Experimenting with cover crops led to more conservation on Dunn farm 

By Anita Sharkey 

For Indiana farmer Alan Dunn, conservation wasn’t always part of the plan. 

For years, he followed the same approach he had been taught: Till the soil in the fall, prepare a clean seedbed in the spring and plant into black dirt. With multiple moldboard plows on the farm, maximum tillage was simply the way he understood farming. 

That began to change after an unusually wet 2019 growing season. 

A nearby farmer using cover crops was able to get into the field several days before Dunn, challenging his assumption that cover crops would make fields slower to dry in the spring. That same year, Dunn planted his first cover crops on prevented-plant acres through a cost-share program. 

That was the beginning of a much larger change. 

Start small, learn along the way 

In the years that followed, Dunn began testing cover crops on more acres through a Soil and Water Conservation District program. Early attempts with aerial seeding did not produce the results he wanted, so he adjusted his approach, worked with a custom applicator, and eventually invested in his own equipment. 

As his experience grew, so did the number of acres. 

What began as an experiment gradually became part of the farm’s long-term management plan. Dunn found that incorporating cover crops did not result in the yield drag he had initially expected, allowing him to continue expanding the practice. 

The farm is now moving toward having cover crops across the entirety of the farm. 

Dunn has also incorporated strip-till into the system. Rather than tilling the entire field, strip-till creates a narrow, prepared strip where the cash crop will be planted while leaving the soil between the rows protected by residue and cover crops. 

For Dunn, that approach provides a balance between protecting the soil and maintaining productivity. 

His guiding principle is simple, “First, do no harm to the cash crop.” 

The goal is to improve soil health, reduce runoff and keep nutrients in the soil while continuing to produce corn and soybeans. 

Seeing the difference in the soil 

Some of the most convincing evidence for Dunn has come from simply looking at what is happening beneath the surface. 

One example came through an FFA soil health demonstration known as the “underwear experiment.” Cotton underwear was buried in different fields and later dug up to see how much had broken down due to biological activity in the soil. 

In the field with cover crops, the cotton had nearly disappeared. 

The demonstration gave Dunn a tangible example of the biological activity developing in his soil. 

He has also noticed more earthworms and changes in how the soil handles water. Increased organic matter and biological activity can help improve the soil’s ability to hold and move water, something that has become increasingly important as intense rainfall events occur. 

Cover crops also provide an opportunity to keep living roots in the soil after the cash crop is harvested. 

Those roots can take up nutrients that might otherwise be lost during the fall and winter, allowing those nutrients to become part of the next crop’s growing system. 

Conservation as an efficiency tool 

For Dunn, conservation is not simply about adding more practices. It is about finding ways to make better use of the soil and the inputs already going into the farm. 

Strip-till has allowed him to place phosphorus and potassium directly beneath where the next crop’s roots will grow. The farm has adjusted fertilizer rates based on the increased efficiency they expect from that placement. 

Dunn also sees biological activity as another part of the nutrient cycle. As soil organisms break down organic material, nutrients can become available in forms that plants can use. 

That creates more opportunities to manage nutrients through placement, timing and soil biology rather than relying solely on additional inputs. 

Looking toward the future 

Dunn’s conservation journey is still evolving. 

He is interested in eventually incorporating more diverse, multi-species cover crop mixes and exploring interseeding options that could allow cover crops to be established earlier in the growing season. 

He is also thinking about how conservation practices could create additional economic opportunities for farmers, including potential premiums associated with lower-carbon corn production. But those potential returns are not the reason he is committed to the transition. 

For Dunn, the larger goal is long-term productivity and leaving the farm in better condition for the next generation. As a fifth-generation farmer, he sees conservation as part of the responsibility that comes with thinking beyond one growing season. 

Advice for other Indiana farmers 

Dunn’s advice to farmers who are considering conservation practices is straightforward – start. 

He recommends keeping the first step simple, such as beginning with a single-species cover crop like cereal rye. Starting small allows farmers to learn how the practice works on their own farm without changing everything at once. 

Cost-share and conservation programs can also help farmers test practices and offset some of the initial costs. 

Perhaps most importantly, Dunn encourages farmers to learn from those who have already made the transition. Connecting with other farmers or mentors can provide practical, real-world knowledge about equipment, timing, seeding and termination. Programs such as Farm Advisors, a farmer-led, peer-to-peer program supported by the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council, connect farmers with peers who have experience implementing conservation practices and can share lessons learned (farmadvisors.ag). 

Dunn’s own experience shows that conservation does not have to happen all at once. 

What started with curiosity, a wet year and a few experimental acres has grown into a long-term plan for the entire farm, one focused on building healthier soil, using resources more efficiently and keeping the farm productive for generations to come.