By DOUG SCHMITZ

Iowa Correspondent

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is encouraging farmers to “Keep the Stubble” on their harvested crop fields in a month-long “No Tillage November” campaign to help improve soil health, water quality and wildlife habitat.

“No-till farming is a cornerstone soil health conservation practice, which also promotes water quality, while saving farmers time and money,” said Kurt Simon, NRCS-Iowa state conservationist.

Mirrored after the national cancer awareness campaign, “No Shave November,” which encourages people not to shave during the entire month, the NRCS project encourages farmers to keep tillage equipment in their sheds and the crop stubble on their fields this fall.

“One of the first soil health principles is ‘do not disturb,’” Simon said. “This campaign is a fun way to remind farmers about the important relationship between tillage and soil health.”

Gene DeBruin, an Oskaloosa, Iowa, no-till corn and soybean farmer of 330 acres, said improving soil health increases soil biological activity, which provides erosion control and nutrient benefits and can simulate tillage.

“No-till is a different management tool because timeliness is very important for planting and weed control,” he said. “I really like it, though. I like knowing that there is biological activity below the ground. You dig down 6 inches and the earthworms are there. The worms are my tillage tool.”

The 2016 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll, which surveys more than 2,000 farmers on a variety of conservation topics, showed 42 percent of respondents used continuous no-till, while 19 percent increased their use of this management practice.

In addition, USDA surveys show the same type of trend as more than 7 million acres in 2012 were no-till, compared to 800,000 in 1987. The 2012 Census of Agriculture also shows Iowa leads the United States in “conservation” tillage – a system which leaves about one-third of land covered with leftover “stubble” from the harvested crop – with 8.8 million acres.

According to the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy, by choosing not to till cropland, soil is more likely to stay in place, reducing the risk of erosion into stream banks or being carried away by the wind.

“We are losing too much soil across our great state, so I’m an advocate for no-till on acres where it is a workable option,” said Clarke McGrath, Iowa State University agronomist and on-farm research and extension coordinator for ISU’s Iowa Soybean Research Center.

“It is a workable option for a big chunk of Iowa’s corn and soybean acres, since no-till can be used successfully on almost any well-drained or tile-drained field,” he added. “Of course, there are fields or areas of fields that are poorly drained, so they aren’t always great candidates for no-till systems, but there are other options to limit soil loss in those areas.”

He said no-till, which also means around 70-80 percent or more of the soil surface is covered with crop residue after planting, is a great tool in limiting soil loss and building soil health; however, he added, “It’s a tool, not the complete answer.”

McGrath added, “If you want to keep soil in place, you’re not going to do it by growing only corn and soybeans, no matter how many conservation practices you use. Using combinations of cover crops, no-till, terraces, grassed waterways and any number of other practices that contribute to soil conservation in row-cropping enterprises will help reduce our losses more than no-till alone.

“And in some cases, there are acres that are only sustainable if managed with a system that includes perennial crops like pasture, hay, prairie or even trees,” he added.

As with any agronomic practice, however, there are some challenges with no-till as well. “Soil temperatures can be cooler, so more attention to seed selection and seed treatments helps with the potential for increased disease (and some other pests) pressures. Weed spectrums can shift with tillage patterns, so weed management systems may have to be adapted.”