Turning Marginal Farmland into Lasting Value with CRP

By Kris Vance, Indiana NRCS State Public Affairs Specialist

Farming has always been a business of tight margins and hard choices. For Tim Wilson and his family, who farm more than 2,200 acres in west-central Indiana, those choices have become even more critical in today's challenging farm economy.

"Farming isn't the greatest world to be in right now. It's economically challenged, so we're trying to do everything we can to get ourselves to a break-even scenario," said Wilson.

Like many producers across the Midwest, the Wilsons realized farming every acre doesn't always make sense. The outer edges of their fields-shaded by woods, damaged by wildlife, or hampered by poor soils-were holding back profitability. Wilson ran the numbers and discovered it costs more than $1,100 just to plant and harvest an acre of corn. Those marginal acres were costing him, not earning.

"The yield loss is so dramatic around these edges," Wilson said. "We needed to figure out a way to make those fields work for us."

That's where the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) entered the picture. Administered by USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA), CRP pays landowners to voluntarily remove environmentally sensitive land from production and establish perennial vegetation. In return, they receive annual rental payments that stabilize income while improving soil, water, and wildlife habitat. USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides technical expertise, while partners like Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever offer additional support with management.

In 2022, Wilson enrolled a few acres in prairie strips and pollinator habitat to test the program. The results were immediate. "After we put the fields in CRP, our APH went up on our farms, and that's going to be beneficial to our return on investment," he said, referring to the crop insurance guarantees that rely on yield history.

Encouraged, the family enrolled another 17.5 acres of marginal land in 2025, establishing 30-to-40-foot prairie strips of native grasses and flowers along field edges and wood lines. Instead of losing money on poor-yielding acres, they now receive CRP payments while focusing production on their best ground.

"I'd rather see us farm 100 good acres than farm 200 bad acres," Wilson explained. "At the end of the day, all we're doing is wearing out our equipment and our time."

The impact has been clear. By removing unproductive acres, average yields have risen, insurance coverage improved, and profitability strengthened. Fields that once averaged 180 bushels of corn are now producing 200 to 210 simply because the weakest ground is out of production.

"We know what our total yield is for our fields," Wilson said. "The fields with a prairie strip all the way around it have dramatically increased. It's a no-brainer. This is a good approach."

Prairie strips also have the added benefit of allowing limited machinery traffic on them, which is different than other CRP practices and beneficial to the farmer. "By allowing my equipment to turn on the prairie strips, I'm minimizing my end rows and keeping my compaction on the CRP land and not on my most-productive ground. This helps boost my yields," says Wilson.

Wilson stresses the program's financial impact. By taking acres out of production, he not only receives annual CRP payments but also sees better yields and stronger returns on the acres he continues to farm. He also factors CRP into his rental bids, estimating payment at 85% potential when fields border trees, but at full potential when those edges are converted to prairie strips.

"You're not going to find a better way to improve your return on investment than putting these strips in," Wilson said. "If farmers want to improve their return on investment, and if they enjoy nature, this program is going to improve their farm dramatically."

Beyond economics, the Wilsons have rediscovered a connection to the land's natural heritage. Wildlife has returned in abundance-quail, wild turkeys, deer, bobcats, coyotes, and foxes. Their fields are alive with Black-eyed Susans, purple coneflowers, bees, and butterflies.

"The conservation side of me likes it because quail and other wildlife love the prairie strips," said Tim's son, Drew. "I like knowing that the wildlife and the butterflies are getting use out of the land at the same time it's helping us."

Tim added, "Years ago, when I was a kid, we used to hunt quail, and long story short, we kind of lost them. Now they're coming back. I think this land is going to really help them."

The Wilsons credit FSA, NRCS, and Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever for helping them navigate the process. "FSA staff have been great to work with," Wilson said. "I go up to the office and sit down with them and they work with me on my goals. They don't force anything. All in all, the group we worked with, in my book, they get an A+."

Looking ahead, Wilson hopes CRP helps keep farming viable for the next generation. "We're going to improve it to the maximum that we can for our grandkids and their grandkids. The vehicles that are going to help us are the programs USDA offers. I would tell anybody now, after we've been doing it for some time, that they really need to look into getting into one of the programs like CRP."

For the Wilsons, what started as a reluctant experiment has become a cornerstone of their operation. The decision to take marginal land out of production has paid off in higher yields, steadier returns, healthier soil, and thriving wildlife.

Virtually every farm has unproductive acres. Assistance is available to help identify them and find profitable alternatives such as CRP. In Indiana, Pheasants Forever/Quail Forever has a precision agriculture specialist who can help producers analyze fields and make informed decisions. For more information, visit: https://pfqfcic.org/habitat.html

For more information about CRP, visit: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/conservation-reserve-program.