Jeff Herrold and his brother farm 3,500 acres near Wanatah, Ind., just 25 miles south of Lake Michigan. They grow corn and soybeans, including some seed corn and some organic corn and soybeans, on sandy and sandy loam soils. They irrigate 70% of their acres.

Herrold encourages farmers to consider their “why” when making big decisions on their farm. For Herrold, his “why” focuses on profitability, sustainability, regeneration, the environment and the next generation. The intersection of these “whys” have led to Herrold cover cropping 90% of his acres and implementing strip-till with a detailed nutrient management plan.

Splitting Applications  

Herrold applies nutrients in the spring with Variable Rate Technology (VRT), while strip-tilling, with the planter and  sidedressing with Y-drops. If it’s dry and no rain is in the forecast, he may pause sidedressing to avoid risking nitrogen (N) volatilization.

“Sometimes we're stopping the sidedress bar and waiting until we get a rain event if it's really dry, and then coming back later with a sprayer and putting other nutrients on,” Herrold says. 

Other times, he turns on the pivots to help work his N into the soil. Additionally, Herrold utilizes the irrigation pivots to apply nutrients overhead. 

Herrold also uses cover crops to add more N to the soil ahead of both corn and soybeans. He has pushed back terminating the cover crop further each year in an effort to gain more N benefit.

“Now we've gone to strip-tilling in the spring, coming back and planting, and then before the corn emerges, spraying that cover crop,” Herrold says. “I'm trying to let that cover crop grow as big as it can before I need to terminate it.”

Herrold aims for about 100 total units of N at planting. This comes from counting the cover crop credits ahead of the strip-till and fertilizer applications at planting. In the planter dry box, Herrold includes urea, potash, MES10, calcium, zinc and sulfur with the following analysis: 29-20-36-5S-7CA. 

He gains roughly another 40 units of N with a 2-by-2 starter fertilizer application. Herrold also applies sugar, humates, biologicals and a micronutrient package instead of a popup fertilizer.

“We come back with a sidedresser and we're putting on about 100-135 units of N,” Herrold says. 

This pass also includes ammonia thiosulfate at a 10:1 N to sulfur ratio, K13, boron and more humates as a stabilizer. Herrold buys dry humates and blends them himself to save money.

“We're doing about 1-2 gallons per acre on every application of liquid,” Herrold says.

In-Season Strategies 

Later in the season, generally along with a fungicide application, Herrold applies more biologicals, N, a product with calcium and boron, sugar and fulvic acid to help the plants absorb the nutrients more easily.

“We're trying to excite that biology and feed the microbes,” Herrold says. 

The sugar application also helps improve the cycling of the plant and the soil, he says.

Overall, Herrold’s split N applications throughout the growing season typically include 60 units pre-plant, 35 units at planting, 100 units at sidedressing and 55 units through irrigation/Y-drops. Herrold also applies a foliar micronutrient mix with his roundup and fungicide applications.

Herrold makes two fungicide applications and applies 50 units of potassium (K) through his pivot irrigation system during the growing season.

In the fall, Herrold plants cover crops as a key part of his N management plan after corn and soybean harvest. His mix includes radishes, cereal rye, some rapeseed and some oats if it’s early enough to give the oats enough time to get established before winter. 

“In our neck of the woods, we're fighting winterkill and if we can plant oats or not,” Herrold says. “We try to plant them earlier in the fall, and then once it gets later, then we stop putting oats in.” 

Living Laboratory 

Herrold’s experimental mindset has led to much learning and adapting.

“We do and say things on our farm that in 5 years we may change,” Herrold says. “We think it's a good idea at that time.”

This has led to drastic reductions in N at planting that panned out poorly, among other trials on his test fields.

One such test was with Green Lightning technology, which takes N from the air and infuses it into water.

“If we can make our own nitrogen, that would be a serious game changer,” Herrold says. 

Herrold experienced some challenges with the water quality in the Green Lightning test and says this test includes a big learning curve. In Herrold’s trial, using Green Lightning alone yielded 175 bushels per acre. The plot fertilized with 32% yielded 238 bushels per acre, while the plot that received 32% and the Green Lightning yielded 227 bushels per acre.

“It's something that we're studying,” Herrold says. He’s doing the test again to hopefully see more significant and conclusive results.

Profitability Over Yield

When it comes to soil health principles, Herrold encourages farmers to look beyond the yield monitor. 

“Some things aren't always measured in yield, but is it meeting a goal?” Herrold asks. “Is it making the uptake more available? That may not tease out to a yield, but if you understand what it's going to do and then it makes more sense.” 

That is not to say that soil health principles don’t improve yields, though.

“When we do tests on cover crops, we are seeing a yield increase,” Herrold says. 

Despite all the experiments on his farm, Herrold continues to strip-till and grow cover crops as it helps him meet his “why.” These practices are profitable, sustainable, regenerative, environmentally considerate and help him leave the farm in good shape for the next generation.