With precision ag technology available to spread fertilizer at variable rates, soil testing is essential to make fertilizer prescriptions. Soil tests will give a basis for fine-tuning fertilizer and manure inputs so they are used cost effectively on your farm

Terry, Mont., no-tiller Todd Tibbetts manages weeds with high-capacity equipment on more than 4,000 acres on two farms separated by 70 miles.

It might be more correct to call this article, “What I’m Still Learning From No-Tilling.” Over nearly 30 years, my farming operation has shifted from customary fall-spring tillage, through a period of detailed research and onfarm studies and finally, 11 years ago, to adoption of continuous no-till.

It makes sense to scrutinize the financial returns of precision ag technology costs, says Matt Darr, an Iowa State University ag engineer. But Darr says farmers continually remind him about the intangible benefits of using these tools that in many cases are just as important as dollars-and-cents justification.