No-Till Farmer is pleased to welcome Don Reicosky to the 2019 National No-Tillage Conference to be held January 8-11 in Indianapolis, Ind.

Carbon is at the crux of a highly functioning no-till system, but are you fully maximizing your farm’s ability to produce carbon and realize its benefit to your soils? In his two sessions, Don Reicosky, a retired soil scientist for the USDA-ARS in Morris, Minn. will discuss the connection between conservation agriculture and soil health principles that are elevating the importance of carbon management.

In his general session presentation on Thursday afternoon, “Understanding and Perfecting Conservation Agriculture and Carbon Management in Your No-Till Operation,” Reicosky will explain the differences in various cover-crop characteristics as they affect biodiversity and relate to carbon production in soils, including carbon-to-nitrogen ratios, rooting characteristics and nutrient cycling. He’ll also cover the role that living or dormant covers, or dead biomass, plays as an energy source for the soil biology, and how increasing diversity elevates production challenges but enhances benefits to the soil and ecosystem.