Avoid spreading manure in the
spring after the soil thaws on any
field which is to be planted to a
crop.
Do not allow cattle on any field
rotating to a spring crop after a
    late winter thaw.
Do not pasture soybean stubble
going into no-till corn unless the
soil is very dry or frozen.
Treat manure as a fertilizer
    resource and not a waste
    product. Test soils regularly and
    have the manure tested so
    accurate amounts can be
    applied to fields.
When possible, inject manure to
avoid volatilization of nitrogen,
adverse odors, and runoff losses.

Avoiding field fires
More and more acreage is farmed with practices that maintain high levels of crop residue, the risk for field fires increases. To avoid field fires, consider:

Educating your neighbors about
    the dangers of burning road
    ditches or trash piles in early
    spring under windy conditions.
    Fire escapes occur and crop
    residues go up in smoke, losing
    precious carbon.
Planting 20-30 feet cover crop
buffer zones near the edge of the
field next to the road ditch. The
cover crop raises the relative
humidity in the crop residue
canopy, making it harder to
    ignite.
Disking a buffer zone at the edge
    of the field next to the ditch.
    Burying crop residue to low 
    levels reduces the amount of
    residue that can ignite. Avoid
    this on slopes greater than 4% 
    or soil erosion will become a real
    risk.
Burn brush piles at appropriate
times under controlled conditions
    (water available, individuals
    nearby to help, fire department
    notified, etc.).

Exercise caution when burning near crop residues.

Keeping residue in its place
The movement of crop residue downslope during heavy rainfall events can be a problem, especially for corn. Soybean residue, although smaller in diameter, is denser and more difficult to move with rain. To minimize residue movement, consider the following:

Floating residue following a six-inch downpour.

Plant a cover crop either on the
   entire field or just on slopes. 
   Plant material that has grown up
   through the crop residue will help
   keep it in place.
Avoid chopping or shredding
   residue, since this cuts it into
   small pieces that are more easily
   moved.
Reduce the speed of the 
   combine chopper unit to reduce
   the amount of cutting of residue.
Check your drill manual for
   suggestions. For example,
   on some drills the openers can 
   be rearranged to create a rougher
   surface, which allows more stalks
   to remain standing. The rougher
   surface and standing stalks break
   the flow of water, making it more
   difficult for the residue to run
   downslope.
Disk lightly just on slopes if you
   absolutely must. This is a
   least-desirable option because
   you risk losing residue where you
   need it most.