Strip-till Merges Benefits Of Tillage & No-till

By: Gil Gullickson

If you’re looking to merge the conservation and soil health aspects of no-till while preserving the soil warm-up perks of conventional tillage, strip-till may be for you. Under strip-till, farmers till narrow 6- to 12-inch-wide strips between rows. Fertilizer is often injected into the strip during strip-tilling. Tilled strips correspond to planter row widths of the next crop. Next spring, seed is planted into the tilled strips. Farmers normally strip-till in fall after harvest, but it can be done in the spring before planting.

Last month, the University of Minnesota (U of M) and North Dakota State University (NDSU) hosted a Strip-Till Expo at their research sites near Fergus Falls, Minnesota. They noted that strip-till: