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Dust storms leading to tillage practice changes for central IL farmer

A central Illinois farmer says recent experiences with dust storms are leading to practice changes on his farm.

Andrew Newberg, who grows corn and soybeans in DeWitt County, says he’s beginning to shift from longtime conventional tillage to a no-till system.

“We got caught up in a windstorm this last spring.”  He says, “We had collateral damage from other farmers hitting our crop and we had some fields that just cut loose where there’s just nothing left to hold the dirt. So, we’re shifting to a different tool, a vertical tool. We’re leaving residue on top.”

Newberg says the differences between the systems during planting season have been one of the biggest challenges.

“But we have the planter, so starting to gain the knowledge of how do I set my planter in an area where I don’t maybe have that good super black fluffy seed bed, but that can be managed at the planter if set correctly.”  He says, “And there’s so much of it we can set from the cab.”

He tells Brownfield it’s been a learning experience.

“It’s a work in progress, but I would say picking up some ground that had seen lots of success in that environment was one and then that windstorm was another catalyst.”  He says, “Truthfully just scared how bad the visibility went around that field, that it was time to change.”

Newberg says he’s transitioning a few fields at a time and isn’t sure if he’ll ever be 100% no-till, but he’s encouraged by his early results. 

AUDIO: Andrew Newberg – DeWitt County farmer