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Iowa Still a National Leader in Soil Saving Practices
Results from a national survey conducted in 2002 show Iowans continue to lead the nation in the use of conservation tillage practices that protect millions of acres of cropland.

According to results of the 2002 Crop Residue Management Survey released this fall by the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), Iowa leads the nation in the use of total conservation tillage methods and is second in the use of no-till.

In 2002 Iowans used conservation tillage on 12.8 million acres, more than 56 percent of the total cropped acreage in the state. Although conservation tillage use was down slightly from 2000, the practice has followed an upward trend for many years, increasing by more than 275 percent since 1990.

No-till systems were used on 5.1 million acres in Iowa in 2002, holding steady with no-till use in 2000. No-till use has skyrocketed in the last twelve years in Iowa, increasing by 1000 percent since 1990.

The 2002 Farm Bill offers Iowa farmers more options for implementing conservation tillage systems and other conservation practices, says Leroy Brown State Conservationist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Iowa. NRCS, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's lead conservation agency, assists CTIC in conducting the biennial tillage survey. "We hope that in the next few years more and more producers will use no-till and other soil saving practices," says Brown. "We will continue to encourage farmers to consider these practices as viable options for their operations."

Conservation tillage is the practice of leaving stalks and other crop residues on the ground after planting to protect the soil from rain and wind until the next year's crop can protect it. Conservation tillage is the umbrella term often used to describe no-till, mulch-till and ridge-till systems. Landowners should contact their local Natural Resources Conservation Service office for information regarding implementing conservation tillage systems on their land.

Editor's Note: National and Iowa county leaders are shown below. A spreadsheet showing acreage of various conservation tillage practices by county in Iowa is attached.

For more information contact: Laura Greiner, NRCS Public Affairs Specialist, 515-323-2207 or laura.greiner@ia.usda.gov

National rankings

Conservation tillage
  1. Iowa 12.8 million acres
  2. Illinois 10.0 million acres
  3. Nebraska 8.8 million acres
  4. South Dakota 6.5 million acres
  5. Kansas 6.4 million acres
  6. Indiana 5.7 million acres
  7. North Dakota 5.6 million acres
  8. Ohio 4.5 million acres
  9. Minnesota 4.2 million acres
  10. Missouri 3.9 million acres
No-till
  1. Illinois 6.6 million acres
  2. Iowa 5.2 million acres
  3. Indiana 4.4 million acres
  4. South Dakota 4.1 million acres
  5. Nebraska 3.9 million acres
  6. Ohio 3.8 million acres
  7. Kansas 3.4 million acres
  8. Missouri 2.7 million acres
  9. North Dakota 2.4 million acres
  10. Kentucky 1.8 million acres
Mulch-till
  1. Iowa 7.5 million acres
  2. Nebraska 3.7 million acres
  3. Minnesota 3.6 million acres
  4. Illinois 3.4 million acres
  5. North Dakota 3.2 million acres
  6. Texas 3.2 million acres
  7. Kansas 2.8 million acres
  8. South Dakota 2.4 million acres
  9. Montana 1.8 million acres
  10. Indiana 1.3 million acres

Iowa Rankings

Conservation tillage
  1. Franklin 283,433 acres
  2. Crawford 277,776 acres
  3. Fayette 259,037 acres
  4. Buena Vista 246,711 acres
  5. Benton 244,106 acres
  6. Lyon 225,767 acres
  7. Marshall 211,644 acres
No-till
  1. Pottawattamie 224,215 acres
  2. Cass 147,923 acres
  3. Marshall 143,101 acres
  4. Crawford 137,832 acres
  5. Shelby 137,425 acres
  6. Woodbury 133,676 acres
  7. Adair 120,600 acres
  8. Audubon 118,855 acres
  9. Jasper 115,661 acres
  10. Taylor 112,240 acres
  11. Washington 111,132 acres
  12. Benton 106,900 acres
  13. Cedar 104,951 acres.
Mulch-till
  1. Franklin 241,592 acres
  2. Lyon 210,403 acres
  3. Fayette 205,749 acres
  4. Pottawattamie 203200 acres
  5. Greene 183, 944 acres

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