While no-till can slow erosion, reduce compaction and improve soil structure, this practice alone simply isn’t enough to rejuvenate soils into highfunctioning ecological systems. Without the implementation of diverse cover-crop systems, strictly no-till operations will lack the ability for the soil to function as designed, says Adam Daugherty.

For a no-till system to gain the ability to prosper from the organic nutrient pool and gain resilience, cover crops are not optional but necessary, says the NRCS district conservationist in Coffee County, Tenn. Daugherty will share results of his district’s 3-year study on cover crops seeded on 18 different farms, discussing the benefits to soil biological activity, as well as yields for corn, soybeans and wheat. He’ll also delve into the economic payback covers provided on these farms.

The 2018 National No-Tillage Conference Video Replay is brought to you by Thurston Manufacturing.

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