About this Session

Building Soil Health in Arkansas

By: Bill Robertson, Owner/CFO at Arkansas Barns, LLC & Matt Fryer, Technical Agronomist, SE US, Koch Agronomic Services

Review the soil health impact of cover crops on Arkansas soils, increase water infiltration and root penetration of fragipan soils, explore cover crop seed mix selection, and learn more about using broadcast seeding and wide row cotton that incorporates cover crops in a series of cotton field days. Dr. Bill Robertson, University of Arkansas Cotton Extension Agronomist and Mr. Matt Fryer, University of Arkansas Soils Instructor, highlight the various stops that will be part of the Healthy Soils for Sustainable Cotton Virtual Field Day in Arkansas and discuss the importance of building soil health. Learn how the soil health principles improve water management in Arkansas cotton system. Compare elevated beds under a conventional cotton system to those where cover crops and no till are used to protect the beds and allow for increased water infiltration. Soil Health Institute Virtual Field Days are a production of the Healthy Soils for Sustainable Cotton project of the Soil Health Institute. Healthy Soils for Sustainable Cotton seeks to expand adoption of soil health management systems on producers’ farms through farmer-focused education and training events delivered by Soil Health Institute scientists, partnering soil health technical specialists and farmer mentors producing cotton using soil health promoting practices. The project aims to improve soil health and expand sustainable cotton production. Additionally, the project seeks to quantify, expand, and verify the productivity and environmental benefits of the soil health management practices used by cotton producers. Healthy Soils for Sustainable Cotton is supported through the generosity of the Wrangler® brand, the VF Corporation Foundation, and the Walmart Foundation.

Used with permission from the University of Arkansas System, Soil Health Institute, and Extension