Rejuvenating CRP Ground: Practical Advice for the Best Seed-to-Soil Contact
Sterling, ND|Aug 4, 2023
Best way to convert ground , that has been CRP for 30 years , back to cropland. It is rough as heck. I really don't want to turn it black and lose a 30 year start on no till. I want to retain as much moisture as possible and but still smooth it out and get the best seed to soil contact possible. The ground is pretty light soil. Sandy loam. Will be corn right away to manage weeds initially. Does a guy vertical till it and then roll it? Or I've thought about hitting it with an aerator a couple times? Or does a guy just bite the bullet and go bury the disk in it and turn it black as night right off the get go.....? Thanks in advance.
Answers (3):
Aug 30, 2023
I agree what’s been said, keep in mind also that you’ll have some nitrogen tie up to manage due to residue and to make sure you have extra insect protection for your seed corn.
Aug 04, 2023
I am a no till farm in Montana and have no tilled wheat into CRP and have had better luck tilling it right away. My crop was better sooner also when no tilled, I had to till it a couple years later anyway to smooth it up. I like using a pro till 2 ot 3 passes then roll it.
Aug 04, 2023
Good question. It’s not easy. I have tried no-till corn and no-till soybean to bring CRP back in to production. It can be done but I was not satisfied with the results and ended up doing some tillage within the first year or two. The first and most important thing to do is to kill the grass/sod. A dense living sod is the most challenging aspect to manage. All the above and below ground organic material takes time to decompose and can make planting (especially corn) very challenging. I am a huge advocate of no-till but some vertical tillage will likely provide the best results. Your pH will likely need to be corrected with lime and a corn crop will need adequate P and K too. Some shallow VT to incorporate and mix soil amendments will also help your corn crop. If you are willing to plant soybean the no-till option is much more doable but addressing pH and inoculating the beans are a must in that scenario. Then in the fall you are still left with a rough field to deal with again rolling, VT or field cultivation. A field cultivator smooths and levels the best but is very disruptive to soil structure. The lowest disturbance to soil structure is VT. If you decide work the field make sure every inch of the field is dry. Good luck!