Monthly podcast dedicated to soil health practices and systems. The podcast is produced through a partnership between the Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative (ccsin.org) and Hoosier Ag Today. It features farmers and other experts discussing a wide variety of practices: no-till, cover crops, nutrient/manure management, grazing.
Saving time is critical during fall harvest. So is managing residue to ensure an even template for the following season's crops. In this episode, southwestern Indiana farmer Ray McCormick and Needham Ag Technologies' Phil Needham had called in to the podcast earlier in the spring to discuss the importance of uniform residue spread for even nutrient distribution, even soil temperature and moisture, and even armoring of the soil surface. In Ray's case, that even distribution also helps emergence of cover crop that is seeded from his combine's head - which save him that critical time during fall harvest.
It's a soundbite filled podcast. Fascinating generational discussions made this recording into a 2-parter. Carrying on from Part 1, Pat Bittner and his father John are joined by Aaron Krueger and his grandfather Ronald. In some ways, it's back to the future - the discussions revolved around pastured proteins, protection of biomes, adopting regenerative ag principles, along with the challenges faced on these farms.
The conversation was fascinating... and became a two-parter. In Part 1, we visit with two southwestern Indiana families who use regenerative agriculture practices on their farms. Pat Bittner and his father John Bittner are joined by Aaron Krueger and his grandpa Ronald Krueger. The four farmers share stories that range from their farms’ histories to the results of the soil health practices they implement for their crops and land.
Betsy Bower, a Ceres Solutions Co-op Agronomist, and Mark Kingma, a farmer in NW Indiana and board member of the IASWCD, talk about irrigation system efficiency, the tools used for measure moisture, and the benefits of soil health systems for irrigation and water use efficiency. Kingma uses moisture sensors to manage water applications and they have shown how improved soil health has positive impacts on infiltration and rooting depths of crops.
There’s a new program bringing Purdue to the farm to help you make decisions and improve your operation. Purdue On The Farm connects farmers with Extension educators and researchers. Dan Quinn, Purdue Extension Corn Specialist, joins CCSI’s Hans Schmitz and Bryan Overstreet on this episode. They discuss the four pillars of the Purdue on the Farm program: crop scouting, surveys, demonstrations, and research. They also talk about how you can become involved with research and demonstrations, as well as the resources readily available for you to succeed in your farming operation.