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How does tillage fit into a sustainable future?
A sustainable agriculture research specialist says new tillage equipment can offer some benefits without significant soil disturbance.
Michigan State University’s Brook Wilke tells Brownfield each field, and even areas of the field, responds differently to tillage.
“Sustainable agriculture can be done with tillage as well,” he says. “What are the ways that we can use tillage and get the goals that we see in the short term from tillage and also still continue to build on our long-term goals of soil health and minimizing erosion.”
He says short-term benefits can include weed control and better seed placement and emergence, but long-term tillage could cause compaction and faster organic matter breakdown. Wilke says no-till can work in many instances, but there needs to be room for balance.
“For farmers in general, figure out what’s the best tillage tool and plan and timing might be for you to accomplish your goals that you need and want from that tillage tool, and stop there,” he advises. “Let’s not do anymore.”
Wilke says more research is needed as technology develops and he hopes to one day see precision tillage that only treats specific areas of fields.
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