ABSTRACT:
Farm-level risks and returns were examined for corn and soybeans grown in rotation using three conservation tillage systems. A conventional moldboard plow system served as a benchmark. Potential economic incentives and barriers to adoption of conservation tillage were identified and measured. Short-run economic criteria favored conventional and full-width tillage systems. Higher residue systems were competitive after reallocation of labor and capital. Results indicate that short-run economic penalties may inhibit adoption of conservation tillage.
Footnotes
Robert W. Jolly and William M. Edwards are associate and assistant professors of economics, respectively, Iowa State University, Ames, 50011. Donald C. Erbach is an agricultural engineer, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Ames, Iowa.
- Copyright 1983 by the Soil and Water Conservation Society
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