The big-picture idea of healthy, functioning soils is so appealing: more moisture available to the plant, more nutrients recycling, fewer weeds, lower inputs… what’s not to like, right? To the busy farmer, are the ideas of healthy functioning soils just that… ideas? Put another way we should ask: “what has merit and what is myth”? At Merit or Myth our mission is, through the social media, to engage with South Dakota-based farmers, researchers and conservationists to gain a better understanding of healthy, functioning soils. We want to engage in the context of the management issues that farmers most care about including residue, soil temperature, soil moisture and weed management.
“Sustainable” is a word we often overuse. Sure, it has plenty of appeal – a sustainable farming operation is good for the land, wildlife, and future generations. What often gets lost in the message, however, is the benefits of sustainability for the farmer himself in the here and now! The reality is farming “sustainably” does…
Depending on management practices, the same soil series can function very differently. A South Dakota study recently set out to measure this affect and returned with some eye-popping numbers! Management practices from one side of the fence to the other resulted in a difference of 45 tons of organic matter as well as 150,000 gallons of water…
South Dakota features a variety of soil types, from Mobridge, to Glenham, Kube and more. But regardless of what type of soil our land features, we play a crucial role in increasing or decreasing its quality. How exactly do management practices influence the properties of our soils? NRCS Soil Quality Specialist Jeff Hemenway has conducted…
If you want any business to be successful over time, you have to be open to change. As life-long learners, this is where Brian and Jamie Johnson excel. As Jamie says, “We wanna make [our operation] the best we can. That’s what we’re after to find the best practices to move this farm into the next…
