I've heard that several times. This customer does generally go across slopes except the end rows have to go up and down the hills. No noticeable washing there either. There really is minimal soil disturbance other than residue movement and color change from breaking the clay crust.

While it looks aggressive, what he has done here is to move the bean residue and bust up the rough hard clay crust which formed over the winter. This left a nice smooth path for the row unit gage wheels to run on and a black soil path to warm up. This was also one of the first passes in the first field with a new planter. We didn't quite have the row cleaners, popup and everything else polished up and completely set yet.

Reading Mikes' and Pokey's posts about the effects of soil temperature and residue in beans I think a case can be made for clearing a path in no till.  This customer is feeling good about this system.  He is looking at adding a bar out front to his planter, 2x2 (or 3 or 4 in these hills) single disc fertilizer coulters out front and put his N down as 28% while planting and add a 3rd tank for the popup. 

As a smaller, one-man, retired dairy farmer operation, he feels he can set up to nurse the liquid. The time spent doing a good job here is offset by the fact you know it is done right. Spread dry P & K in the fall behind the combine. Put all your N down with the planter.  Spray it yourself with a good sprayer.  Could be very profitable at this scale.  He uses the same planter for 30" beans. Is in a rotation with hay strips.

Back to the future?

Jim at Dawn