Cover Crops

It was a mixed bag of victories and losses for locally produced food and conservationist efforts when the Illinois General Assembly passed its $55.2 billion fiscal year 2026 budget.

A beautiful day presented itself at Eby Field as the sun gradually peaked down through the clouds on the legacy of one man’s dream.

A research team is in its second year looking at how conservation practices can affect crop productivity and profitability.

The Riskedal family uses regenerative agricultural practices on their farm where they grow corn, soybeans and wheat along with feeding cattle for a freezer beef enterprise.

Planting season went smoothly for Craig Swartz and his father, Gary, and was wrapped up in record fashion.

I have 100 acres of corn left to plant and maybe 80 acres of beans left. We’ve really been hitting it hard.

An example of how nature and agriculture can coexist to benefit crop production, water quality and habitat preservation was among the stops during the recent From Farm to Filtration: A Tour of Conservation in Action.

Focusing on soil health is important for farmers since soil fertility is not inexhaustible.

I love springtime on the farm. Everything is fresh and green. Everywhere you look, you see life.

On any given day, Dan Parker could be advocating for agriculture with legislators, helping his daughters with 4-H projects, supporting the local FFA chapter, selling seed, or working on the farm.

The Illinois Soybean Association has named six agronomic professionals to its 2025 IL Soy Envoy class.

Some of the highlights I came away with from the Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition’s 2025 Grazing Conference are: soil microbes help the water percolate through the soil and cover crops help feed the soil microbes which make them multiply.

The Illinois Soybean Association’s new-look rainfall simulator trailer hit the road for a demonstration at a central Illinois school.

American Farmland Trust focuses on protecting farmland, keeping farmers on the land and promoting sound farming practices.

Micronutrients, pet peeves, social media and common-sense agronomy were just a few of the topics at the Illinois Soybean Association Field Advisor Forum panel discussion.

It’s common knowledge that weeds impact cash crop yields, but they can also impact farmland values.

Now is the time to plan your day — or days — at the National Farm Machinery Show Feb. 12-15 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.

Illinois agricultural and forestry producers who want to address or improve natural resources are encouraged to sign up for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program.

Farmer participation in the Precision Conservation Management program continues to grow for 2025.

Cargill RegenConnect has surpassed one million enrolled acres for the 2025 U.S. planting season, a milestone that underscores Cargill’s ongoing efforts to support farmers in adopting regenerative agriculture practices.

It Takes a Village is a nearly three-acre, urban nonprofit farm in Sauk Village, a suburb of Chicago, that opened in response to the last grocery store closing in the community in 2019.

Conservation practice adoption, pesticide regulations and biofuel tax credits are just a few of the issues for agriculture entering 2025.

Corn crops have a voracious appetite for nitrogen.

Cattle and sheep graze on permanent pasture, cover crops and crop residue on Pasture Grazed Regenerative Farm in northern Illinois.

The legacy of Mike Plumer’s soil conservation work continues to live on through those he taught.

Cade Bushnell received the Randy Stauffer Stewardship Award, recognizing his farm conservation work through the Precision Conservation Management program.

A public hearing for a proposed wheat checkoff was held at the Illinois Department of Agriculture. The proposal calls for a 1.5-cent checkoff per bushel of wheat sold in Illinois.

A warm, dry fall gave the Rahn family the opportunity to finish harvest early and rain showers over the past several weeks improved the conditions for fall work.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service unveiled a new easement option that offers long-term protection of the land and ensures timely transfer of ownership to qualified producers.

Illinois State Conservationist Tammy Willis announced a statewide funding opportunity for the Conservation Stewardship Program funded by the Inflation Reduction Act.

Illinois soybean farmers will now have additional assistance with evaluating field data to better implement practices that benefit the environment.

The goal of the Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition is to help support livestock producers in building profitable, sustainable grazing operations.

Fall is a great time to enjoy the fruits of our labor as farmers and to remind us of our many blessings as we approach Thanksgiving. Be sure to give proper thanks to the author of those blessings.

Jim Fulton heard concerns about nitrogen leaving cropland and related water quality problems and decided to do something about it after hearing about constructed wetlands.

Soybean farmers have benefited from decades of checkoff-funded research that’s pushed yields, and now a program is taking those efforts to the next level.

The Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition announced the continuation of its free Pasture Walk series for livestock producers, with upcoming fall dates planned across the state.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a $1.5 billion investment for 92 partner-driven conservation projects, including one in Illinois and Indiana, through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program.

Ron Dykstra knew from a very young age that he wanted to farm.

With his eight-year commitment to the Army National Guard, Chuck Hanley was able to juggle his agriculture careers with his service.

Examples of typical and not-so-common cover crops used in corn and soybean rotations were featured in a recent plot tour on the Farm Progress Show grounds.

Participation in the Precision Conservation Management program continues to grow and farmers can still sign up for the 2024 crop year, as well as 2025.

Farmers and ranchers are leading the way in climate-smart practices that reduce emissions, enrich the soil and protect our water and air, all while producing more food, fiber and renewable fuel than ever before.

The timely planting of cover crops for maximum biomass has typically been limited to post-harvest or aerial inter-seeding, followed by the hope of rain for stand establishment.

Harvest is on pace for the Rahn family to finish earlier in 2024 than they have in many years.

With the current crises we face on all fronts, foreign and domestic, we need a strong leader and God’s help to get us through.

The focus at Schoepp Farms LLC is to keep soil and nutrients on the land.

Between harvest and preparing for the state corn-husking competition, From the Fields contributor Clay Geyer has a busy October ahead of him.

Will we someday return to a more diversified Midwest agriculture economy incorporating livestock into row crop operations?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced up to $7.7 billion in assistance for fiscal year 2025 to help agricultural and forestry producers adopt conservation practices on working lands.

Over its 50-year history, the Illinois Stewardship Alliance’s causes may have shifted, but it has never lost its focus on advocating for local farmers and communities.