Subsoil no deeper than necessary
Editor’s note: This article is from the archives of the MSU Crop Advisory Team
Alerts. Check the label of any pesticide referenced to ensure your use is
included.
Recent
periods of heavy and continual rains in some areas of Michigan have
resulted in harvesting equipment being in fields under wet soil
conditions. This has resulted in compacted soil conditions that will
need to be remediated by chiseling when soil conditions are dry enough
to fracture and loosen. Chiseling two inches deeper than the compaction
zone is adequate. Chiseling deeper only burns more fuel. Push a tile rod
or soil probe into the ground in several spots to determine the depth
where the compaction zone or layer exists. Resistance is usually quite
noticeable where the soil is compact and once you get through that layer
the rod will push more easily. If there is no noticeable increase in
resistance, there is probably no need for deep chiseling.