EROSION CONTROL

Simply stated, soil erosion by wind and water is caused by a lack of protection on the soil surface. The field's long term ability to produce a crop is affected. Erosion also results in higher immediate crop production costs - costs like reseeding and higher fertilizer rates. Zero tillage leaves standing stubble and spreads crop residue back on the field to reduce soil erosion.

Zero tillage also helps to reduce the more general costs of erosion which appear off the farm. Everyone bears the cost of clearing soil from roadsides and waterways and the environmental impacts of fertilizer or herbicides eroded from the field. Zero tillage cuts these costs by reducing erosion.

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