For Derek Axten, changing nitrogen management on over 10,000 acres first required changing the goal. Shifting from a production-maximizing mentality to a profitability-first and resilience mindset is more fun, he says, though it’s not without its share of challenges.
The Axtens have been using several different management tools to make the shift to a soil-health and profit-driven cropping system, including intercropping, changing N sources, and using SWAT maps for precision application of nutrients. Water is always a limiting factor in southern Saskatchewan, and as such, end-of-season cover crops have been hit and miss, but full-season cover cropping shows promise.
Axten says in this Farming Forward episode that he’s seeing more yield stability and higher protein in the crops grown now vs. 2011, when they started on this journey. Every year offers its own set of challenges, he says, but that keeps things interesting.
“There is no soil health finish line,” Axten says.
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