Farming Trifecta: No-till, Cover Crops, And A Diverse Rotation

By: Yield Quest

Brian Johnson eyes wheat stubble dotted by a bountiful cover crop of tillage radishes on his family’s north-eastern South Dakota farm.

“This is the new tillage,” says the Frankfort, South Dakota, farmer, who farms with his wife, Jamie, and his father, Alan. Cover crops like tillage radishes can shatter compacted soil layers on no-till fields like the ones farmed by the Johnsons.

Cover crops, though, are just one component of the Johnsons’ strategy. They’ve also teamed them with no-till and a diverse crop rotation to help mimic the native prairie.

Before European settlers broke them, native prairie soils had up to 9% organic matter, says Jeff Hemenway, an NRCS soil scientist based in Huron, South Dakota. Most soils now have one half or less of that amount. Organic matter helps boost soil water holding capacity, aids nutrient uptake, and helps curb soil erosion.

The good news is, tools like no-till, cover crops, and diverse rotations can build organic matter. It takes time, as just a 1% rise can take 20 years. Along the way, though, you can glean other benefits. Here’s how.