Save money on fuel. How much diesel do you use to get your crop in the ground? What is the cost per acre? A no-till cropping system uses, on average, less than 2 gallons of diesel fuel per acre. Conventional tillage systems consume over 6 gallons per acre. Assume diesel fuel is $3.51 per gallon. On 1,000 acres, fuel for no-till would be $7,020. For a conventional system, fuel for 1,000 acres would cost $21,060. Removing a tillage pass or not running equipment as aggressively results in fuel savings. Calculate savings using a free energy estimator tool from the Natural Resources Conservation Service at energytools.sc.egov.usda.gov.

Save time and money on labor. How much does each tillage pass “cost” per acre or hour? The cost is more than monetary. Plus, it is becoming increasingly harder to find help. If you’re the one in the tractor, that time could be better spent elsewhere. For instance, suppose you can till 18 acres per hour. You would save about 55 hours of work with each eliminated tillage pass on 1,000 acres. 

Save money on horsepower and equipment repairs. How much horsepower do you have on your farm? Some soils “pull” differently than other soils. If soils are degraded via a loss of topsoil due to erosion or crusting and a loss of aggregation due to tillage or compaction from working fields under less-than-ideal conditions, tilling requires more horsepower, fuel, labor and time. That requires a larger tractor to get things done. Don’t forget to include equipment repairs from hitting rocks exposed by erosion in your cost calculations. 

Build a resilient, sustainable and regenerative operation. The Midwest experiences more extreme weather events today. Are the days of gently soaking rains being replaced by short-duration, intense rainfall? Are dry periods lasting longer? Are summertime nights hotter? What can you do to build a more resilient agricultural and cropping system? Soils are one of the most important resources on your farm, yet they’re underrepresented in discussions about yield-limiting factors. 

Build healthy soil. Healthier soil is more resilient and better able to withstand extremes. Reducing tillage, diversifying crop rotations and adding cover crops all help to reduce topsoil erosion, build soil organic matter, increase infiltration of precipitation and improve soil biology. If you are building organic matter, your soil can hold on to more nutrients and water longer.