Revolutionary No-Till System Saves Farmer $2 Million in Inputs
A farmer from Indiana has developed an innovative and sustainable farming system that has increased soil health and reduced input costs.
Rick Clark, a corn and soybean grower, was tired of soil erosion due to tillage and decided to try something different almost two decades ago.
He stopped tilling, started growing cover crops, and created a whole-farm system he calls “organic regenerative stewardship.”
Clark’s system involves strategic selection of cover crop species and attention to cover crop growth stages, which have shaped the effectiveness of his system.
While his crop yields have declined compared to earlier conventional practices, his progress is measured in the increase in soil health and higher return on investment (ROI).
Clark estimates he has saved about $2 million a year by eliminating most purchased inputs besides tillage. Soil organic matter has increased by 1.5% in the last decade, and water infiltration is about 20 inches per hour.
Cover Crop Selection
Clark’s system focuses on selecting cover crop species that are best suited for the subsequent cash crop. He manages these cover crops to ensure maximum performance. For example, before planting corn, Clark’s cover crop strategy centers on fixing nitrogen. He plants corn in fields that have previously grown a cereal grain such as winter wheat, barley, or cereal rye.
Once the wheat is harvested in mid-July, Clark plants a cocktail cover crop that includes legumes that provide nitrogen for corn the following spring.
The mix includes legumes such as balansa clover and WinterKing hairy vetch, which are two species that can overwinter in his environment.
Clark delays planting corn until after Mother’s Day in the following spring. At that time, the legumes are tall, mature, and blooming.
He wants to give the cover crop plenty of time to fix nitrogen, so the cover crops have reached the end of their life cycle.
At this stage of maturity, the plants in the cover crop mix that have overwintered are more readily terminated mechanically, with a roller crimper or a flail chopper.
Depending on the growth stage of the legumes, it may take more than one pass to terminate the cover crop.
The cover crop sometimes produces as much as 12,000 pounds of biomass per acre.
Typically, Clark plants the corn into this cover crop while it’s still standing. However, he has recently been leaning more toward planting the corn after terminating the cover crop.
This gives the corn a little more time to come out of the ground, as corn doesn’t like competition.
Selecting the right cover crop species is essential to maximize the benefits of cover cropping. Clark’s approach of selecting cover crops that best fit the subsequent cash crop and managing them for maximum performance is a proven strategy that farmers can adopt. By following this approach, farmers can improve soil health, reduce soil erosion, and increase yields.
Weed Suppression
To prevent weeds from taking hold and outcompeting corn, farmers rely on a range of strategies. One common method is to use cover crops, which create a thick mat of residue that inhibits weed-seed germination and shelters the soil. Rick Clark, a farmer in Indiana, depends primarily on this method, stating that;
“Seventy percent of the weed suppression needs to come from the cover crop residue, and 30% needs to come from the plant canopy.”
Clark plants corn in 20-inch rows to encourage early canopy formation, which further suppresses weeds. He aims to have the corn canopy formed by growth stage V6.
However, the cover crop residue must be consumed by soil microbes to convert nitrogen into forms available to the plants.
This means that the corn has to canopy before all the mulch is consumed by the microbes.
Clark uses a cold-tolerant pea as a cover crop alternative that works well before corn or soybeans.
“We can plant peas all the way up until the ground freezes, which is usually in December here. The peas survive the winter and grow well in spring to fix nitrogen in the soil,” he says.
After Mother’s Day, he plants corn or milo into the peas and terminates the peas with a roller crimper or flail chopper.
The cover crop Clark plants most frequently after harvesting corn in mid-October is maslin, an age-old mix of cereal grains. Clark’s maslin is a blend of cereal rye, winter wheat, and barley.
“The maslin grows in the fall and again in the spring after coming out of dormancy,” he says.
In spring, he no-tills soybeans into the maslin and lets both crops grow together.
He harvests beans and maslin together in late September or early October and separates the grain from the beans after harvest.
After the maslin-soybean mix, Clark replants maslin, harvesting the crop in July for grain.
After the maslin harvest, he plants alfalfa or buckwheat. The buckwheat canopy effectively terminates small, late weeds, he says.
If a buckwheat field is slated for corn the following spring, after harvesting the buckwheat, Clark plants a cover crop mix of cereal rye and cold-tolerant peas.
“The cover crop provides fuel for the corn the next spring,” he says.
Terminating Alfalfa with Corn
Clark no-tills alfalfa into maslin stubble in midsummer, aiming to leave the forage in the rotation for two or three years.
He uses mechanical and cultural methods to terminate the forage. In the year he plans to terminate the alfalfa, he no-tills corn into the standing alfalfa in the spring.
When corn is at the V2 stage, he rolls the field flat with a roller crimper. This flattens the alfalfa, but the corn stands right back up again.
With corn planted in 20-inch rows, the corn canopies quickly, starving the alfalfa for sunlight and killing it. However, rain is necessary for the corn to grow rapidly.
Clark advises newcomers to the practice to try it first on a small scale due to the high risk involved.
In summary, weed suppression is an important aspect of crop management, and farmers use a variety of methods to achieve it.
Cover crops are a popular choice, and Rick Clark has developed a system that relies heavily on them.
By using a combination of cover crops, proper row spacing, and early canopy formation, he has been able to successfully suppress weeds and maximize his return on investment.
