Research Resources
2023 Cover Crop Herbicide Resistance Trial
In the Summer of 2023, SDSHC and SDSU Extension researchers planted a trial plot to determine the effects of many common residual herbicides on several different species of cover crops. The results allow producers to choose cover crops that will work well with their herbicide programs. The plots were replicated on both irrigated land and dryland.
2023 Minnehaha County Soil Moisture Comparison
In the Summer of 2023, SDSHC staff placed two sets of soil moisture sensors about 1,000 feet apart – one set in a no-till soybean field and one set in a conventionally-tilled soybean field. The sensors were placed in the same soil types and on the same landscape position. Results show that the soil in the no-till field held its moisture much better throughout the summer than the soil in the tilled field.
Edmunds County Salinity Management Test Site
Beginning in 2019, the Edmunds County Conservation District took over management of 5 acres of land dominated by visible salts on the soil surface. The plot was planted with more salt tolerant species, and salinity has been monitored by electrical conductivity readings. Click the button below to see the results of this management effort as of 2023.
2022 Seed Treatment Effects on Yield and Soil Microbial Activity
In 2022, the South Dakota State University Extension and South Dakota Soil Health Coalition personnel conducted on-farm research at Garretson, SD, for Soil Health School to study the effects of corn seed treatment on grain yield and soil microbial activity. The results are linked below.
2022 Cover Crop/Herbicide Interaction
In 2022, the South Dakota Soil Health Coalition conducted on-farm research at Garretson, SD, for Soil Health School to study the residual effect of various herbicides on several different cover crop species. The plot plan and trial results are linked below.
2020 Wide Row Corn Research
In 2020, the South Dakota Soil Health Coalition conducted on-farm research at Gettysburg, Twin Brooks, and Garretson, SD, on the practice of planting wide-row corn interseeded with cover crops. The results examine yield data and cover crop biomass.
2019 Wide Row Corn Research
In 2019, the South Dakota Soil Health Coalition conducted research on wide row corn interseeded with cover crops at a farm in Twin Brooks, SD. The results examine crop yield and cover crop biomass data.
Soil Health Conference Registration Open!
The 2025 Soil Health Conference will be held Jan. 15-16 at the Ramkota Hotel and Event Center in Watertown, a spacious venue which will allow for a full day and a half of speaker sessions, awards, producer panels, and time to engage with sponsors. This event will feature many speakers including Keith Berns, Nebraska no-till farmer, ag educator, and co-owner of Green Cover Seed; Paul Jasa, noted Extension egineer at University of Nebraska-Lincoln; Dr. Jon Lundgren, Ecdysis Foundation executive director and CEO of Blue Dasher Farm; and Joe Breker, an award-winning North Dakota producer who has been using regenerative agriculture practices for over 40 years!
News & Events
Restauranteur promotes local food for community security
By Stan Wise PIERRE, SD – When Sioux Falls restauranteur Tim Meagher purchases local food, he doesn’t do it because it’s trendy. For him, it’s about securing a future for his business and the community. “If somebody else has control of our food system – if you were a...
Dormant seeding makes room for wheat in crop rotations
By Stan Wise PIERRE, SD – It’s the age-old struggle – farmers scramble to get their work done within the timeframe that Mother Nature affords them. Depending on the local weather patterns, it can be a challenge, and farmers who follow regenerative agriculture...
New website helps consumers connect with local producers
PIERRE, SD – It’s no secret that consumers are hungry for safe, healthy, sustainable, locally grown food. South Dakota’s small scale and urban producers are stepping up to the plate by learning how to improve their land, their environment, and their communities while...