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TILLAGE DEMONSTRATION PLOTS
Gaining popularity is the use of fall strip tillage with anhydrous
application. Producers in some areas of the state (Woodford & Brown counties
come to mind) have been using fall strip till for a number of years. There are some
producers in eastern Adams County who have strip tilled quite a while as well. As a
part of an on farm research project, four producers all placed replicated strip till,
conventional till and no till plots on one of their fields in 2001 and 2002. In
2003, two producers participated in the on-farm research. Plant population and
corn yields were recorded. Results from the first three years are:
|
Strip Till |
No Till |
Conventional Till |
|
Population |
Yield |
Population |
Yield |
Population |
Yield |
| 2001 |
28,300 |
171.81 |
28,100 |
170.01 |
28,300 |
166.2 |
| 2002 |
19,800 |
140 |
19,900 |
145 |
22,000 |
140 |
| 2003 |
30,821 |
202 |
33,486 |
203.1 |
33,239 |
206.1 |
With three years of data, there seems to be no significant difference between
any of the treatments. We hope to continue the plots for the 2004 crop year on two
farms, one in Adams County and one in Brown County.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture has conducted similar studies across the
state. To find out the results, visit www.soilsproject.org.
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Adams
County Soil & Water Conservation District 338 South 36th Street
Quincy, IL 62301