Conservation tillage, or "no-till" farming, has become increasingly popular as a way to reduce soil erosion, increase organic matter, and enhance soil physical properties. The effect of no-till versus conventional production practices on soil ecology was studied as the initial experiment on the CEFS Conservation Tillage Unit. This experiment ran from 1996 to 2001 and included many major North Carolina crops in the rotation (corn, soybeans, cotton, peanuts, wheat) under the direction of Dr. George Naderman, retired professor of Soil Science at NCSU. Scientists monitored yield and economics, soil quality, nutrients and pesticides in ground water and run-off, and the effect on wildlife. A report on this research is available as a pdf file. Click here to download this report.

Though the Conservation Tillage Unit does not currently have an active research program, conservation tillage remains an important research topic at CEFS.

The Soil Management Research Group conducts research on residue mangement in no- and reduced-tillage systems. Click here to access reports on their research and additional information on equipment for residue management.

Conservation tillage is also a component of research on the farming systems unit (FSRU) and has been the subject of several recent graduate student projects at CEFS. In addition, researchers from NCA&T have recently initiated a conservation tillage study on the CEFS Small Farm Unit.