No-Till Farmer
Get full access NOW to the most comprehensive, powerful and easy-to-use online resource for no-tillage practices. Just one good idea will pay for your subscription hundreds of times over.
Advertise Follow Us
RESEARCH ROWS. No-till corn data from Beck’s Practical Farm Research sites throughout the Corn Belt revealed that applying fungicide at the VT stage provides a $20.39 average return on investment.
9 Tips to Help You Put $100 Per Acre Back in Your Pocket
Findings from Beck’s Practical Farm Research indicate closing wheels, planting dates and application timing impact ROI for your no-till corn and soybeans.
NO-TILL TAKEAWAYS
- Aftermarket closing wheels are always worth the investment.
- Planting early pays off most years for both corn and soybeans. The optimum planting date for corn is April 1-15, while April 1-30 is the best window for soybeans.
- Timing makes a big difference on your return on investment when it comes to nutrient management and fungicide application.
Re-evaluating fundamentals can result in significant returns on investment year after year.
“You can add a lot of profitability to your bottom line by doing the basics better,” says Jim Schwartz, director of research, agronomy and Practical Farm Research (PFR) at Beck’s Hybrids.
Schwartz and Jason Gahimer, Beck’s PFR manager, have analyzed years of data from the more than 800 acres that Beck’s uses for research. These corn and soybean fields are located in central and southern Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and Ohio, with additional sites managed by research companies in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The total farms are about 75% conventional tillage and 25% no-till, but the data is aggregated. Results are reported based on the averages of all the studied acres, and trials must show the same conclusions for a minimum of 3 years in order to become recommended practices.
While not all of the trials are no-till, Gahimer and Schwartz say their top nine tips for increasing your ROI by $100 per acre remain the same regardless of tillage type. Here they share those recommendations tailored to no-tillers.
General Tips
1. Invest in Aftermarket Closing Wheels.
All aftermarket closing…
Top Articles
- No-Till Highlights: Dec. 12, 2024
- Dave Hula Strip-Tills Way to 490-Bushel Yield, 2024 NCGA Championship
- No-Tillers Exchange Ideas, Successes & Failures at Big Soil Health Event
- [Podcast] CEOs of AgroLiquid, Monty’s Discuss Integration of Companies, Vision for Future
- New Tool Helps Farmers Make Conservation Decisions
Current Issue
Multiple Sprayer Tips Pay Off
Re-Examining the Benefits of Narrow Rows When No-Tilling
No-Till Investment Pays Off for Montana Farmer
Must Read Free Eguides
Download these helpful knowledge building tools
- How No-Till Improves Your Land Value
- 5 Pillars for No-Till Farming Effectively, Efficiently
- Making the Precision Basics Even Better with Implement Guidance
- Focusing on Smarter, Sustainable Fertilizing Strategies
Videos
Farmer Sees 7% No-Till Corn Yield Bump with 20-Inch Rows
On this edition of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by CultivAce, longtime no-tiller Jim Leverich explains why 20-inch corn rows are paying off big time on his Sparta, Wis., farm.
Top Directory Listings
Needham Ag Technologies, LLC
Needham Ag understands the role of technology in making better use of limited resources within a specific environment by drawing on a wealth of global experience to overcome the challenges facing today's farmers, manufacturers and dealers.
Titan International, Inc
Titan offers a full line of wheels, tires and undercarriage products for a wide variety of off-the-road equipment.
The Andersons PureGrade
The Andersons grows enduring relationships through extraordinary service, a deep knowledge of the market, and a knack for finding new ways to add value as we have done for nearly 70 years.