Worms Dig Environmentally Friendly Farming

Listen closely as you walk through the harvested corn and soybean fields of southwestern Ontario on a chilly fall morning and you will hear faint popping sounds. This "pop" symphony is actually music played by worms, the notes created as their bodies are sucked back into their burrows. Not only is this network of underground tunnels growing, but so is the number of worms using them, thanks to an innovative agricultural technique that has been in the works for the past decade.

The technique is known as no-till and is designed to benefit the environment and farmers. With traditional farming, landowners would disc and plow their fields prior to planting their seed. However, with no-till, land preparation is reduced or not done at all. The result is that plant residue from the previous crop is left lying on the surface. These stalks and leaves not only protect the field's nutrient-rich topsoil from wind and rain erosion, but also provide critical habitat for small animals.

No-till equipment, like this seed-planter, helped boost the use of this environmentally friendly farming technique in the St. Clair region. (Photo: Cliff Evanitski)

More importantly though, farmers say the soil structure of their fields is improving because of no-till. The key to this development, many of them say, is the protection provided by this technique to the local worm population. The plowing of a field in traditional farming not only killed many of the worms, but also destroyed the maze of tunnels these creatures had constructed throughout the soil. These tunnels are important to farmers for many reasons. The tunnels provide a means for air and water to travel through the soil. Aeration of the soil is important in that plants need oxygen to grow. The underground network also provides a means of watering the crop while improving the soil's drainage. As well, the worms use their series of tunnels to spread nutrients, such as plant residue and their own manure, throughout the soil.

One area benefiting from increased worm populations is the St. Clair region in southwestern Ontario. In 1994, no-till farming was used on 46 per cent of the 471,000 acres of workable farmland in St. Clair according to the Lambton County Soil and Crop Improvement Association. At that time, Environment Canada's Great Lakes 2000 Cleanup Fund joined local stakeholders in supporting a project aimed at encouraging further use of no-till farming in St. Clair. The result is overwhelming. It is believed that 85 per cent of the region now uses no-till farming.

The environmental benefits are many. Firstly, the amounts of soil, pollutants, nutrients and pesticides entering the St. Clair River have been reduced, improving local water quality. Watercourses are clearer, allowing for more sunlight to help aquatic plants grow. These plants in turn give off oxygen in the water, helping to enhance fish, amphibian, and reptile habitat. Back on the field, farmers are finding that the plant residue left on the ground because of no-till is providing more protected habitat for growing numbers of field mice and rabbits. These animals in turn are attracting more hawks and foxes, increasing the area's biodiversity.

The farmers are noticing the economic benefits too. No-till farming requires less tractor work, so cost-savings result from using less fuel and making fewer repairs. This technique also reduces the amount of nutrients washed off the fields; therefore, the farmer doesn't have to apply as much fertilizer the following year. This helps to save money and reduce the volume of chemicals in the local environment. The Lambton County Soil and Crop Improvement Association says 99 per cent of the farmers in its region either have tried the no-till system, or know someone who has used it successfully.

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