At the No-Till Farming Field Day in Pašiliai (Aukštaitija)

In Lithuania, farmers seeking the most rational solutions for cultivating agricultural crops often turn to no-till farming. In this year's crop declarations, the area cultivated using this method exceeded 1.4 million hectares, accounting for about 78% of all arable land. While the no-till method is attractive due to its efficiency, mastering it is no easy task—it requires acquiring extensive knowledge, new skills, a change in thinking about farming, and patience to see the method’s results.

On October 24 this year, in Pašiliai, Panevėžys district, about 90 farmers and specialists interested in no-till farming gathered for a field day organized by the LIFE IP EnerLIT project and the Ministry of Agriculture. During the event, farmers Romualdas and Vilius Pilkauskas shared their decade-long experience with no-till farming, while Tautvydas Beinoras, the chairman of the Lithuanian Conservation No-Till Farming Association, enthusiastically shared the symbiosis of scientific knowledge and practical insights about the connections between no-till farming and soil health, as well as the long-term agricultural benefits.

Romualdas and Vilius Pilkauskas farm more than 500 hectares of agricultural land. The farm uses several seeders, one of which is a strip-till and another for direct seeding. These seeders are used to experiment with different crops, considering the soil structure of the fields. Romualdas emphasized that the start of no-till farming was difficult, and although there were no significant problems in the first two years, the third year saw a considerable drop in yields, which raised serious doubts about the suitability of the no-till method. After consulting with other no-till farmers and reviewing hours of footage about no-till practices in America, England, and Ukraine, Romualdas decided to continue no-till farming and, by the fourth year, saw an increase in yields. Looking back, he says, “The soil needed a transformation, and it took several years, but now we can say that despite the difficulties, we will never return to plowing.” In recent years, on light soils with productivity scores ranging from 18 to 38, Romualdas has been getting about 5-6 tons of grain yield. Summarizing his experience, he noted that no-till farming significantly reduced the need for chemical fertilizers, pesticide use, and time spent on tasks.

Tautvydas Beinoras, speaking about no-till farming and the changes occurring in the soil when sustainable farming practices are applied, referenced research from other countries' scientists and practitioners' observations. In his informative presentation, Tautvydas highlighted five key principles for soil health improvement: minimal soil disturbance (allowing the natural soil structure to regenerate), constant soil cover (vegetative or non-vegetative), increasing biodiversity (using diverse crop rotations, two- or three-crop sequences, multi-species cover crops, interseeding, etc.), the importance of plant root diversity (keeping plants alive in the soil for as long as possible, especially deep-rooted ones), and integrating livestock into the fields ("grazing" animals in cover and interseeded fields). Concluding his presentation, Tautvydas emphasized that soil is the most important production tool, and the nutritional value of grains depends on whether crops are grown in fertile soil.

The next field day is planned for spring next year in the Vilkaviškis district.