WSARE 2000 Farmer/Rancher Grants-FW00-012

TITLE: Residue Management in Furrow Irrigated Reduced Tillage Systems

Western Colorado producer Randy Hines farms corn, pinto beans, alfalfa, and vegetable crops on 777 acres of furrow-irrigated row crops. He wants to reduce the amount of tillage across the field while maintaining a cost efficient practice. However, he has to plow under corn stalks to create a clean surface in order to furrow irrigate. With funding from Western SARE Hines proposes to build a tillage tool "that will discbed the corn stalks into a 60-inch bed and rip at the same time so that we can irrigate every other 30-inch row" to solve this problem. He feels this project will promote sustainable farming by reducing soil erosion and compaction and will be useful for many crops grown in the area.

Randy Hines' furrow irrigated fields

For the actual experiment Hines plans to first assemble the machine and then conduct field demonstrations to test the tool. Next, he will plant three different corn hybrids. PAM (polymers) will be applied in test areas to address trash problems for furrow irrigation. During the growing season, visual evaluation will monitor soil compaction and root development. At harvest the results will be compared with conventional tillage methods. The plots will be repeated in 2001 and adjustments made based on the 2000 results. Hines plans to hold a field day in the second year of the project and workshops after the project is completed.