In the past I’ve mentioned the benefits of no-till
farming which helps cut down on soil erosion. On the downside, however,
are potentially lower yields. Well, according to an Associated Press
report a University of Illinois researcher is exploring what he calls
strip tilling.
Wayne Pederson, a plant pathologist, says strip-tilling
involves tilling in strips that are only 7 inches wide while leaving the
rest of the field undisturbed. This combines the best of both worlds,
with tilling’s warmer and drier soil and no-till’s soil conservation.
“We’re basically finding strip-till is
a hybrid combination,” Pedersen said. “Within that 7-inch strip
it’s a tiled field. Between the 7-inch strips it’s no-tilled and you get
all the benefits of water conservation and erosion control that you’d
get with no-till.”
The practice has been in use in parts of Illinois
since the early 1990s, in some cases producing yields very close to what
would be expected from conventional tillage practices.