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No-Tillers Blaze a Path to Efficient Fertility, Higher Yields
No-tillers honored as Responsible Nutrient Management Practitioners say soil and tissue testing, cover crops and split fertilizer applications have made their crop fertility more efficient and effective.
Three no-till farm operations were recognized by the Responsible Nutrient Management Foundation during the National No-Tillage Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, earlier this year.
Winners of the RNMP awards were Jim Glover of Waterford, Pa., Joe Breker of Havana, N.D. and Ed Draper of Queens-town, Md.
Below is a synopsis of their advanced fertility programs, which were recognized by No-Till Farmer and Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers, the program’s sponsors.
JIM GLOVER, WATERFORD, PA
Jim Glover’s 675-acre farm is only 20 miles south of Lake Erie, and the Waterford, Pa., no-tiller has kept that in mind as he’s transitioned between dairy and swine operations to grain farming.
He embraced minimum tillage for many years before switching to no-till about 8 years ago. For the past 4 years, he’s added cover crops into the mix and fine-tuned his fertilizer application methods.
His average corn yields have grown to 190 bushels per acre, while soybeans range between 40-50 bushels per acre. That compares with county averages of 156 and 50, respectively.
Monitoring Fertility
Glover tests soils every 2 years and calculates fertilizer recommendations based on the test results. Since adding cover crops into his program, he’s started testing plant tissues for micronutrient deficiencies, although he hasn’t identified any deficiencies yet.
Useful Tips. Left to right, Jim Glover, Ed Draper and Joe Breker discuss their farm’s advanced fertility management during the 23rd annual National No-Tillage Conference last January in Cincinnati, Ohio.
His operation has used NutriSphere-N and Avail fertilizer enhancers for the past 4-5 years to…
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