No-till Farming
Many farmers always wonder about newer, more efficient ways to farm. Farming becomes more and more precise every day; farmers struggle to keep up with moisture loss caused by dry-spells, soil and nutrient run-off caused by erosion, and trying to raise better yields. Although it may seem as if there is no answer, many farmers are turning to no-till as the solution. Some farmers stand against no-till, saying it keeps the ground too cold for too long in the spring, or that it will not allow them to get their crops up, but much research proves these beliefs wrong. No-till is an advantage over conventional-till for three main reasons: conserves moisture in the soil, reduces erosion by wind and rain, and increases the quality of the topsoil.
One way no-till can prove an advantage is that it conserves moisture in the soil. By not turning up the soil, more moisture remains underneath, allowing crops to hold a supply of water during dry periods of little or no rain. Since more water remains in the ground, it benefits the crops because in hot months like July when there is little rain, crops need water, and no-till helps to supply that water. Crops like corn pollinate in July when it is the hottest and the driest, and a little extra water in the soil never hurts. During dry spells while conventional farmer’s crops burn up, crops that were no-tilled have extra water to drink and can often survive through these dry periods. Since stubble and trash remains behind to shade the ground, the earth remains unexposed to the sun and is less vulnerable to evaporation. As one no-till farmer, Darnell Poage says, “The cover on the field holds the moisture in from the sun and wind.” Because the sun is not shining directly on the groun...
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...e give it a shot. No-till has been proven many times, over and over again. Many farmers find no-till as an advantage because it conserves moisture in the soil, reduces erosion by wind and rain, and increases the quality of the topsoil.
Works Cited
Al-Kaisi, Mahdi and Mark Hanna. “Research Supports No Till.” Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011.
Al-Kaisi, Mahdi. “Tillage in 2001: No-till.” Integrated Crop Management. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2011
“CropWatch: Tillage/No-Till Systems.” Water.unl.edu. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2011. Web. 20 Oct. 2011
Horowitz, John; Robert Ebel, Kohei Ueda. “U.S. Farmers Increasingly adopt ‘No-Till’ for
Major Crops.” Amber Waves 8.4 (December 2010): 9. Web. 25 Oct. 2011
Poage, Darnell. Personal interview. 6 Nov. 2011
Voss, Jim. Personal interview. 6 Nov. 2011
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