No-Till Drill
For over 60 years the
Klamath Soil & Water Conservation District (KSWCD)
has encouraged the development of practices
to continue agricultural production of basin lands; reduce negative
impact to the ecosystem; maintain and improve soil and water quality;
and enhance water supply.
Klamath Basin area farmers have always been conservation-oriented
with their land and water use, and constantly seek ways to improve water
use. Implementation of the no-till program is another in a long list of
conservation measures area farmers are trying.
The KSWCD’s two no-till drills are busy planting crops and are continuing to gain in popularity with a growing number of area farmers. We are pleased with the continued use of the no-till drills, and are encouraged by the results growers have shared with us. We remain optimistic in our work with the no-till concept. Overall success rates with the drills have been very encouraging. Fields planted both in the spring and the fall have produced well, and several fields were successfully inter-seeded to fill in weak or open areas within existing crops.
But, as with any new farming program, the concept of no-till planting will take some time before it is fully accepted. Is it really worth the trouble of trying something new? After all, there's an old saying... "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Well, local experience might indicate the old way may indeed be "broke." Most yields at harvest have been equal to, or in some cases better than, conventional plantings. Combine that with a savings in production costs anywhere from $30 to $45 dollars per acre, and no-till just makes good sense.
Other benefits include improved air quality from reduced stubble burning and reduced tillage; just look around on a windy day during planting season, and you'll see what conventional tillage contributes to the air. That's your topsoil you see blowing around out there! Another benefit comes in the form of reduced fuel consumption. We have seen phenomenal increases in the price of fuel, and every single farming input relies heavily on fuel... fuel for manufacture, fuel for delivery of raw materials to the factories, and fuel to deliver the finished product to the farm. Add more fuel to deliver the product to market, and it's easy to see the benefit of reducing your fuel inputs at planting time. And nobody knows just how high the cost of fuel is going to get, but there certainly does not seem to be an end in sight. Then, of course, there's the reduction in exhaust emissions, resulting from fewer trips across your farm. There's a reduction in wear and tear on your equipment. There's even a reduction in actual work time required, which means just maybe you can catch up on a little sleep once in a while! That alone ought to make you want to try it out, right?
During the current farming season our tills are available for a nominal rental fee of $12 per acre, with a $100 delivery charge and a $150 minimum overall charge. Please note the delivery charge has been averaged to keep it reasonable for everybody. One unfortunate result is our inability to service certain geographic portions of the County. We apologize for the inconvenience, but there are some places the delivery vehicle just cannot deliver one of these machines and still maintain a reasonable delivery fee for everyone. Call our office at the number listed above and ask for extension 117 if you would like to rent one of our drills.
Read more about it:
No-till and Water
Conservation
No-till and Water Quality
What crops can be planted?
No-till and Weed Control
No-till and Crop Yields
No-till and Sustainable Agriculture Read
about the new Lava Beds-Butte Valley drill!