Eastern Iowa Farmer Spring 2017

managing your soil
erosion.
“If anyone has the next generation who wants to
come in and farm, we want to hold that soil on our
farm,” he said. “We don’t want that soil going to the
neighbor.”
He showed the audience a video that illustrated how
an earthworm will literally pull residue from a field into
the soil. Earthworm populations consume two tons of dry
matter per acre in a year, partly digesting it and mixing it
with soil. That helps to build organic material, he noted,
and 1 percent of organic material holds 10,000 pounds of
carbon, 1,000 pounds of nitrogen, 100 pounds of potassium,
100 pounds of sulfur, and 0.3 to 1 inch of water.
He urged farmers to try adjusting their tillage practices
and using cover crops on a smaller plot, and to do it
several years in a row.
“Try it out,” he urged. “You can’t change things
overnight. Take 20 or 40 acres and experiment with it at
least three years in a row. We can’t change Mother Nature;
she wins regardless. But in three years you should
have good weather.”
He illustrated his point about the value of increasing
soil health by closing his presentation with three
demonstrations that showed how no-till soil performed
compared to conventionally tilled soil.
The first test showed infiltration rates. Steele poured
water into two containers – one with the no-till soil,
and one with the conventionally tilled soil – that were
set over clear plastic bowls. The water poured into the
no-till container infiltrated through and collected in
the bottom of the bowl. Just a few drops of water got
through conventionally tilled sample.
The second test demonstrated
the strength of two different aggregates.
About a cupful of each
of the soils was set on a piece of
screen that was submerged into a
jar of water. Again, the no-till soil
showed more stability than its
counterpart, with less of the soil
slagging off into the water.
The third test compared the
runoff from a sample of no-till
soil planted with a rye cover crop
Chandra Shaw
to a sample of conventionally
tilled, unplanted soil. Each sample
was in a metal pan with a canal notched out of one
end to allow water to flow from the soil into a container
below.
There was no runoff in the no-till, cover crop planted
soil, while the tilled soil showed runoff.
“In a small way, these demonstrations illustrate what
I’ve been talking about,” Steele said. n
— Nancy mayfield,
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spring 2017 | Eastern Iowa Farmer 87