Rental of our No-till Drills
Have you made plans yet for your spring or fall plantings? If not, now is the time to start thinking about setting up an appointment to rent one of our no-till drills. The Gratiot Conservation District has a 15’ no-till drill available for producers to rent as well as a 6’ native grass drill sponsored by the MDNR for planting warm and cool season grasses.
Lease Rates:
15' No-till Drill (John Deere): $20/acre w/$175 minimum due at the time of rental
6' Native Grass Drill (Truax Flex II): Minimum $135, due at the time of rental. Any acreage planted in excess of 10 acres will be charged a rate of $6 per acre.
Click on the Drill Rental Request button to fill out the rental request form.
Have you made plans yet for your spring or fall plantings? If not, now is the time to start thinking about setting up an appointment to rent one of our no-till drills. The Gratiot Conservation District has a 15’ no-till drill available for producers to rent as well as a 6’ native grass drill sponsored by the MDNR for planting warm and cool season grasses.
Lease Rates:
15' No-till Drill (John Deere): $20/acre w/$175 minimum due at the time of rental
6' Native Grass Drill (Truax Flex II): Minimum $135, due at the time of rental. Any acreage planted in excess of 10 acres will be charged a rate of $6 per acre.
Click on the Drill Rental Request button to fill out the rental request form.
How to use the Truax Flex II No-till Drill
No-till Farming Basics
No-till farming is a conservation technique that began about 40 years ago with the intention that minimal soil disturbance was an effective way of holding the soil in place. But conserving soil is not the only reason to use no-till farming. Profitability is a quantifiable benefit. Because the drill only requires one pass over the field with a smaller tractor, the most immediate financial benefit is in fuel cost as well as labor and machinery costs.
Other benefits include reduced soil compaction and soil erosion, an increase in organic matter, better infiltration, and improved soil structure. Although the ground stays cooler later into the spring because of the layer of residue that covers the field acting as an insulator, the day/night fluctuations are less extreme and the field rapidly makes up the difference in growth rate as the weather turns warm. Also, during summers that are hot and dry, no-till farming yields are higher than those of traditional plowed ground.
Check out this cool one-minute video about the differences between soil that has been tilled for farming (disturbed) and soil that has been left alone for many years (un-disturbed). It illustrates a prime example of why no-till farming can really improve the quality of your soil, i.e. the quality of the crops you grow! Take a minute (literally one minute!) to watch the video.
No-till farming is a conservation technique that began about 40 years ago with the intention that minimal soil disturbance was an effective way of holding the soil in place. But conserving soil is not the only reason to use no-till farming. Profitability is a quantifiable benefit. Because the drill only requires one pass over the field with a smaller tractor, the most immediate financial benefit is in fuel cost as well as labor and machinery costs.
Other benefits include reduced soil compaction and soil erosion, an increase in organic matter, better infiltration, and improved soil structure. Although the ground stays cooler later into the spring because of the layer of residue that covers the field acting as an insulator, the day/night fluctuations are less extreme and the field rapidly makes up the difference in growth rate as the weather turns warm. Also, during summers that are hot and dry, no-till farming yields are higher than those of traditional plowed ground.
Check out this cool one-minute video about the differences between soil that has been tilled for farming (disturbed) and soil that has been left alone for many years (un-disturbed). It illustrates a prime example of why no-till farming can really improve the quality of your soil, i.e. the quality of the crops you grow! Take a minute (literally one minute!) to watch the video.