In Germany plowing is the dominant process in the tillage. 53% of arable land (6.3 million hectares) was processed with the plow in the marketing year 2015/2016. Only 14% of holdings avoiding plowing completely. This makes the meaning of the plow use clearly.
In the marketing year 2015/2016 37% of the farms gave up plowing their farmland partially and put on conservation tillage use. Here devices are used (such as a cultivator or egger) that largely keep the soil in its construction. This method was used on 40 % of the farmland area. The acceptance of conservation tillage increases with company size. While in farms with less than 30 hectares of arable land only 15% of arable land were treated by conservation tillage, there were already 43% at a company size of 30 hectares or more.
Only 1% of the agricultural holdings use the direct sowing. The seeds were introduced only to 93,900 hectares right in the untreated ground.