Project Lead: Anu Rangarajan
Tillage can be a valuable management tool on a vegetable farm but intensive and repeated tillage is hard on soils. We support small to mid-scale vegetable farmers, many using organic practices, in adopting reduced tillage practices on their farm. These practices can take many different forms. Our goal is to integrate reduced tillage with other soil building practices, to foster the growth and viability of vegetable farming in New York and the Northeast.
We work across different tools and practices, fit to the the scale and resources of the farm, and are learning from many innovative farmers leading the way. We conduct applied research to trial new and emerging practices to understand the science behind them while sharing practical lessons learned to support farmers in fitting them into their own operations. We partner with farmers in experimenting on their farm and offer workshops and other training opportunities for farmers to share their methods and ideas with one another. Explore this website to learn more about our research, events, and resources.
Reduced Tillage Resources
Join our email list to hear about new resources as they’re added.
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Farm Stories
By engaging with experienced farmers, we continue to learn how reduced tillage systems are taking shape on…
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Reduced Tillage Webinars
The Cornell Small Farms RT Project has collaborated on a variety of webinars to share results from…
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Strip Tillage
Strip Tillage Home » Projects » Reduced Tillage in Vegetables » Strip Tillage Strip, or zone, tillage…
About Reduced Tillage in Vegetables
Reduced tillage practices minimize soil disturbance with targeted and appropriate tillage based on farm goals. Reduced tillage means less intensity, shallower depth, and less area disturbed, either in the bed, field or across the farm. It can mean less frequent tillage and lead to successful adoption of no-till practices.
Practices take many forms. They may be system-wide, applied across the whole farm, or only fit in a part of the rotation for specific crops. They often maintain the benefits of some tillage for managing weeds, making a better seed bed for crop establishment, or incorporating residues. How they take shape on a farm can depend on farm size and soil characteristics, access to equipment or materials, farm skill sets, and labor availability.
Events
Events
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Foraging Walk
Join us on a foraging walk to see what along our trails is edible! This walk will focus on mushrooms but discuss plants as well. The trail will be moderately […]
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Exploring Updated Farm Stress Training Programs from Michigan State University Extension
VirtualLooking for practical, ready-to-use programming on farm stress and communication? Join this webinar for an overview of the newly updated MSU Extension farm stress training programs and facilitator guide. Designed […]
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Soil Health in Organic Field Crops
Gianforte Farm 5882 E. Lake Rd, Cazenovia, NYJoin us at Gianforte Farms for a NY Soil Health Field Day focused on soil health in organic field crop systems. BBQ lunch included! Free to attend, registration required. Featuring: Featured […]
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Harvest & Post-Harvest 101: Safe Handling and Produce Care
Groundswell 100 Rachel Carson Way, Ithaca, United StatesJoin us for a hands-on introductory workshop focused on safe harvesting, produce handling, washing, storage, and post-harvest care for small-scale and organic farming systems. Participants will learn practical techniques to […]
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Syntropic Agroforestry Introduction Webinar
VirtualIn this presentation we will cover the essential features of syntropic agroforestry. What does syntropy mean, and how can we achieve it? We will discuss what is meant by the […]
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Opportunity Costs of Conservation-Minded Farming
VirtualJoin us as we present the first-year results of exploring the above-business-as-usual maintenance costs of farming in a conservation-minded way. This first foray quantifies the differences in production expenses and […]
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Livestock Production Field Day
Troll Bridge Farm 467 Geer Rd, Chaffee, NY, United StatesAre you interested in raising and selling beef, chicken, turkey, or pork? Join us for this Field Day and visit two successful farms in Western New York, followed by a […]
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Rochester Soil Health Day
Food Link Community Farm 607 Lexington Ave., Rochester, NY, United StatesRochester Soil Health Day will have lovely partner tables focusing on soil health, yummy snacks, and the opportunity to have your garden soil screened for lead by the New York […]
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Food Preservation: Water Bath Canning Tomatoes
CCE Tompkins Education Center 615 Willow Ave., Ithaca, NY, United StatesSeptember is a month full of bounty! If you’ve found yourself with too many tomatoes for fresh eating, or if you’re just curious about food preservation, join us for a […]
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Outdoor Mushroom Workshop
CNY Organic Farms 519 County Rte 4, Central Square, NY, United StatesCornell Cooperative Extension of Oswego County will host an outdoor mushroom workshop that will identify specialty mushrooms that make sense to grow on small acreage in an outdoor forest setting. Joshua […]
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Renewable Energy Tour
Lawrence Doody & Sons Farm 1626 Barker Road, Tully, NY, United StatesJoin us for a free educational field day to explore distributed wind energy as a viable resource to diversify your property’s power production. Distributed wind systems usually provide power directly […]
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Northeast Growing Together Conference
Rodale Institute 611 Siegfriedale Rd, Kutztown, PA, United StatesThis event, hosted by the Northeast TOPP program, supports current and aspiring organic farmers through hands-on workshops, practical technical assistance, and meaningful opportunities to connect with peers across the food and […]
News and Updates
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To Tarp, to Mulch or to Do Both: That Was the Question
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CSA Farm experiments to minimize inputs, mechanization and soil disturbance in their market-scale potato growing operation. By Bob Tuori, Ryan Maher, and Michael Salzl A major concern on our highly intensive organic farm is how to grow potatoes on a scale that supplies our diverse and abundant CSA shares yet in way that minimizes labor…
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The Empire (State) Strikes Back: Expo Recordings Now Available
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Pass the time waiting for winter to turn to spring with new educational videos. Recordings from the 2022 Empire State Producers Expo are now available on the Cornell School of Integrative Plant Science’s YouTube page. The annual conference is organized by the New York State Vegetable Growers Association and Cornell Cooperative Extension and, due to…
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Learn About Tarping on Northeast Farms with New Guide
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Are you curious about how tarps work? Want to learn from successful practices as well as the challenges and shortcomings? Our Reduced Tillage project is happy to share a new publication, “Tarping in the Northeast: A Guide for Small Farms,” that provides comprehensive information on the emerging practice of tarping — applying reusable tarps to…
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Empire State Producers EXPO Goes Virtual
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The Empire State Producers EXPO has announced plans for a virtual conference with educational sessions offered from February 21 to March 11, 2022. The in-person event, initially scheduled for January 11-13 at the Syracuse OnCenter, was postponed due to the spike in COVID cases. Sessions are now being offered virtually, spread out over a three-week…
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Our Summer of Reduced Tillage Research in Photos
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The Cornell Small Farms Program continues to document our on-farm trials on tarping practices for organic vegetables. What’s happening under tarps? How are weeds and soils changing? How do they fit in a vegetable rotation with less tillage? And how do we handle and troubleshoot the shortcomings? The current work of the Cornell Small Farms…
Project Partners
We collaborate with other researchers at Cornell, extension educators within Cornell Cooperative Extension, and other organizations and universities across the Northeast.
About Anu Rangarajan
Anu was appointed director the Cornell Small Farms Program in 2004. At the same time, she opened a U-pick strawberry farm in Freeville, NY. The experience of operating a small farm changed her entire approach to research and extension, and deepened her commitment to NY farms and local food systems.
Read Articles by Anu Rangarajan
Subscribe for Updates and Opportunities
Subscribe to get the latest updates and information on strategies to reduce tillage on your farm. You’ll be first to hear about webinars, field days, and online courses that will connect you with other growers and our research results as we look to find ways to be successful in building soils on your farm.
