Why are farmers taking out shelterbelts?
Some of the reasons are quite obvious. The trees are a poor variety such as Chinese Elm and they are dying and falling down. In Central and Western North Dakota farming has changed. With the advent of no-till and minimum-till there is not the need for trees to prevent wind erosion. Farmers have found better ways to prevent wind erosion than cluttering our wide-open spaces with unsightly trees of a variety that dont belong here. With todays large equipment some tree rows are a nuisance and an expense to farm around. Overlaps of seeding, spraying and harvesting costs money. Where irrigation is possible many times there are shelterbelts that need to be removed so pivot systems can function.
