AbstractIn this paper, a trade‐off function between net returns and soil quality is developed for farmers in southwestern Saskatchewan using a Markov decision model. The results show that farmers who are concerned with soil levels or stewardship employ chem‐fallow more often at lower soil moisture levels and also tend to crop more intensively to conserve soil. The major conclusion is that concern for soil quality, as documented by some researchers, does have practical significance in changing agronomic practices; but, when soil is relatively deep, it takes a fairly substantial concern about soil quality before it is possible to distinguish clearly the agricultural practices of farmers who are truly concerned with stewardship from those who are not.