Farmers who have problems planting on time because of adverse weather should try stale seedbed planting, Bollich says. When it s wet, you may still be able to plant. People who farm clay soil know it s easier to plant on a stale seedbed that s in good shape than trying to plow that stuff, because you have to hit the moisture just right to work those types of soils the way they need to be worked. The window of opportunity is narrow. In Morehouse Parish last year, they had 40,000 acres of stale bed rice.
Farmers recognize how much faster they can get in the field and plant.
But it s not just for clay. It works on any soil. Conventional seedbed preparation costs are higher when compared with fall stale seedbed preparation. It requires fewer trips across the field working up the ground in fall rather than in the spring because the farmer can get by with less tillage and a rougher seedbed, Bollich says. Even if it s on the rough side, it will smooth out by spring.