Soybean School: To till or not to till

Tillage destroys soil structure, cuts organic matter, and decreases soil water infiltration. That means reducing tillage makes sense, right?

But the decision is not that simple, says Jodi DeJong-Hughes, University of Minnesota soil and tillage extension specialist.

In her presentation at the virtual Ontario Agricultural Conference, DeJong-Hughes notes that there's no hard and fast rule to determine the right amount of tillage — it really does depend on the farmer and the farm. And when it comes to soybeans, research from Minnesota and the Dakotas shows the oilseed crop will deliver top yields in no-till more often than not.

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[HpG]

Great video! I learned more in it than in many other videos and readings. For once, a specialist form the university that is not dogmatic about the no-till! Jodi is a great advisor, and give real-life and practical advice to migrate toward minimum tillage, backed by real data! Thanks!

[hyvenhuang]

Great insights with data support! It is really helpful for growers to choose the proper tillage way and system since it was so confusing!

[nifs]

Here in Texas all of my corn/wheat go's to silage. Usually the ground is still wet when we cut and the trucks turn the field into what seems like pavement. I have to chisel and disk to beak up the hard pan left after harvest. If I don't chisel the corn won't get over 4ft tall. We also plant back to back so it doesn't help. Very informative video!

[fishydubsfishing]

Years ago the government wanted everyone to eliminate tillage but the farmers want to till all the videos I watch everyone tills I love the deep ripping vids

[JamesTyreeII]

So, if I am understanding correctly, no till works for some people but not necessarily for other people, and is most advantageous to those who have lower amounts of rainfall as well as for soybeans which have minimal residue. Strip till is a good compromise for those who want to have tillage, especially through corn 🌽 field with lots of residue left on the ground rather than standing corn stocks. Vertical tillage is preferable to disco guitar and non twisted chisel shank points are preferable to twisted.

[Ravi_Neelipally]

I like reduced tillage, but we need to think about our southern climate. In the north, they need raise the soil temperature to help with decomposition and germination. Here in the south, we often keep it cool to save moisture. But compaction is a problem. Instead of turning the whole soil, subsoiling might be a better way to loosen it up.

[shootermcgee]

In western Pennsylvania we chisel and disc. I believe no till is a good practice where there's not much clay or rocks but here I can tell you chisel and disc yields higher numbers

[TwoHappyChildrenFarm]

I like the topic and how you handle it. While in Texas not everything you worry about is the same in no till, I still pay attention to residue and soil temperatures for no till. We have residue breakdown almost 11 months of the year.

[Yuhmuthasaho]

Question for those of you that do both conventional and minimal tillage methods, or have switched recently. How bad of yield loss on head land from harvest compaction? Does it get better over time? We avoid needless fall compaction but you can’t avoid it all Thanks

[cowboyyoga]

Super video - thank you both for your sharing )))

[EastxWestFarms]

Thank you for the great insight. We live on the Blackland Prairie with very different climate and rain patterns than y’all up in MN. Do you have any recommendations for North Central TX?

[rajbeekie]

At the end of the day, it has to do with how much money is left in the farmers' pockets.

[northrockboy]

I like my old friggstad chisel plow. We cant afford any newer vertical tools on a smaller acreage.

[jaykay]

I have a small acerage/25 and was all for no-till or min-till until I started pricing new (even used) equipment. Besides a long delivery time for new, a no-till drill and related tillage would take me 20 plus yrs just to pay for itself with corn, beans or grain. I don't hear much about the cost vs benefit and wonder where people are getting the money from?

[Bob-vylw]

Vertical tillage allows all your residue to blow onto the ditch and you neighbor's field!! Would be better off bailing your stalks and selling them We have has a 12 ft deep ditch filled up with stalks after VT.

[frederickoch]

The idea is cover crop and no till go hand In hand. When you leave it on top the worms eat it and poop in the ground and there you go fertilizer. If you plow the cover crop it rot away and it turns to alcohol. Which is not good for soil. Farm land all started with 8% organic. So question is are you farming short term or generation long term?

[kyleymefford]

Never done no till. Always wanted to try it. What about beans after beans no till. We farm some airport ground where plant height is an issue. Just curious. Mid Missouri area.

[maximemontenot]

Can you add the metric unity for yield please

[MrMagnum]

We have slug problems when we try no till after taking small grain off in the spring.

[off-labelbotanist]

So to clarify, the stalks are left upright to reduce the coolness and wetness of the mat of residue, and to cause the residue to decay and release nutrient over a longer period of time?