Strip Till Can Be a Spring Routine

In this article, Iowa farmer Collin Jensen is a strip tiller. But his operation is a little different than many others. He does not put the strips in with his machine in the fall, but rather in the spring. Not only does he save fuel by not doing it in the fall AND spring, but he also applies fertilizer and plants, along with strip tilling, in one pass. In this way, he “saves fuel, reduces soil erosion, improves soil quality and lessens compaction by farming this way”. It does sound like a very cost effective operational system that is efficient. Jensen farms about 1,800 acres in Iowa. He doesn’t touch his stalks in the fall, but waits until the spring and uses his “Yetter Sharktooth trash whippers mounted on the front of his planter to prepare the soil for the seed. He has a 24-row planter, and plants rows 20 inches apart placing the seed at a 1¼- to 2-inch depth.”

http://farmprogress.com/library.aspx/strip-till-spring-routine-1/4/243