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CapitalPress.com
March 10, 2017
Growers can underestimate value of cover crops
When you talk to Don Wirth
of Saddle Butte Seeds near
Shedd, Ore., it doesn’t take
long to hear the frustration he
has with the 90 percent of the
growers who underestimate
S17-7/#5
$3,796.00
frame
the value of cover crops.
Talking to the countless
number of folks he meets
during the 30-plus trade
shows and field days he at-
tends a year, Wirth spends
most of his time trying to get
the message across how cover
crops can end up being more
profitable than the “cash”
crop itself.
Just returned from a con-
ference in the Midwest, he
spoke of his frustration.
“My mission is to educate,”
Wirth said. “Whether your
cover crop is annual ryegrass,
crimson clover, kale, peas, rad-
ish, vetch or any of the cover
crop mixes, your cash crop
yields are going to go up.”
Cover crops are about soil
health, he said.
“When Dr. Lloyd Murdoch,
extension soils specialist from
the University of Kentucky
spoke at the Oregon Ryegrass
Growers meeting in Albany re-
cently, we were both frustrated
to see first-hand what farmers
don’t know,” he said.
Wirth, who has been in the
seed business in the Midwest
and in Oregon for more than
30 years, got his start on the
farm his family still runs. His
family’s involvement in his
family-owned and -operated
Saddle Butte Seed Co., frees
up Wirth to take his message
$1,669.00
frame
on the road across the nation.
He works with customers
from Nevada to Virginia. His
sales associates are all farm-
ers in Illinois, Minnesota and
Oregon. They assist customers
anywhere in the world, includ-
ing the U.S., Canada and Eu-
rope.
“That’s one of the things
that gives Saddle Butte a dif-
ference,” Wirth said.
Ron Althoff has a degree
in agronomy and joined Sad-
dle Butte in 2002 to pursue
his passion of improving the
quality of soil and water while
reducing erosion.
Brian Wieland, who grad-
uated from Illinois State Uni-
versity with a bachelor’s de-
gree in agriculture production,
was introduced to cover crops
in his quest for better roots and
healthier soils.
T.J. Kartes, from Blooming
Prairie, Minn., got hooked on
cover crops when he saw the
difference they made on his
family farm, Wirth said.
“We don’t just educate
growers about the need for
cover crops but help them get
started,” he said. “Our staff has
the knowledge and training to
do that.”
Wirth recommends at least
a no-till and cover crop sys-
tem like one that has resulted
in real changes for Ralph “Ju-
Jan Jackson/For the Capital Press
Don Wirth of Saddle Butte
Seeds near Shedd, Ore.,
spends most of his time trying
to get the message across that
cover crops can improve yields
and soil health.
nior” Upton in Springerton, Ill.
“The effect of Upton’s im-
proved soil has been dramat-
ic,” Wirth said. “Before the
change, corn yields were as
low as 105 to 110 bushels per
acre and after he started his
no-till cover crop program, his
yields have risen to well more
than 180-200 bushels an acre.”
Upton also estimates that
no-till farming saves him
$10 to $15 per acre, primar-
ily thanks to smaller equip-
ment, fewer trips across the
field and less fuel burned in
the process, Wirth said.
— Jan Jackson
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