Picture of no-till planting soybeans into standing rye using the cover crop roller

Organic No-Till

Phone: 705-786-7705

Fax: 705-786-7706

E-mail: farm@stoddart.ca

We are currently experimenting with a technique to no-till soybeans into a living rye crop by using a roller on the front of the tractor lay the rye flat and crimp its stem.  This results in a thick weed-suppressing mulch on the surface that the soybeans are able to grow up through.  We have adapted the technique from research initiated by the Rodale Institute in Pennsylvania.

The primary benefit of this technique is a significant reduction in the number of trips over the field and the amount of soil disturbance.  Conventionally managed organic soybean production would require at least 4 tractor passes to prepare the seedbed and plant the crop followed by generally 3 more passes for weed control.  We have replaced this with 2 passes to plant the rye and one pass to plant the soybeans.  Plus, the soil is covered with a living crop in the winter instead of being bare.

We believe this new technique gives significant environmental benefits when compared with traditional organic soybean production through reduced fossil fuel consumption, reduced soil erosion and increased soil organic matter.

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