Agriculture is a major part of life in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Farms can help support clean water and healthy communities, but they can also be a source of pollution if soils and nutrients wash into rivers and streams. Soil health practices on cropland are an important way to protect both our land and water. Across the United States, farms cover about 880 million acres, almost 40% of all land. About 382 million of those acres are cropland. How cropland is managed affects not only the food supply, but also the environment.
Traditional farming practices have often led to the loss of topsoil, organic matter, and helpful soil organisms. Soil health practices help address these challenges and build more resilient farms. These practices are based on the four core principles of managing soil for health: maximizing living roots, soil cover, and biodiversity and minimizing disturbance. Soil health practices on croplands can help reduce the runoff coming from farms by reducing the loss of topsoil, increasing water infiltration, and reducing the need for fertilizers.
Conservation Tillage
Conservation tillage means disturbing the soil as little as possible and leaving crop residue on the surface. Benefits of this practice include reduced soil erosion, better water infiltration, improved soil organic matter, and increased carbon storage. There are several types of conservation tillage, from reduced tillage to complete no-till. One common reduced-tillage method is strip tillage, where only a narrow strip of soil is tilled before planting. There are some obstacles when transitioning from conventional tillage; such as increased weed pressure which may lead to higher herbicide use and specialized equipment needed for planting and cover crop termination. Even with these challenges, conservation tillage continues to grow. The U.S. Census of Agriculture found that from 2012 to 2022, acres under no-till increased from 35 to 38% and under reduced tillage increased from 28 to 35%.
Cover Crops
Cover crops are planted during times when a cash crop, the crop grown for income, is not in the field. They keep the soil covered for more of the year, which helps prevent erosion and supports the microbes and insects that live in the soil. Adding a cover crop involves several decisions, including which species to plant, and how and when to plant and terminate it. Cover crop use has grown as well. The U.S. Census of Agriculture shows a 50% increase in acres with cover crops from 2012 to 2017 and another 17% increase from 2017 to 2022. In addition to environmental benefits, cover crops may help reduce weeds, lower fertilizer needs for the cash crop, and improve water infiltration and retention. Livestock farms may also use cover crops as forage, either by grazing animals on the fields or harvesting the crops for feed.
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