New Cash Crop Gives No-Till Soils a Boost

Thinking outside the box, Ross Bishop started growing kernza — a cross between wheat and prairie grass — in 2018 after seeing the perennial growing at a University of Minnesota field day. The Jackson, Wis., grower who’s been no-tilling for 30 years and seeding cover crops for 18 years, started with 7 acres of kernza to see how it can boost soil quality.

On this episode of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by Bio Till Cover Crops, Ross Bishop explains how Kernza is giving his no-till soils a boost in Jackson, Wis.

Greeneye Technology, the maker of AI-enhanced targeted spraying technology for agriculture, announced this week it would open a North American headquarters in Salina, Kan. after taking possession of the site this fall. No-Till Farmer caught up with Keith Crow, general manager of North America at Greeneye, to talk about the goals for the company’s U.S. expansion, how the company’s technology is updated, and how no-tillers and strip-tillers can expect it to perform in their fields.

On this episode of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by Bio Till Cover Crops, Bob and Robby Jewell explain how they incorporate wood chips, cover crops and rotational grazing into their Leopold Conservation Award-Winning no-till system in northeast Iowa.

Those of you who’ve attended one of the 34 National No-Tillage Conferences know the magic that makes this annual gathering unlike any other in agriculture. For those who haven’t, I’m here to tell you. I’m occasionally asked by the skeptical farmer, manufacturer and supplier exactly “how and why” this audience — and conference setting — is so different.

In the latest edition of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Yetter Farm Equipment, former Conservation Ag Fellow and NNTC Outstanding Speaker Award winner Michael Thompson shares how he uses livestock, biologicals compost extract and hog manure to strengthen root systems, boost soil health and turn weaker acreage into beef on his Almena, Kan., farm.

An army of editors from No-Till Farmer attended the Farm Progress Show to find out what’s being talked about the industry and learn about the innovations that are shaping agriculture today. Listen in on conversations we had with manufacturers and industry influencers about innovations happening in the field, including insights about planting and crop protection, laser weeder systems, USDA data modernization efforts and more.

Probably more than you think, as veteran investor Warren Buffett stepped down on September 18 from leading one of the world’s largest investment group. Replacing him as chairman of Berkshire Hathaway is his son, Howard, a longtime member of the firm’s board of directors and an innovative self-thought Illinois no-tiller for 34 years.

When paying for high-priced diesel for fall harvest, no-tillers are in the same boat as neighbors still using intensive tillage. While nobody likes diesel prices that have soared to over $6 a gallon in recent weeks, no-tillers are definitely coming out ahead when you look at fuel needs for an entire cropping year.

On this episode of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by Yetter Farm Equipment, Allen Dornacker shares the benefits of using drywall in his compost mix in West Bend, Wis.