The crops are more fragile and specialized, the winters are longer and the acreages are often bigger. Even so, many of the money-making ideas that western Canadian no-tillers use may also work for you.

While attending the Southern Alberta Soil and Crop Diagnostic Field School in Lethbridge, Alberta, earlier this summer, No-Till Farmer editors came away with many novel and interesting ideas that can apply to a wide range of no-tilled crops. The in-depth program for farmers and consultants was a joint effort among nearly two dozen staffers from Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development; the Southern Applied Research Association; and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

1. Trevor Wallace suggests thinking in terms of the actual seed count per acre rather than bushels per acre when determining proper seeding rates.

2. Hairpinning of residue into the seed slot with peas is a typical problem with disk seeders, says Wallace. It is particularly costly with low seeding rates, since there often aren’t enough peas germinating to produce high yields.

3. Jim Moyer urges no-tillers to conduct weed control studies on their own farm. “Most herbicide research is done on flat ground, and there can be significant differences when you no-till slopes,” he says. “You’ve got to try different herbicides and rates in your own fields. What is listed on the label is written to cover everything that could possibly be found under all conditions, so you need to figure out what’s best for your particular fields.”

4. It is critical to know the percentage of organic…