Keep Slot Closed For Slug Defense... 

Grant Troop says insecticides won’t do anything to control slugs, but how you apply them can help against these devastating pests. He recommends applying insecticide only on the crop row and keeping it off residue.

Keeping an insect population in crop residue is one way to keep slugs under control. Kill the insects and slugs will eat your corn, says the Penn State no-till agronomist.

A seed slot that isn’t closed properly will also provide a buffet for slugs, which can move from one seed to the next. The best way to close the slot is to use interlacing rollers behind the planter, rather than solid wheels, Troop adds.

Save $10 To $20 No-Tilling...

The average Ohio farm could save around $10 to $20 an acre per year using no-till compared to conventional tillage. Randall Reeder, an Ohio State University Extension ag engineer, came to that conclusion using rate records from custom applications.

“Farmers usually only have one set of data to work with — the practice they use on the farm. They lack information about the economics of an alternate practice,” Reeder says. “Using custom rates provides a nice guide for determining the cost difference between two production systems.”

Watch Coulter Performance In Corn Residue...

Joel DeJong, an Iowa State Extension agronomist, says he walked several fields with producers who were no-tilling soybeans for the first time. In some cases, the growers were struggling with getting seeds placed to the desired depth because…