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Minnesota farmer calls tile “lifeblood of his farm”

A southeast Minnesota corn and soybean grower calls tile drainage the lifeblood of his farm.

“We would not be farming in this area if we did not have tile.”

Roger Toquam of Blooming Prairie says his grandfather came to the area in 1935, installing drainage tile in fields that had never been farmed before.

“He was able to drain it, and make it extremely productive soils.”

Toquam tells Brownfield he’s investing in the tile system by installing a bioreactor.

“Our goal with this is to show we are not polluting our groundwater with nitrates. And with technology like this, it helps us do a better job with the environment.”

Woodchip bioreactors can reduce nitrate loads.  Toquam says the amount depends on the proportion of drain flow.  He expects the woodchips to last for about ten years.

Toquam is hosting a field day Friday, organized in part by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and Dodge County Soil and Water Conservation District.