Speaking at a VNTFA workshop in Nhill recently, Kewell, north-east of Horsham, farmer Rob Ruwoldt, and agronomist Andrew Newall, NewAg, Horsham, said that as the technology became better, there would be more upside for no-till farmers in the form of higher yields and lower input costs.

Trends such as controlled traffic and shielded spraying are being touted as ways that farmers can cut costs and boost yields.

But although there is scope for precision agriculture to benefit farmers, Mr Newall said no-till did not require an expensive plant.

“You don’t necessarily need hi-tech gear, you can get started by making some minor adjustments to your system, just like with removing harrows off the seeding bar, or putting on some press wheels,” he said.

Mr Ruwoldt said he was excited about the opportunities controlled traffic presented, especially in terms of further improving soil structure, which he believes is a key benefit of no-till.

“By using tram tracks, were cutting down our compaction, and it is really having an impact on soil structure, we’re boosting our carbon levels, and other indicators of soil health, such as worm numbers, are also up.”

He said that farmers converting to no-till would see benefits in terms of soil health quickly, within the first year, but was also optimistic there was plenty of scope for further improvements over the long haul.

“There hasn’t been a lot of work done on the long-term effects of no-till and the reduction of compaction, there could be good news more to come.”

The major benefit, however, of controlled traffic was the boost to plant available water.

When they didn’t have to fight through the hard pan formed by compaction, Mr Ruwoldt said plant roots were going down and accessing moisture further down in the soil profile.