Minimizing erosion, better crop inputs management and higher corn yields is what Port Rowan, Ont., farmer Dan Petker was looking for when he adopted strip tillage five years ago. Farming with his family on the shores of Lake Erie, Petker turned to strip till — the process of minimizing tillage by cultivating eight-inch wide strips… Read More
Category: Strip tillage
Where should growers place fertilizer in strip-till strips to best protect the seed from injury while optimizing nutrient uptake? Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs corn lead Ben Rosser says Ontario does have “safe rate” recommendations for in-furrow and 2″x 2″ planter banding but no guidelines are currently available for strip-till fertilizer placement…. Read More
Quebec farmer Mike Verdonck started strip tilling in 2000, and since then, has found Soil Warrior’s strip tiller is the best for their soil conditions. Verdonck was on hand at Commodity Classic at Orlando, Florida, to talk about his experiences with the implement. He operates in a heavy clay zone in Quebec, which as any… Read More
If soybeans need a cozy warm seedbed to get rolling, tillage is a must, right? Well, no and no. Emerging research suggests that cool soil isn’t nearly the detriment to soybean growth once thought, which also means working an entire field for spring “warm up” isn’t required either. To dig in to managing residue ahead… Read More
Effectively integrating a cereal rye cover crop into corn is not for the faint of heart. Cereal rye can deliver tremendous benefits for a corn production system but there are challenges. Many growers wrestle with how to get uniform establishment in the fall; determining the best nitrogen and tillage plans; and finding that sweet spot… Read More
Crop residue is a real conundrum: not enough, and soil is vulnerable to wind and water erosion; too much, and the next crop suffers. Corn residue in particular can cause some real headaches for the subsequent soybean crop. To talk about why that is, and how to manage it, we go to experts Horst Bohner… Read More
Independent depth control is one of the features that makes Unverferth’s Raptor strip till tools a good fit for growers looking to create ideal seedbeds in the tillage system, the company says. At the National Farm Machinery Show at Louisville, Kentucky, Unverferth’s Garrick Schroeder took RealAgriculture on a short tour of the Raptor. In this video,… Read More
Planting corn into a cultivated strip provides many soil health and management benefits, but dealing with residue from the previous crop can prove challenging. In this video report from 2021 Ontario Diagnostic Days, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs corn specialist Ben Rosser and Anderson Agronomy Services agronomist Chad Anderson share what they’re learning from… Read More
It’s time for Day 6 of Ontario Diagnostic Days! The annual Ontario field crop diagnostic days held at Ridgetown, Elora, and Winchester are again virtual in 2021. Management tips for corn, soybeans and dry beans; learning lessons from your soil; and the role robotic technology plays on the farm are all featured in this episode. We’ll… Read More
How does strip tillage impact a corn plant’s ability to access and take up nutrients? On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Ben Rosser, corn lead at Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, looks at fertility research plots that compare how corn performs in both conventional tillage and spring strip tillage systems. In… Read More
It’s important to know what’s going well, and what’s not, especially with soil. Certain “canaries in the coalmine” can indicate existing, persistent problems with management practices that over time can be improved. Adam Ireland, who farms with his family near Teeswater in Bruce County, Ont., is joined by Bernard Tobin for this episode of Soil… Read More
Plot trials are a great way to gain preliminary research findings about a particular subject. Based just outside of Lethbridge, Alta., Farming Smarter’s primary focus is applied research that helps producers make informed choices around inputs, technology and management practices for their operations. Carlo Van Herk, research technician at Farming Smarter, walks Kara Oosterhuis through the… Read More
When it comes to strip tilling, is it better to plant corn into fall strips or spring strips? Ben Rosser, corn lead with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, has been working on this question for a while now, and in this Corn School episode, Bernard Tobin catches up with him in… Read More
Some farmers practice strip till in their cornfields, some plant corn in twin rows, while others plant multiple hybrids. Then there’s Mike Strang — he does it all in the same field and even adds cover crops to the management mix. On this episode of The Sharp Edge, Strang, who farms with his family near… Read More
Two provinces and thousands of kilometres apart, farmers Dean Toews and Mark Brock run surprisingly similar strip-tillage systems. The benefits are similar too, even with substantially different soil types and weather conditions, as these farmers share on this episode of The Agronomists. From lessons learned, to equipment choices and fertility management, learn more about the… Read More