Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Does No-Till Change Soil Management Practices?, Robert L. Blevins

Soil Science News and Views

Successful no-tilling requires a different approach to soil management practices. Since continuous no-tillage systems leave residues on the soil surface without mechanically mixing them into the plow layer and since lime and fertilizer are surface-applied, no-tilled soils have biological, chemical and physical properties contrasting with those of a plowed soil. For any crop production system to be widely accepted and used it must provide and maintain desirable physical properties of the soil, control erosion and replace nutrients removed by crops and other losses. This can be accomplished in a no-till system if proper management is used.