The Five Principles of Soil Health
Soil Cover
Keep plant residues on the soil surface. Look down, what percentage of your soil is protected by residue? Erosion needs to be minimized before you can start building soil health.
Limited Disturbance
Minimize physical, chemical, and biological disturbance as much as possible. You will start building soil aggregates, pore spaces, soil biology, and organic matter.
Diversity
Try to mimic nature. Use cool and warm season grasses and broad leaf plants as much as possible, with three or more crops and cover crops in rotation. Grassland and cropland plant diversity increases soil and animal health.
Living Roots
Keep plants growing throughout the year to feed the soil. Cover crops can add carbon to the soil, providing a great food source for micro-organisms. Try to add a perennial to your system. Start small to find the best fit for your operation.
Integrating Livestock
Fall/winter grazing of cover crops and crop residue increases livestock’s plane of nutrition at a time when pasture forage quality can be low, increases the soil biological activity on cropland, and improves nutrient cycling. Proper grassland management improves soil health.
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
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