The Economic & Soil Health Implications of Transitioning to No-Till on an Organic Mixed Vegetable Farm

Commodities

Practices

• Crop Production: no-till
• Natural Resources/Environment: soil stabilization
• Production Systems: organic agriculture
• Soil Management: organic matter, soil analysis, soil quality/health

We are proposing a research
project comparing mixed vegetable production that uses
conventional tillage versus one that does not use tillage
(no-till) on our organic farm.  We would measure four
indicators of system viability including: Soil health, crop
productivity, moisture retention and total cost. We plan to
repeat the study in year two for more accurate data analysis and
also to compare no-till costs in year one and year two of
production. The soil health benefits of reducing or eliminating
tillage is well documented, but there is a lack of data on the
economic implications of making the switch to no-till for a
small-scale organic mixed vegetable operation. Through our
research we will not only be able to provide small-farmers with a
template of our methods in switching to no-till, but also what
costs and benefits to expect from using no-till methods on a
mixed vegetable farm.

The objective is to research the
economic and soil health implications of transitioning from
conventional tillage to no-till on a mixed vegetable
operation.  Recognizing that previous research on no till
has been conducted  primarily on large monoculture systems
and does not reflect the constraints that small-scale organic
mixed vegetable farms face. Our goal is for the results from this
study to give farmers the information they need to see if
transitioning to no-till is a viable option for their farm
without incurring unnecessary cost and risk.