RESULTS FROM A mid-February e-mail survey of no-tillers indicate there’s still a sizeable degree of uncertainty about the late-winter and early spring fertilizer situation. The results shown here are based on responses from 135 no-tillers with an average of 1,491 acres.

Plenty of hallway concerns were voiced about skyrocketing seed prices by attendees at the recent National No-Tillage Conference in Indianapolis, Ind. With many new high-tech developments and traits creeping into corn genetics, seed corn costs have already reached $200 to $250 a bag and some no-tillers are scared that prices may move quickly toward $500 a bag.

Growers understand that no-till has a favorable impact on soil management. It’s due to the many interconnections between tillage, cropping practices, fertilizer, soil amendments and other soil treatments that end up boosting your yields.

Even with many new cost-cutting cropping developments, no-tillers are definitely worried about having to deal with increasing input costs in 2009.