Tillage Roger Veseth Northwest producers often need to consider some crop management changes in winter wheat production when making the transition from conventional tillage to conservation tillage. Alternative pest management options, such as crop rotation and seeding date, may need to be explored to help control certain disease and weed problems previously minimized by conventional, tillage-intensive systems.
Uniform combine residue distribution becomes much more important under conservation tillage.
Changes in fertility management may also be needed. Another common concern producers have when making the transition to conservation tillage winter wheat production is variety selection. Preliminary research with soft white winter wheat has shown that top yielding varieties under conventional tillage will generally be the top varieties under conservation tillage as well. Both are located at WSU in Pullman. Their research has focused on several different approaches to variety development and selection for conservation farming.