Soil moisture - Articles

Drought Management

How Cover Cropping Can Help Your Operation Survive Drought Conditions

June 8, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health

Struggling with drought? Find practical solutions using no-till and cover crops with the help of our recommended articles from No-Till Farmer and Cover Crop Strategies.

Cover Crop Use Spreading Across the Globe

June 23, 2022 | Posted in Seeding Practices

Cover crops are seeing popularity increase overseas, from Europe to Asia to Australia to New Zealand, as farmers look for many of the same benefits on their own farms.

USDA Crop Progress Report 4/25/22

April 25, 2022

One reason for the lower progress figures this season might be recent bouts of wet weather.

Soil Moisture Levels a Factor in Cover Crop Termination

April 22, 2022 | Posted in Soil Health, Termination

Source: Ag Update: Iowa Farmer Today

Drought has been prevalent in the northern and western portions of the Corn Belt in recent growing seasons, while southern parts of the Midwest have seen flooding. Cover crops impact both wet and dry soils in the spring.

[Podcast] Rain is Like a Bomb Going Off on the Soil Surface

This week’s podcast, sponsored by Bio Till Cover Crops, features Jason Mallard, an Ag and Natural Resources Agent with University of Georgia Extension. Mallard will discuss the difference between water infiltration and percolation, how cover crops improve water quality, how cover crops protect the soil, and more.

June 8, 2021 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health

This week’s podcast, sponsored by Bio Till Cover Crops, features Jason Mallard, an Ag and Natural Resources Agent with University of Georgia Extension. Mallard will discuss the difference between water infiltration and percolation, how cover crops improve water quality, how cover crops protect the soil, and more.

Adapting Cover Crop Termination Timing to Manage Soil Moisture

May 5, 2021 | Posted in Termination

Source: Purdue University

In both wet spring weather and drought conditions, the timing of cover crop termination can have a big impact on soil moisture levels, according to Purdue University.

USDA Reports 2% of Corn Planted in the U.S.

April 5, 2021 | Posted in Seeding Practices

According to the latest USDA Crop Progress report, some 2% of corn has been planted in the week ended April 4, in line with the 2% planted in the same week last year.

Dryland Cropping Systems & Cover Crops

August 28, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Dodge City Daily Globe

Can we grow a cover crop that will provide many soil health benefits, including less soil water evaporation, higher water infiltration, better water holding capacity and weed suppression on only the moisture that would have been lost anyway? We can, if the cover crop mix is properly designed and planted and terminated timely. Read more in this article from the Dodge City Daily Globe (Dodge City, KS).

Soil: Water Reservoir for Crop Production

August 24, 2020 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Ohio's Country Journal

Dr. Elwyn Taylor, Iowa State University climatologist reported that 200-bushel corn needs 19 to 23 inches of water during the growing season. For 200-bushel corn at 75 degree F (soil temperature), corn needs 1-acre inch of water per week, doubling to 2 inches at 85 degrees F, and doubling again to 4 inches at 95 degrees F. Read more in this article from Ohio's Country Journal.

Strategies for No-Tilling Cotton Successfully

By Larry Stalcup posted on December 12, 2018 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health

Cotton may not be thought of a crop that is associated with no-till practices, but in parts of the southern Plains growers are using no-till systems to protect the soil and young cotton seedlings, improve emergence and log better yields.