first must make sure we’re using the right stabilizer,” Ferrie says. “A urease inhibitor is used to stop urea from volatilizing off the surface. When you work your N in right away, your urea will not volatilize. Urease inhibitors are for no-tillers or people who let their surface-applied N set for long periods before incorporating it.

“Being that you’re incorporating your preplant N, I would use a nitrification inhibitor, one that slows down the process of making nitrates that can leach away. In your situation, though, unless you’re in highly leachable soils, it might be hard to get a financial ROI out of your spring inhibitors by lowering the N rates. Because you are splitting your N program up with different timings and different rates and the addition of red clover, you’re (already) in a 4R format when it comes to N,” Ferrie notes.

“Can you reduce your N rate with the use of a stabilizer? It’s possible. But with today’s N prices, if we take the money spent on spring stabilizers and invested in more N, more times than not more N wins in our plot trials. Now, if your goal is to reduce your nitrogen footprint and be safer on the environment, then using a stabilizer and lowering your N rate may give you a better true ROI, even if it doesn’t give you a better financial ROI.

“You guys know how we talk about our ROIs, right? Financial ROI is what we can prove on paper as far as profit. So, we have a lot of data here at Crop-Tech that says starter fertilizer has a strong financial ROI. But for some growers, the hassle of using starter is just too much and it’s not worth using, and that’s their true ROI. It’s the same case here. If stewardship of your nitrogen is what’s really at the forefront for you, then your true ROI may suggest that this process is better off even if it’s not financially better off. Now, in some cases, there are programs that will pay to do the same thing, helping you to bring your true ROI and your financial ROI closer together. So, watching for those programs might be another way to handle this.”

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5 Tips To Achieve The Best Fertilizer Spread Pattern

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 20:50:04 GMT

The fertilizer spreader is an important component to any crop operation, and the team at Heartland Ag Systems offers their advice for keeping it running in top shape.

“We’ve all seen fields that are almost wavy across the field. That’s because the fertilizer spread pattern is uneven,” says Daryl Patten, operations manager at Heartland Ag Systems. “The operator may have put the right total amount on the field, but because of improper settings, poor maintenance, operator error or worn equipment, different rates were applied within the field.”

To avoid varied emergence and uneven stand densities in your crops, it’s important to take a look at the set-up and calibration of the machine each time a different product is spread or the rate of application changes.

“At the farm level, the best way to ensure your machine is working properly is to routinely pattern test in actual field conditions with the product(s) or blends that will be spread,” Patten says.

Patten shares his top five steps to take before conducting your next pan test.

Have a pull-type spreader? Check the hitch height.
Dust off your owner’s manual to double check the proper hitch height for your spreader. If it’s the wrong level, the distance fertilizer particles are thrown will not be accurate. The spinners on truck-mounted spreaders should be leveled in respect to the rest of the machine.
Know the intended operating speed.
This speed should be consistent over the entire field despite varied terrain.
Perform an inspection.
Check for worn, bent, rusted, loose or sticking parts and remove any build up found.
Is the spinner speed correct?
While Patten notes that newer and commercial spreaders will allow operators to monitor the spinner speed from the cab and sends a warning if it is off, it’s a good idea to manually check on other machines.
For machines with dual spinners, use a handheld tachometer and make sure the fins on the spinner-discs are moving at the same speed. If your machine has an operator interface, check that the spinners’ RPM matches the rate controller setting.
Check the density and quality of the fertilizer.
“Changes in product (season to season, location to location, load to load) have an impact on a machine’s performance and the quality of the application pattern. One setting does not ‘fit-all’,” Patten says. “Dust and fine particles can change the flow of product through the spreader, affecting the accuracy of the application since fine particles often aren’t thrown as far as larger particles.”

Regenerative Ag: How Ag Retailers Can Help Programs Find Scale

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 19:24:52 GMT

By Kathy Meyer

As regenerative agriculture gains momentum, ag retailers can add acres and income streams by seeking out partnerships for funding and education. Grain companies are a good place to start.

“ADM’s journey in sourcing grain began evolving about 10 years ago,” says Paul Scheetz, the company’s director of climate smart ag origination.

He shares that ADM’s climate-smart work began by engaging farmers about the practices and products they use to grow the commodities that ADM ultimately buys, stores, transports and processes.

“Our prior approach was to buy grain on quality factors, delivery periods and set markets” he says. “Today, our focus is progress over perfection. Regenerative agriculture is a complicated subject matter. Go into it knowing it’s a multiyear process of learning from successes and failures.”

As a global leader in the sustainable ag supply chain, ADM is driving a significant regenerative ag program through USDA climate-smart grants and other ADM regenerative initiatives.
“In 2022, ADM scaled up our effort to pursue a different conversation with the farmer—not only offering fair market value for their commodities but also offering additional incentives for practices that have positive environmental impacts,” Scheetz says.

Ag retailers can help their farmer-customers enroll in the ADM program, which provides farmers with premiums totaling as much as $25 per acre annually. In turn, they can assist their customers by providing support through technical assistance, products, custom application and data analysis for cover crops, no-till and nutrient efficiency.

Scheetz explains, “Our USDA climate-smart grant returned 100% of the federal funding directly to farmers for regenerative practices and outcomes. After successfully enrolling more than 1 million acres in 2022, ADM plans to invest in its program to cover 2 million acres in 2023 — with a goal to reach 4 million acres globally by 2025.”

Unique Partnerships Reward Farmers
ADM and other grain and food companies are establishing partnerships with organizations such as American Farmland Trust, Ducks Unlimited, the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts, Practical Farmers of Iowa, Farmers Business Network and the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition.

Torey Colburn, Midwest conservation agronomist with American Farmland Trust, says, “Cost-share incentive programs reward farmers who have adopted cover crops into their management systems and encourage adoption among farmers who have not. The agronomic and environmental benefits are tangible.”

Through the Farmers Cooperative Society (FCS) in Iowa and South Dakota, Jeff Koops, sustainability and nutrient management specialist, has spent the past few years working with the soil carbon program from Truterra, which is Winfield United’s sustainability business.

“The program recently paid our growers for their carbon credits,” says Koops. “From our first offering with Truterra, 10 growers collectively enrolled just over 4,500 acres and sequestered a total of 4,055.72 metric tons of CO2e.,” Koops says. “Those 10 growers received a total payout of over $81,000. That’s some real money.”

Koops explains that FCS formed a committee to research several companies to determine which carbon program might best benefit its customers.

“We chose to partner with Truterra because they are a farmer-driven cooperative like FCS that genuinely wants what is best for the farmer and the environment” he says. “Many of our farmers are already using regenerative ag practices, so participating in the carbon program is a natural next step.

“Regenerative ag is nothing new. Farmers have been doing this for a long time. We don’t simply sell cover crop seed or convince farmers to reduce tillage so we can make money. We do it because it’s the right thing to do for farmers, agriculture and our environment,” says Koops.

Winter Weather: Find Out What's in Store for Agriculture

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 18:52:06 GMT

The upcoming winter is shaping up to look a bit different than the past several years. The shift to a different weather pattern, El Nino, is in the works – resulting in a very strong subtropical jet stream and a weakened polar jet stream.

Brad Rippey, USDA meteorologist, shares the predictable changes to North American weather those involved in the agriculture industry should be on the lookout for.

Northern Weather Will Be Drier
One of the common changes Rippey shares is unusually mild weather across the northern tier of the U.S. The mild weather is a result of the weak polar jet stream and affects areas stretching all the way from the Pacific Northwest to New England.

“That of course has implications for winter crops,” Rippey says. You don’t get as much establishment of a snow cover, but at the same time, you don’t have a whole lot of cold weather to deal with and there’s less concern for winter kill. So, it’s kind of a tradeoff there.”

Along with the milder temperatures, northern states are also predicted to see drier conditions this winter.

An outlook published by NOAA in late September shows between a 33 to 50% chance of below average precipitation for a portion of the northern U.S between November and March. The areas NOAA expects the largest impact are the Pacific Northwest and Great Lakes region.

The dry, warm conditions have the potential to make this planting season an early one.

“It all depends on how the snow falls, but generally speaking, soil temperatures will likely not be as cold as they were in the spring of 2023,” Rippey says. “Given the mild, dry forecast, there may be a fairly quick planting season in the north for spring 2024.”

The Story for Southern States is Much Different
“The enhanced subtropical jet stream tends to bring stronger storms across the southern tier of the United States,” Rippey says. “Sometimes that affects Southern California but it’s more likely along the Gulf Coast and southern Atlantic coast.”

NOAA’s predication maps show the highest probability of above average rainfall – 50 to 60% – for states along the Gulf and southern Atlantic coasts.

The increased precipitation in those areas is something Rippey says could help with low water levels from the summer’s drought.

“As we get deeper into autumn and the heart of winter, the odds most definitely increase we will see wetter conditions in places like Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi where we’ve got not only low water levels impacting navigation, but also the saltwater intrusion from the Gulf,” he says. “It may take a while but eventually as the winter proceeds, we should see relief especially in the southern part of the basin.”

The Wild Card to Watch For
A less clear aspect for this winter’s forecast could be due to elevated oceanic temperatures, which have the potential to keep global temperatures high through the winter and into 2024.

The high oceanic temperatures produce blocking high pressure systems, which Rippey says can be blamed for Canada’s wildfire season and recent heat waves and fires in Europe.

“If some of the oceanic temperatures continue to induce weird blocking patterns, that can lead to extremes like heat, cold, droughts and floods that’s generally independent from El Nino,” he says.

Effects on South American Production
El Nino has different implications for growers in South America.

Key production agriculture areas such as southern Brazil and Argentina are just moving into their spring growing season and the El Nino weather patterns are expected to create more favorable conditions for their crops than La Nina.

“From a crop production standpoint, I would expect improving conditions in some of the areas that have been impacted by drought over the last few years,” Rippey says. “As you move northward into the Amazon basin, El Nino can trigger drought. That’s a concern from an ecological standpoint and that drought often extends into places like Mexico and the Caribbean for as long as El Nino persists.”

Growers Who Rely Upon Cover Crops Say Diversity is Key to Maximum Soil Health Benefit

Fri, 25 Aug 2023 16:57:22 GMT

This article was written by Jamie Sears Rawlings with Trust In Food.

Eighty percent of U.S. growers who participated in the 2022-23 National Cover Crop Survey report that they used cover crops on their farms. That number overwhelms the national average (only 7.5 percent of U.S. farms in the 2017 Census), but it’s enough to signal that adoption of cover crops is rising.

For these new adopters, however, the learning curve is coming with some challenges along the way.

What if one cover crop works one year and not the next? How do you know when to terminate? Does planting green make sense?

Cover Crop Options Available For Every Farm

According to Indiana producers who shared their practices at a Aug. 17 field day: cover diversity and experimentation are essential to cater mixes to each unique operation.

Indiana farmer Aaron Krueger told the almost 80 people in attendance that his soil health and organic material has grown as his cover crop diversity has grown. (Left: Aaron and Ronald Krueger of Krueger Farms in Owensville, Ind.)

“Wheat is a good starter program for a cover crop, but it likes to put on roots when it flowers, which is problematic,” Krueger said. “My advice is to look beyond just wheat into rye and a mixture.”

Like most growers, Krueger says he experiments with his cover crop mix, but mostly chooses to stay with a grass, legume, and brassica trident. His preferred mix ahead of corn includes four total legumes because they are easy to plant into, making it easy to plant into green, which is important on his farm.

Peas as his main legume, Krueger says, work well because peas produce a lot of biomass that is easily digestible.

Slow-Release Nutrients Feed Soil

Krueger was joined by fellow Indiana grower Cameron Mills, owner of Mills Family Farms. His cover crop mixture, he told the group, is designed intentionally to release nutrients that feed his soil throughout the growing season.

“Our cover crops have different carbon/nitrogen ratios and I want to make sure I have a slow-release of those nutrients over time,” Mills said. Using this method, he said, has allowed him to reduce his nitrogen use for the year to only 120 units. “Our goal with cover crops is to feed our biology,” he added.

Travis Gogel, Southwest Indiana Soil Scientist with USDA-NRCS, was on-hand at the event and shared that cover crops are integral, no matter the time in the growing season.

“Soil cover begins at harvest time,” said Gogel. “One of the things we are looking for as an NRCS planner is that we don’t want to see any bare soil in the fields at any point in the season.”

This consistent cover cropping is the method that Krueger uses, and he said it has provided him many benefits.

“Since we’ve started using more peas and vetch in our cover crop mix, we’ve been weaning our nitrogen use back,” he says. “And we aren’t using as many herbicides and fungicides because keeping your soil covered helps to suppress disease.”

Be Open To Experimentation

Mills cautioned that experimentation is equally as critical when cover cropping.

“Every year it’s different,” he said. “If you are waiting for your cover crops to get to the same biomass every year, you might be in trouble.”

After several years of consistent cover cropping, both Mills and Krueger believe in the practice’s benefits for soil health, building resilience and boosting profitability.

“Everyone can do it,” Mills said. “You just have to figure out your program.”

Krueger Farms hosted the field day in partnership with America’s Conservation Ag Movement, which works with innovative producers to share real-field results of agronomic practices that optimize soil health, improve water infiltration and storage, reduce inputs and other benefits that boost yields and ROI. Learn more by visiting www.americasconservationagmovement.com.

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Harvest Begins For Nuseed Carinata Cover Crop for Bioenergy

Tue, 16 May 2023 18:09:06 GMT

Nuseed Carinata harvest is underway in the southern United States, starting near Tifton, Georgia. Nuseed has been working with growers in Florida, Georgia, and Texas to increase the sustainable contract production of the non-food oilseed for processing into certified sustainable lower carbon bioenergy feedstock and non-GMO meal for a traceable plant-based source of protein.

“It’s an honor to work with our growers who are truly innovators. They recognize the value of carinata as a cover crop that can benefit their farm on an agronomic and economic standpoint,” said Justin Ingalls, NA Commercial Sales Lead. “The Nuseed Carinata Contract opportunity financially rewards growers for cover cropping and sustainable practices, that’s key to increasing adoption and regenerating soil.”

Nuseed Carinata has been a great fit for the southern states as a cover crop to help with soil health, soil moisture retention between seasons, and setting up the grower’s primary crop up for success. Nuseed Carinata is a harvested cover crop, so growers also benefit from a secure contract with a downstream market.

Nuseed Carinata has proven to be a resilient hybrid cover crop. It grows well between many primary crop rotations such as cotton, corn, and soybeans. It is grown between harvest and spring planting when weather limits primary crop production and soil is typically exposed to erosion. Nuseed R&D is continuing to advance Nuseed Carinata hybrids with a focus on even greater frost resilience, shorter maturity, and herbicide tolerance.

“We are thrilled to see this cover crop even through a tough unprecedented freeze, still come up strong and healthy ready for harvest” said Derek Barber, Field Sales Manager at Nuseed.