Next up, we’re headed to Three Forks, Montana, where no-tiller Franck Groeneweg grows a variety of crops on more than 12,000 acres.

And he has this Johnson-Su bioreactor system, which allows him to apply compost extract in furrow during planting season. Univ. of New Mexico biologist David C. Johnson, developed the system, billed to “bring lifeless soils back to life” by reintroducing beneficial microorganisms with biologically enhanced compost. Groeneweg shows us how his John Deere air seeder carries the compost extract to the crops. 

“Liquid goes into the tanks there. We have squeeze pumps. These are basically metering pumps, and send the liquid to each row unit.”

“The seed is coming here, liquid is coming there, being thrown out into the furrow and liquid comes right on top of it. Now probably some people are going to say this doesn’t look like a John Deere opener, and no it’s not. It’s a double disc. One is to cut at an angle, and the one beside it acts as a rolling boot. So, when it opens up, it keeps the soil from falling into the trench. The seed is being pushed into the soil, the liquid comes on top of it, gets closed and the packer is closing the furrow and also acts as a depth gauge.”

Watch the full version of this episode of Conservation Ag Update.