Conservation Tillage Protects Soil and Nutrients for Long-Term Productivity

By Carol Brown

The 1930s Dust Bowl is a familiar lesson in U.S. history books. But dust storms have occurred in central Illinois as recently as 2025. A 2023 dust storm near Springfield caused accidents involving more than 70 cars and resulted in seven deaths. History examples like this don’t need to be repeated as agriculture experts have learned how to keep soil in place and protected from wind erosion.

Reduced tillage and no-till, or conservation tillage, are common practices that guard topsoil, but many farmers have not adopted this practice, mainly due to perceived lower crop yields. According to the USDA, approximately 15% of Illinois corn acres and 35% of soybean acres are no-tilled.

In 2023, Giovani Preza Fontes, assistant professor of crop sciences and extension agronomist at the University of Illinois, began a research project evaluate whether growers can maintain soybean productivity and profitability while using reduced tillage and cover crops.

“We started this project as a response to the dust storm events that took place that spring,” he comments. “There is a body of research that shows reduced tillage can decrease erosion, suppress weeds and disease along with other benefits.”

Soils under conservation tillage have crop residue from the previous year, which can delay drying and warming, Preza Fontes says. This in turn, delays planting and lowers nutrient availability early in the season. Colder, wetter soils can limit organic matter mineralization, therefore nutrient availability to the seedlings.