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For many years, Oklahoma’s interest in no-till farming lagged other parts of the country, and the world. Now, a team of Oklahoma State University scientists and educators has been recognized by the American Society of Agronomy for their efforts to promote it.
Specifically, their 80-page, easy-to-read manual, “No-Till Cropping Systems in Oklahoma” was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by fellow agronomists.
One of the team members most visible to farmers is an outstanding young agronomist who was born in Colorado, earned agronomy degrees at Colorado State University and later at Kansas State University before joining OSU as a cropping systems specialist with a dual role in research and extension.
Chad Godsey fills one of the university’s most dynamic positions, one that reflects a long-term shift from continuous wheat monoculture to more complex cropping patterns, including more double-cropping and the introduction of several new rotational crops like winter canola, high oil sunflowers and sesame seeds.
The emphasis on crop diversification is directly tied to his research and promotion of minimal tillage practices. Crop diversity enhances the success of no-till, which leads to another increasingly critical benefit: water savings.
“This is especially the case in western Oklahoma where precipitation is the number one limiting factor in crop production,” Godsey said.
Precipitation storage efficiency is 20 percent in conventional till systems with little or no surface residue compared to 40 percent in no-till, he said.
“You can conserve two times the moisture in a no-till system compared with a conventional till system, while also promoting other benefits: reduced wind and water erosion, time savings, fuel savings, decreased soil compaction and reduced labor costs,” he adds.
Godsey grew up on a farm and ranch near Wray, Colo., where he was actively involved in FFA and eventually earned his State Farmer degree. At CSU, he earned a bachelor’s in ag business and soil and crop science. While earning graduate degrees in agronomy at K-State, he was awarded the Harry J. Larsen/Hydro Memorial Scholarship. He was part of the agronomy faculty at K-State for several years before moving to Oklahoma.
Godsey’s goal of “improving crop production practices in Oklahoma that will lead to increased profitability for Oklahoma producers” gives him a front row seat for many new developments in the state, including interest in biofuels production and an expanding oilseeds industry.
He has a hand in OSU’s pioneering work on ethanol-producing sweet sorghum, which can be grown throughout temperate climate zones of the U.S. and provides a high biomass yield with low irrigation and fertilizer requirements.
“Ethanol yields in Oklahoma could range from 300 gallons to 600 gallons per acre, depending on biomass yield, sugar content and juice expression efficiency,” he said.
One thing he and the biofuels team are working on is determining the maximum possible harvest window for sweet sorghum in Oklahoma.
“Obviously, the longer the harvest window, the more ethanol state farmers will be able to produce,” he said.
OSU biofuels project researchers are also studying environmental parameters that affect the feasibility of on-farm fermentation. Oklahoma’s harvest occurs in the fall, when temperature extremes are likely.
“Temperature can speed up, slow down or derail the fermentation process,” Godsey notes.
With the expansion of oilseed crushing capabilities at Producers Cooperative Oil Mill in Oklahoma City — long known for its cottonseed oil extraction — production of oil crops is on the rise, including soybeans and canola.
Another alternative crop that looks promising is sesame, which is contracted through a Texas-based company, Sesaco Corp. Around 8,000 acres were planted to it in Oklahoma this past year.
“Sesame is another double-crop option, and it likes hot, dry conditions,” Godsey said. “It’s a good alternate crop to follow wheat. Most farmers can get by with residual nitrogen from the wheat crop.”
The bottomline, he said, is rotating crops boosts their yields.
For many years, Oklahoma’s interest in no-till farming lagged other parts of the country, and the world. Now, a team of Oklahoma State University scientists and educators has been recognized by the American Society of Agronomy for their efforts to promote it.
Specifically, their 80-page, easy-to-read manual, “No-Till Cropping Systems in Oklahoma” was awarded a Certificate of Excellence by fellow agronomists.
One of the team members most visible to farmers is an outstanding young agronomist who was born in Colorado, earned agronomy degrees at Colorado State University and later at Kansas State University before joining OSU as a cropping systems specialist with a dual role in research and extension.
Chad Godsey fills one of the university’s most dynamic positions, one that reflects a long-term shift from continuous wheat monoculture to more complex cropping patterns, including more double-cropping and the introduction of several new rotational crops like winter canola, high oil sunflowers and sesame seeds.
The emphasis on crop diversification is directly tied to his research and promotion of minimal tillage practices. Crop diversity enhances the success of no-till, which leads to another increasingly critical benefit: water savings.
“This is especially the case in western Oklahoma where precipitation is the number one limiting factor in crop production,” Godsey said.
Precipitation storage efficiency is 20 percent in conventional till systems with little or no surface residue compared to 40 percent in no-till, he said.
“You can conserve two times the moisture in a no-till system compared with a conventional till system, while also promoting other benefits: reduced wind and water erosion, time savings, fuel savings, decreased soil compaction and reduced labor costs,” he adds.
Godsey grew up on a farm and ranch near Wray, Colo., where he was actively involved in FFA and eventually earned his State Farmer degree. At CSU, he earned a bachelor’s in ag business and soil and crop science. While earning graduate degrees in agronomy at K-State, he was awarded the Harry J. Larsen/Hydro Memorial Scholarship. He was part of the agronomy faculty at K-State for several years before moving to Oklahoma.
Godsey’s goal of “improving crop production practices in Oklahoma that will lead to increased profitability for Oklahoma producers” gives him a front row seat for many new developments in the state, including interest in biofuels production and an expanding oilseeds industry.
He has a hand in OSU’s pioneering work on ethanol-producing sweet sorghum, which can be grown throughout temperate climate zones of the U.S. and provides a high biomass yield with low irrigation and fertilizer requirements.
“Ethanol yields in Oklahoma could range from 300 gallons to 600 gallons per acre, depending on biomass yield, sugar content and juice expression efficiency,” he said.
One thing he and the biofuels team are working on is determining the maximum possible harvest window for sweet sorghum in Oklahoma.
“Obviously, the longer the harvest window, the more ethanol state farmers will be able to produce,” he said.
OSU biofuels project researchers are also studying environmental parameters that affect the feasibility of on-farm fermentation. Oklahoma’s harvest occurs in the fall, when temperature extremes are likely.
“Temperature can speed up, slow down or derail the fermentation process,” Godsey notes.
With the expansion of oilseed crushing capabilities at Producers Cooperative Oil Mill in Oklahoma City — long known for its cottonseed oil extraction — production of oil crops is on the rise, including soybeans and canola.
Another alternative crop that looks promising is sesame, which is contracted through a Texas-based company, Sesaco Corp. Around 8,000 acres were planted to it in Oklahoma this past year.
“Sesame is another double-crop option, and it likes hot, dry conditions,” Godsey said. “It’s a good alternate crop to follow wheat. Most farmers can get by with residual nitrogen from the wheat crop.”
The bottomline, he said, is rotating crops boosts their yields.
