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Livestock Integration

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Livestock Integration September 2024Download/View
Livestock Integration March 2024Download/View
Livestock Integration September 2023Download/View
Livestock Integration March 2023Download/View

Crop Rotations & Land Management

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Successful No-Till on the Central and Northern PlainsDownload/View
Mitigating Field FiresDownload/View
2014 Dwayne Beck Managing Agricultural EcosystemsDownload/View
Successful No-Till on the Central and Northern PlainsDownload/View
No-Till in the MudDownload/View
The Key to Successful No-TillDownload/View
South Dakota Partnership No-Till Systems Technology TransferDownload/View
No-Till Guidelines for Arid and Semi-Arid PrairiesDownload/View
Unifying Principles Similarities Among Prairie EcosystemsDownload/View
No-Till Principles and PracticesDownload/View
Power of Crop RotationsDownload/View
No-till Rotation Systems for Wheat ProductionDownload/View
Peas Article Q and ADownload/View
Reducing Algal Bloom From Ag RunoffDownload/View
Dryland RotationsDownload/View
Dryland Rotations through 2012Download/View
Rotation Impact on Weeds at Pierre Wall and Akron by Randy AndersonDownload/View
Fungicide Options for Winter WheatDownload/View
Nitrogen Management of Spring WheatDownload/View
Christianson Coefficient of Uniformity applied to corn spacingDownload/View
Corn Bt Technology ComparisonsDownload/View
Corn Planter Closing System Evaluation with ChartDownload/View
Fertilizer Placement in Irrigated CornDownload/View
Let Them Eat Cake (Pea Range Cake)Download/View

Ample Wildlife

Just like people, wildlife needs food, shelter, and water not just to survive but to thrive. The farming practices we follow at Dakota Lakes nurture a robust ecosystem that provide for the needs not only of the deer and pheasants that are popular with local hunters and nature enthusiasts but also a diverse range of species that ideally keeps pests at bay naturally without the need for intensive pesticide intervention.

Healthy Food

Much of the nutrient acquisition in plants is mediated by microbes, so soils that are home to a rich diversity of microbial life are better equipped to provide plants with their required nutrition effectively and efficiently. Recent studies have shown foods, including meat, grown under regenerative farming practices contain higher levels of certain vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals than those grown under conventional farming practices. While the science behind these studies is complex and sample sizes are small and highly variable, preliminary results suggest that regenerative practices can enhance the nutritional profile of many of the foods we eat.

Clean Water

Carbon is one of the best water filters known to man, and regenerative farming practices like no-till, cover crops, and livestock integration help to maintain or even increase soil carbon levels. Plants serve as natural “carbon pumps,” bringing carbon in from the atmosphere by way of photosynthesis and feeding it to soil microbes in the form of exudates. In addition, plants take up and hold onto nutrients that are mineralized in the soil, so keeping living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible goes a long way to preventing nutrient runoff into local waterways.

Living Soils

By following diverse cropping rotations, keeping a living root in the ground as much as possible, integrating livestock, maintaining good soil armor, and keeping soil disturbance to a minimum, we are nurturing the soil microbiome and providing favorable conditions for the bacteria, fungi, nematodes, protozoa, insects, earthworms, and other living creatures that call the soil their home. Just a teaspoon of healthy soil can contain billions of microbes and our goal is to promote a natural, balanced environment that allows them to thrive.