Getting dust to settle on farmland

As another large dust storm impacted Illinois in May, the conversation and questions continue about why and how to get the dust to settle and stay in the field rather than across roadways.

Although it is not a new environmental event, the dangers are always present and questions arise. While there is no one industry impacted or a simple resolution, University of Illinois Extension starts by answering questions.

For farmers and the agriculture industry, equipment is larger, more advanced and working at a faster pace than ever before. The farming business of today is much different than even 10 years ago.

Removing Hedgerows

Many people have mentioned the removal of hedge rows and ask why they see it happening. The hedge trees planted, going back to the mid-1800s, were used by homesteaders as living fences to protect their property by maintaining lines and corralling livestock.

During and following the Dust Bowl, many hedges included Osage orange trees, planted to serve as a wind break from blowing soil and snow. The Dust Bowl, like the current situation with dust storms, was brought about by changes in farming practices.

Then, with hybridization beginning in the 1930s, more and more land was intensively tilled without previous crop residue being left on the soil surface. The soil particles were easily picked up by the winds and carried.

Osage orange trees are thick trees with extensive roots that expand well past the canopy line. These trees are non-native to Illinois and are included in the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Vegetative Management Guide.

Some impacts of the tree in hedgerows include the single row of trees quickly expanding into the farm field. The tree leaves and branches block sunlight from growing crops, which reduces photosynthesis. The root system also dries out the soil, causing crop yields to greatly reduce.

Continued maintenance and actual removal of hedgerows, including those with Osage orange trees, can cost over $20,000 on a sizable farmland scale.

Field Crops

The common soils in Illinois naturally were not well drained and were considered swamps. Drummer, the main soil in the state, is not very productive where it is not drained with extensive tile systems. Drummer is one of the best soils in the world when adequately drained.

Hedgerow tree roots clog and damage drainage tiles, which prevents the water from draining from the field. Although underground and unseen, the tiles move large volumes of excess water to rivers.

When the hedgerows were established, people farmed with horses, and later two-row planters pulled with tractors. Today, 36-row planters pulled by large tractors are common. The combination of the tractor and planter costs upwards of $1 million.

With the current labor shortage for farmworkers today, going smaller or backwards isn’t an option. Food and ethanol prices would rise substantially.

With clogged tile lines, this equipment would turn farm fields into mud fields where it would be nearly impossible for crops to grow.

In addition, when soils are wet, the plants don’t uptake and utilize nutrients supplied by fertilizer. As a result, some of the nutrients that are not utilized by plants end up in rivers and streams at a higher rate, which damages the ecosystem, including the water supply.

In the end, though hedgerows can cause less soil to blow in the end, the hedgerows cause more problems than they solve.

Ag Action Items

So, what is the answer? Conservation practices need to be more fully implemented. No-till and strip-till greatly reduce the likelihood of blowing soils.

The newer and popular tillage equipment slices and dices the top several inches of soil into a powder and, at the same time, has sped up the speed of farming.

That is what is causing the current dust storms when conditions are warm, dry, and the soils are bare or nearly so.

Cover crops are very effective in preventing wind erosion, but they are not widely used. Cover crops add expenses and lost time, but in the long run, they can improve profitability, but that takes time, which is costly in the short run.

What is needed is a combination of changes. Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s farmer subsidies could be better clarified. The programs encourage increasing yields while not adequately solving environmental issues.

Furthermore, most farmland in Illinois is not owned by farmers, but is owned by families that left farming years ago. Landowners need to provide incentives in lease structures to incentivize farmers to protect the land.

Farming speed was increased due to a succession of years in the previous decade where farmers had a difficult time getting planted in time during wet springtime weather. Yields are reduced when planting is delayed, and for a farming operation, like any business, there are bills that need to be paid, and costs are increasing.

The answer is to cover the soil with residue from the previous crop and leave that residue largely in place through no-till, strip-till, or cover crops while providing the means for a farm to survive and grow in today’s conditions.

Kevin Brooks is a farm business management and marketing educator serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria and Tazewell counties for University of Illinois Extension.