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| Have some experience converting CRP back to crops, but don't really prime the pump to do it, and not really striving to add inputs for top yields, instead more like striving for competitive yields for my area with a lower level input strategy. A few years ago had a 10 year tree CRP expire when the FSA wasn't able to assure whether you could renew it for another contract or not. Turns out it could have been renewed again after one year of sitting out but since I couldn't be told that at the time I pulled out the trees I could (the great majority) while having to push out some of the bigger ones.
Then mowed the underlying grass while smoothing out the rougher areas where I had to push out the trees with a blade mainly, then used a small harrow pulled with side by side after the soil had dried out some, followed by drilling beans into ankle high grass. The main area of the CRP field yielded around 80 the first year but the 17 acre field has about 3 miles of treeline and gets a lot of wildlife pressure, so the whole 17 acre CRP field avg. a little over 60 I think.
The field didn't get any fertilizer before drilling, as I waited that winter/spring to see if any clarification was coming on being able to renew the CRP contract or not. The 17 acres connected to a 62 acre field I have, with no significant difference in yield between the now 80 ish acre field. Did use micronoc inoculant on the beans. Since then have treated the 80 acre field with the same fert. rates and with very similar yields with the 62 acre field that has been farmed continuously for a long time.
Since then the neighbors had a couple acre weed patch they wanted crops on a couple years ago, so I did similar there without trees of any size to deal with since they tried to mow it once in a while. Actually in my limited experience, crops can do really well on new breakout areas. These 2 acres had been farmed years ago, but probably hadn't for the last 15 years or so I'd estimate. Also drilled this in somewhat green, but these acres didn't have much of a grass base underneath it, instead mainly a weedy mess before mowing. Beans did fine there the first year back in, with the yield usually reading over 80 on the monitor. Corn on these couple acres were fine this year, often over 250 with avg. probably more like 220. The arrangement is I leave some crop overwinter there where they like to bowhunt nearby, and this also connects to the same 80 ish acre field, but I left a buffer swath from the treeline on these 2 acres.
Just recently decided after three consecutive 5 yr. CSP contracts, to bring two different 2 acre fields back into production. I just mowed them in the last week after making that decision. Both of these little fields also will connect to bigger fields, and I will plan on drilling them both green this spring, even though one is connecting to a field going to corn, but I like to start with beans so will go beans on beans on that 2 acres with that field. Instead of micronoc like I've been using, will try another inoculant that also has some bio's and micro nutrients with it this year. One of the 2 acre fields was in a pollinator plot, that had some legumes in it, mainly partridge pea, while the other 2 acres was in native grasses. Will probably batwing mow again mid March to try to get enough regrowth of some green before targeting a mid mid April drilling.
Haven't touched on soil test, and yes, the test tend to be lower early after breakout but then rebound with time, and the majority of my regular acres test on the low side as I haven't applied replacement rates for decades as I'm a long term no-tiller and like to think better soil health helps reduce the need for higher levels of P and K. Last 5 yr. avg. for farm around 220 for corn and low 70's for beans. Would be somewhat higher without my miles of treeline and wildlife.
Think I still have pics of breakout years with crops if any wants to see them. I don't mind these fields tend to be away from public roads, as it's not always picture perfect for those discriminating eyes that would drive by otherwise, lol. It tends to look much better as summer takes hold. | |
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Priming the pump when converting CRP to crops
