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Articles Tagged with ''John Dobberstein''

New Soil Test May Help No-Tillers Pick Covers, Cut Fertilizer Costs

A 24-hour rapid test could help farmers unlock the secret to fertility potential in their soils and make more informed decisions about fertilizer applications.

By John Dobberstein posted on January 1, 2013 | Posted in Nutrient Management

A new method of soil testing that measures the drying and rehydration cycles in farm ground could help no-tillers use fertilizer more efficiently and even choose the best cover crops to seed ahead of the next crop.

Palmer Amaranth Is Threat To The Corn Belt

This adaptive, noxious weed thrives in no-till fields, and preventing its spread will require proactive scouting and herbicide applications.

By John Dobberstein posted on January 1, 2013 | Posted in Crop Protection

Palmer Amaranth, the so-called “pigweed on steroids” that has plagued Southern cotton and soybean farmers for several years, is marching northward and could soon threaten yields and profitability for Corn Belt no-tillers.

Label Issue For Metaldehyde Clouds Slug Control Picture

Corn and soybean uses may soon be removed from Deadline labels, but farm experts — fearing a blow to no-till adoption — are lobbying the U.S. EPA to maintain the uses.

By John Dobberstein posted on December 1, 2012 | Posted in Crop Protection

No-tillers could lose the availability of a popular product for slug control if a registration issue with the U.S. EPA isn't straightened out.

Turning Unwanted Discs Into A No-Till Asset

A Kansas farmer invented a five-sided, vertical-tillage blade that he says puts crop residue in touch with soil microbes but still protects the benefits of no-till.

By John Dobberstein posted on December 1, 2012 | Posted in Equipment, Residue Management

When Henry Falk was growing up on his farm, if a piece of machinery — new or used — wasn’t doing the job, his father would haul it to his shop and rebuild it with a torch and welder to make it work better.

Tips For No-Tilling ‘Lean And Green’

No-tillers who do their own onfarm research can harvest the data needed to make better decisions about their farm systems and inputs.

By John Dobberstein posted on December 1, 2012 | Posted in Nutrient Management

One way no-tillers can make their farms more profitable is to put their management decisions under a closer microscope and determine if they’re making the right choices about fertilizers, hybrids/varieties, row spacing or equipment

Building A Farm From The Ground Up

For Jim Kline, tiling, onfarm research and reduced tillage are a foundation for success, but ‘farming with integrity’ is the heart of his family’s operation.

By John Dobberstein posted on November 1, 2012

Having started his farming career as a high-school freshman, Jim Kline knows that building a farm can take a lifetime, and it can be undone in an instant by poor decision-making.

Cover Crops Vs. Tile: Which Is The Best?

In the spring, cover crops might serve as a less-expensive alternative to tile systems for drying out fields. But tile has its own perks, and the two systems may be best working together.

By John Dobberstein posted on November 1, 2012 | Posted in Cover Crops, Water Management

With crop prices and farm incomes at record levels, many no-tillers have been pouring substantial sums of money into improving drainage.

‘Quadbaler’ Swaths And Bales In One Pass

Washington no-tiller Byron Seney created an attachment that let him fasten a draper header to a tractor to swath and windrow wheat stubble for his baler.

By John Dobberstein posted on October 1, 2012 | Posted in Equipment, Residue Management

A Washington no-tiller has designed an attachment that allows him to use a draper header on his tractor to swath and bale wheat stubble in one pass.

Cover Crops: Starting Is The First Step

The right covers can transform tough soils, but no-tillers must fight past early challenges to find what works on their farm, Terry Taylor says.

By John Dobberstein posted on October 1, 2012 | Posted in Cover Crops

Terry Taylor has spent much of his adult life figuring out how to unlock the potential of cover crops on his southern Illinois farm.

Recent Rainfall, Early Harvest May Bring Flush Of Fall Weeds

Properly applied fall burndown herbicides can control quick-hitting winter annuals and provide some residual protection, making for cleaner no-till fields ahead of planting next spring.

By John Dobberstein posted on October 1, 2012 | Posted in Crop Protection

Due to some late-summer rainfall and an early harvest this year in many states, no-tillers who aren’t seeding cover crops may want to beef up their fall weed-control program to help keep fields clean for next year.

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Farmer Sees 7% No-Till Corn Yield Bump with 20-Inch Rows

On this edition of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by CultivAce, longtime no-tiller Jim Leverich explains why 20-inch corn rows are paying off big time on his Sparta, Wis., farm.

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