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To Till or Not To Till

Farmers can save themselves time, money and their soil by using cultivation methods with no tillage, according to Dr Ashraf Choudhary, a senior lecturer in agricultural machinery at Massey. He says farmers apply more pesticide and fertiliser than they need to compensate for losses through surface-water and sediment runoff using conventional cultivation methods.

Choudhary visited Ohio State University to study a 33-year-old experimental plot of tilled verses untilled land to quantify tillage effects on soil and nutrient losses. He says there is less, and often no, soil and water runoff from land not tilled.

"It tells us rainfall is absorbed and helps increase crop production. The soil structure and water-holding capacity of the soil are also improved."

Production was 12% better on the no-tillage plot and input costs, time and labour dropped 80%; returns are higher through larger yields. A long-term experiment running at Massey concurs. Winter oats were planted under no-tillage and conventional methods. Soil water runoff was reduced by 80% in the first year. Continuing research should result in practices for long-term use of no-tillage methods for sustainable crop production and land use.