There are plenty of things on the to-do list when we pick up a new farm or field. What do we do first? Do we dive right in and do field work? Or do we take a step back and take some soil tests?

On this episode, we're talking about incorporating new fields and farms into a soil health system. Our guests are Muncie farmer Joe Hamilton and Connersville farmer Andrew Bernzott. Both raise corn and soybeans under a 100% no-till and cover crop system, and Andrew does 100% one-acre grid soil sampling.

Joe and Andrew share their stories and their strategies for bringing a new field or farm into their existing soil health systems, from soil testing to bringing nutrient and organic matter levels back into balance. They also talk about strategies for keeping a living root in the soil, short-term and long-term goals, and keeping dollars on the field.

This episode of the HAT Soil Health Podcast is brought to you by the Conservation Cropping Systems Initiative. You can learn more about their efforts and see a schedule of events at ccsin.org.