|
C.
Agriculture
3.
Soil Conservation
a.
Conservation
Tillage (No-Till)
Tillage of cropland is an important factor in soil
erosion. The Natural Resource
Conservation Service (NRCS) takes transects of each county to determine the
tillage practices used with each crop (See Figure 45).
For the year 2002, the range in conservation tillage was a low of 24
percent (in
Union
County
) and a high of 52 percent (in Madison
County) for corn. The percentage of
conservation tillage used for soybeans is considerably higher than for corn.
The range of conservation tillage for the six counties was a low of 65
percent in
Logan
County
and a high of 83 percent in
Champaign
County. The average for
Ohio
soybean production was 67 percent using conservation tillage and 33 percent
using conventional tillage.
|
Figure
45:
Conservation Tillage by County
|
|
Corn
|
|
County
|
Conservation
Tillage (>30% residue)
|
Conventional/Other
Tillage (<30% residue)
|
|
Champaign
|
34%
|
66%
|
|
Franklin
|
47%
|
53%
|
|
Logan
|
45%
|
55%
|
|
Madison
|
52%
|
48%
|
|
Pickaway
|
32%
|
68%
|
|
Union
|
24%
|
76%
|
|
Ohio
Average
|
33%
|
67%
|
|
Soybeans
|
|
County
|
Conservation
Tillage (>30% residue)
|
Conventional/Other
Tillage (<30% residue)
|
|
Champaign
|
83%
|
17%
|
|
Franklin
|
72%
|
28%
|
|
Logan
|
65%
|
35%
|
|
Madison
|
67%
|
33%
|
|
Pickaway
|
75%
|
25%
|
|
Union
|
75%
|
25%
|
|
Ohio
Average
|
67%
|
33%
|
Source:
NRCS, 2002
Farmers have changed their farming practices as needed to
take residue management into account. Residue
management helps reduce soil and wind erosion, increases soil organic matter,
and improves the soil structure and water infiltration.
Leaving as little as 10 percent residue cover on a field can reduce
erosion by as much as thirty percent. Leaving
30 percent residue cover on a field can reduce erosion by 65 percent.
In the more rolling portions of the watershed in Union,
Logan, and Champaign
Counties
a winter cover crop is important in reducing the amount of soil that leaves
fields.
  
Back to
Table of Contents | 
