For instance, we will plant a field of wheat and harvest it. Wheat produces a lot of straw and etc. when it is harvested. If you plow or disk the field, and turn all of that straw into the ground, the next crop won’t grow as well because of all the excess straw in the ground. So we burn the wheat stubble and the straw, and then plow or disk the burned field. Plowing or disking the burned straw and stubble returns a lot of helpful carbon and other nutrients into the ground, making it a carbon-rich environment for the next crop, thus ensuring a good harvest again.

Not all farmers burn their fields, but it is a common practice here. I didn’t know they did the same on the west coast. In which state did you see that?