From the 2022 NACD Annual Meeting. Soil health management systems provide many benefits to producers, but there has always been a need for more data and testimonials to showcase just how big those benefits are. To address this need, NACD and the Soil Health Institute (SHI), through a cooperative agreement with NRCS, have been developing 30 case studies on the economic benefits of soil health management systems. In this session, NACD and SHI representatives will discuss the project’s methods, as well as some preliminary finds. One project participant, NACD Soil Health Champion Rodney Rulon from Arcadia, Ind., will talk about his soil health management journey.

1. NACD SOIL HEALTH CASE STUDY
2022 NACD Conference
February 15, 2021
Rodney Rulon
Rulon Enterprises LLC

2. Our Cropping System:
PRODUCTIVE & SUSTAINABLE
-5th Generation family farm
-North Central Indiana
-Continuous No-Till since 1989
-7200 acres Corn/Soybean Rotation
-20 years cover crops
-1 acre grid management w/ full VRT
Conservation is the best economic model
We are accountable for what leaves our farm
We are a Legacy Farm
Rulon
Enterprises LLC

3. Healthy Soil is a System
 No-Till (infiltration/OM/cover/biology)
 Drainage (Managing Air/Water)
 Soil Balance (Proper Chemistry-Structure)
 Precision Farming – As a Conservation Tool
 Cover Crops (rooting/temp/OM/feed biology)
 Soil Carbon - Manage Long Term
 Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
 Buffers, Waterways, Wetlands
 On Farm Testing - Economic Tracking

4. Steps To Manage Soil Quality:
 #1 Continuous No-Till – not rotational
 Eliminate catastrophic tillage events
 Allow soil to build structure and biology
 NO Erosion, NO Bare Soil, STOP leaching of nutrients,
Manage Infiltration
 Stop Soil Degredation/Increase Soil Carbon
Build a SOIL HEALTH SYSTEM

5. Step #2 Drainage (Air/Water Management)
 Drainage is Foundational to No-till and Soil Health

6. Step #3 Manage Fertility:
 1 Acre grid Sampling/Fertility
 VRT N,P,K, Litter, Lime, Gypsum etc
 Balanced Soil is More Stable

7. Step #4 Cover Crops
 Manage for long term Soil Health/Build OM - FAST

8. BUILDING SOIL HEALTH
REQUIRES
CARBON CAPTURE

9. 9
PLANTING CORN
INTO GREEN RAPESEED+CLOVER
PLANTING SOYBEANS
INTO GREEN CEREAL RYE
CAN WE INCREASE SOIL CARBON?

10. PROVEN CARBON CAPTURE
SOIL OM% YEAR 1 SOIL OM% YEAR 10

12. 100
120
140
160
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
1.92 1.75 1.85 1.95 2.07 2.27 2.55 2.95 3.49 4.5
Corn Yield
5 yr avg
YIELD
GOAL
LIGHT
BROWN
SOIL Source: Rulon Enterprises
LLC
IN CROP PRODUCTION
IT’S ALL ABOUT SOIL CARBON CONTENT
SOIL %OM CONTENT ON OUR INDIANA FARM
BY PERCENTILE
10%
OF
SOIL
DARK
BLACK
SOIL

13. Choose the right cover for your goal
Compaction removal
Ease of management
Disease control
Nutrient cycling
Erosion control
Enhance Rotations
BUILD SOIL HEALTH

14. Late Harvest
35# Cereal Rye
25# Oats
2# Radish
2# Rape
3# Balansa
Clover
Late Harvest
15# Cereal Rye
15# Oats
3# Rape
25# Oats
2# Radish
3# Rape
SOYBEANS 22
CORN 22

19. Dr. Eileen Kladivko
Agronomy Department

20. 2011-2021 CCSI Cover Crop Test
Harvest Data
Cover Crop +10.75 bu/ac Corn
Cover Crop +4.11 bu/ac Soybeans

22. 22
COVERED SOIL
STAYS COOLER – LESS CROP STRESS
Source: Purdue University
Dr. Eileen Kladivko

23. 23
COVERED SOIL
RETAINS MORE MOISTURE
Source: Purdue University
Dr. Eileen Kladivko

24. 24

25. 25

26. NACD Partial Budget Anaylsis Case Study

27.  You can Manage HEALTH and FERTILITY in your Soil!!
 A Soil Health System can increase yield (10 bu Corn/ 4 bu Soybeans)
 $$$ Spent to increase Soil Health is a good investment (254% ROI)
 Land Owners should be asking to see Soil Health Reports, not just fertilizer tests

28. Rodney Rulon
rodney@rulonenterprises.com
www.rulonenterprises.com

29. 2019 CCSI Plot Harvest Data

30. 2017 CCSI Plot Harvest Data
Final Yield Average:
Oats/Radish = 219.32bu/ac
Cereal Rye = 205.03 bu/ac
Annual Rye = 204.25 bu/ac
No Cover = 209.06 bu/ac
Cover Crop Yield + 10.26 bu/ac
(Oats/Radish Vs No Cover

31. 2015 CCSI Plot Harvest Data
Final Yield Average:
Oats/Radish = 177.1 bu/ac
Cereal Rye = 176.8 bu/ac
Annual Rye = 166.9 bu/ac
No Cover = 164.3 bu/ac
Cover Crop Yield + 12.8 bu/ac

32. More Data! (2013)
Cover Crop Yield + 7.1 bu/ac
Final Yield Corn/Oats+Radish = 190.5
Final Yield Corn/Rye = 187.6
Final Yield Corn/No Cover = 183.4

33. 2012, 2014, 2016 CCSI Plot
Soybean Harvest Data Summary
2012 Annual Rye = +5.3 bu/ac
2014 Oats/Radish = +2.95 bu/ac
2016 Oats/Radish = +7.9 bu/ac
Three Year Avg = +5.4 bu/ac
Cover Crop Yield + Up To 7.9 bu/ac
Over No Cover in Long term test

34. 34