DES MOINES, Iowa – March 24, 2026 – Conservation adoption is often motivated by financial factors like improved yields with soil health or reduced inputs using cover crops. Another related factor is emerging as a top concern: compaction.

This knowledge could help conservation professionals and agronomists promote compaction reducing practices like cover crops, which also improve water quality.

Farm equipment such as tractors, combines, grain carts and self-propelled sprayers have become larger and heavier in recent years, and concern about soil compaction and its impacts on crop yields has increased apace.

80% of sampled farmers say they are concerned about the impact of soil compaction on the land they farm, according to the 2025 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll, conducted by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. While farmers have always had concern about compaction, this represents a 14% increase from the last time the question was asked in 2013.

Similarly, 81% agreed that they are concerned about the impact of heavy agricultural machinery on soil health.

“Farms are getting larger while fieldwork windows are shrinking due to changing weather patterns, and equipment is getting bigger and heavier in order to plant and harvest faster,” said J. Arbuckle, director of the Farm Poll, professor and extension sociologist at Iowa State.

One of the best ways to reduce compaction is by planting cover crops. Iowa Soybean research found that cover crops reduce compaction by 6%. The research was done on 25 farms over 9 years. Cereal rye and radishes are the top species to reduce compaction becasue they root more deeply, according to SARE, the research arm of USDA.

Many farmers choose tillage as a way to reduce compaction, but it can often cause more compaction issues long term. Plus it leads to erosion and poorly impacts downstream water quality. The good news is that more farmers are seeing no-till as the better option.

“Agreement that use of no-till, which can improve soil structure and help mitigate compaction, is an effective compaction management practice increased from 57% to 63%,” said Mehari Tekeste, associate professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering at Iowa State.

Adapted from ISU Extension press release.