Civil Eats

DECEMBER 4, 2023

Black polyethylene “mulch film” gets tucked snugly around crop rows, clear plastic sheeting covers hoop houses, and most farmers use plastic seed trays, irrigation tubes, and fertilizer bags. These synthetic polymer products have often been used to help boost yields up to 60 percent and make water and pesticide use more efficient.

Agriculture 145

Agriculture Agriculture Supply Chain Production 145

The Equation

MAY 15, 2023

Industrial agricultural practices such as tillage (plowing) and leaving fields bare between growing seasons degrade soil structure, reduce water infiltration, lower water storage capacity, and increase runoff (the flow of water across the soil’s surface).

Industrial Agriculture 97

Industrial Agriculture Crop Agriculture Agriculture 97

ATTRA

JULY 11, 2023

When he dug deeper (literally) he saw that the soils farmers were working with had an impenetrable plow pan layer about 6 inches below the surface, so the cotton plant roots could not access the nutrients they needed, even though the nutrients were present. The soil had lost its structure because of the way it was being managed.

Farming 40

Farming Farming Plowing Crop 40

Agwired

DECEMBER 8, 2023

with AFBF’s Golden Plow award. The Golden Plow is the highest honor the organization gives to sitting members of Congress. International Trade Commission to consider the impacts that tariffs on Moroccan shipments of fertilizers are having on family farms. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.)

Plowing 45

Plowing Ruralism Agriculture Agriculture 45

Agritecture Blog

MAY 19, 2023

‘No-till’ planting and cropping have been widely adopted to reduce the impacts of tillage and increase the soil micro-diversity, lessening the need for synthetic fertilizers.

Farming 52

Farming Farming Livestock Crop 52

ATTRA

APRIL 9, 2024

As my tomato plants were more than ready to be set out, I had to get the cover cut, chopped, and plowed into the soil in preparation for transplanting. In 15 minutes, the next garden plot was lightly tilled, plant residue mixed and in reach of the soil microbes I rely on for crop fertility. It’s just a tool, I told myself.

Crop 52

Crop Plowing Rural Development Mechanics 52

Farmbrite

JUNE 1, 2023

These days, farming is a lot more than just plowing the field and planting seeds. Operating loans are used for operating expenses such as labor costs, seed, fertilizer and other supplies needed for crop production. They can also be used for livestock purchases such as cows or pigs.

Farming 52

Farming Farming Farmland Finance 52

Cropaia

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023

Traditional plowing or tilling can disrupt the soil structure, making it more susceptible to erosion. With reduced disturbance, their populations can flourish, contributing to improved soil structure and fertility. Over time, they improve soil structure, reduce erosion, and increase soil moisture retention.

Soil Compaction 52

Soil Compaction Crop Rotation Farming Farming 52

Food Environment and Reporting Network

JUNE 1, 2023

They sell the wild and cultivated seaweed dried, and use the less delicious, more abundant kinds to fertilize the saltwater farm they’re reviving nearby. Others want to use kelp to reduce emissions by replacing carbon-intensive materials like soy, fertilizers, plastic, and petroleum with seaweed-derived versions.

Science 52

Science Harvest Harvester Harvesting 52

Hartwood Farm

FEBRUARY 14, 2022

Years of cover cropping and chisel plowing have eliminated compaction and it even grew healthy beans and potatoes during the 21.5” Fortunately, we have the capacity to make these major in-season changes thanks to the joy of having fields just hanging out growing cover crops for fertility that can be quickly conscripted into use!

Crop Rotation 52

Crop Rotation Crop Farming Farming 52

The Counter

APRIL 27, 2022

All around Cobb, land-owning neighbors are beginning to lease out their fertile farmland—not to farmers, but to solar companies, taking that land out of production at a time when more, not less, farmland is needed to grow our food. Landowners Cobb leased from were similarly averse to mixing things up.

Farming 52

Farming Farming Farmland Acre 52

CalCAN

APRIL 6, 2023

The plowing of agricultural land during the 19th and 20th century released vast stores of carbon dioxide , only a small part of which has since been returned to the soil. Side by side with that loss of diversity was a long growth in greenhouse gas emissions that has only recently begun to be addressed.

Agriculture 52

Agriculture Agriculture Greenhouse Food 52

Food Environment and Reporting Network

JULY 13, 2023

These practices include reducing or eliminating tilling of soil, planting “cover crops” that grow during the off-season and are not harvested, improving how farmers use fertilizer and manure, and planting trees. The main greenhouse gases emitted by U.S. Both warm the atmosphere far more, per molecule, than carbon dioxide.

Agriculture 82

Agriculture Agriculture Greenhouse Manure 82

Food Environment and Reporting Network

DECEMBER 7, 2022

And they raise the risk of additional acres being plowed up to compensate for the lower yields. This can happen when farmers apply too much fertilizer — or when nitrogen enters the soil from decaying plant matter, including cover crops. percent for corn and 3.5

Agriculture 52

Agriculture Agriculture Cash Crop Crop 52

Food Environment and Reporting Network

MARCH 1, 2025

Diesel-powered tractors replaced horse-powered plows, and synthetic nitrogen fertilizers replaced their manure. Its not overly reductive to say it boils down to a half century of intentional federal farm policy. In the years after World War II, U.S. farms in the upper Midwest underwent an industrial revolution.

Food 59

Food Crop Processing Tractor 59