Ray Archuleta is a soil scientist for USDA. Most of the principles I am applying are based on what he teaches. He is geared towards conventional no till ag production but the same rules apply if you are farming 1000 square feet or 1000 acres. I saw him at a workshop for work and it makes sense. He's all over YouTube.
https://youtu.be/9uMPuF5oCPA
The Rodale Institute has done a lot of work on no till organic production. Their site has more of the specifics.
http://rodaleinstitute.org/our-work/research/
If I had to boil it down to 1 principle, it's never leave the ground bare.
Growing plants feed soil biology/fertility and prevent erosion by dispersing the raindrop's energy and building soil aggregates. Feeding the biology increases infiltration and nutrient cycling. Infiltration is what drought proofs your garden. I had my best corn and beans last year in spite of the drought that dried up my creek for 2 months and I never watered once.
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