Each year we request feedback from our valued National No-Tillage Conference attendees regarding the presentations they participate in to determine who our top speakers are annually at the event. Below is a list of all recipients of the NNTC Outstanding Presentation Award based on attendee rankings.

Many of these innovative no-tillers will be present at the next National No-Tillage Conference (details available here). Join us in person to learn and network alongside them!

2023 Presenter of the Year

Russell Hedrick (Hickory, N.C.) — "Capturing High Yields with Regenerative Ag"

2022 Presenter of the Year

Jimmy Emmons (Leedey, Okla.) — "Grazing Cover Crops for Healthy Soil and Profits"  

2021 Presenter of the Year (Virtual)

2020 Presenter of the Year

David Johnson and Hui-Chun Su Johnson — “Boosting Biomass and Crop Production with a Super-Charged Compost Inoculant"

2019 Presenters

• Rick Clark (Williamsport, Ind.) — "Getting the Most From Your No-Till Operation by Farming Green"
• Bob Recker (Waterloo, Iowa) — "Turning Aerial Scouting Into A Powerful Tool for No-Till Management"
• Michael Thompson (Almena, Kan.) — "Cows on Cropland: How Grazing Synergies Boost Yields and Soil Health"

2018 Presenters

• Adam Daugherty (Manchester, Tenn.) — "Designing a Cover Crop Mix and Managing Your Creation"
• Damon Reabe (Waupun, Wis.) — "Succeeding With Aerially Seeded Cover Crops: It's Not a No-Till Oxymoron After All"
• Loran Steinlage (West Union, Iowa) — "How Companion Cropping, Interseeding Can Boost Diversity in Your Rotation"

2017 Presenters

• Neal Kinsey (Charleston, Mo.) — "The Importance of Sulfur and Tips for Utilizing It For Your Crops"
• Ray McCormick (Vincennes, Ind.) — "Getting Your Cover Crops In On Time - at $13 an Acre"
• Mike Plumer (Creal Springs, Ill.) — "Tips for Terminating Cover Crops More Effectively"

2016 Presenters

• Eddie Hoff (Boonville, Mo.) — "Six Strategies to Manage Crop Production Risk on Poorly Drained Claypan Soils"
• Hans Kok/Dan Towery (Carmel, Ind./Lafayette, Ind.) — "Possibilities and Limitations of Cover Crops: Fixing Tough Conditions"
• Fred Whitford (Lafayette, Ind.) — "Adjuvants and the Power of the Spray Droplet in Pest Control"

2015 Presenters

• Jill Clapperton (Spokane, Wash.) — "Zeroing in on Practical, Applied Rhizosphere Ecology"
• Bill Lehmkuhl (Minster, Ohio) — "Taking the No-Till Planter to the Field in Tip Top Shape"
• John Tooker (University Park, Penn.) — "Balancing Insecticide Use, Soil Health Through IPM Approach"

2014 Presenters

• Fred Below (Urbana, Ill.) — "The 6 Secrets Of No-Till Soybean Success" and "Mineral Nutrition For High-Yield No-Till Corn Production"
• Frank Gibbs (Rawson, Ohio) — "Earthworms: The Key To Quality No-Till Soils"
• Joel Gruver (Macomb, Ill.) — "Maximizing Crop Root Growth In No-Till Systems" and "Cover Cropping Practices That Enhance Soil Fertility"

2013 Presenters

• Odette Menard (Ange-Gardien, Quebec) — "The Importance Of Earthworms In Making Your Farm Soils More Productive" and "Making Earthworms Your Good Tillage Tool"
• Phil Needham (Calhoun, Ky.) — "Managing Your Way To Higher Wheat Yields, Profits" and "Managing Residue Effectively To Boost Crop Emergence, Yields"
• Mike Plumer (Creal Springs, Ill.) — "Advanced Cover-Crop Selection And Management"

2012 Presenters

• Ray Archuleta (Greensboro, N.C.) — "Tap Into The Power Of Biodiversity!" and "The Ingredients For A Healthy, Productive No-Till Soil"
• Phil Needham (Calhoun, Ky.) — "Setting Up That No-Till Drill Or Air Seeder For Effective, Efficient Performance" and "Technologies Around The World You Can No-Till With"
• Mike Plumer (Creal Springs, Ill.) — "Capturing The Nutrient, Environmental Benefits Of Cover Crops" and "Caring For A Continuous No-Till Cover-Crop System" and "Best Practices For Managing An Annual Ryegrass Cover Crop"

2011 Presenters

• Marion Calmer (Alpha, Ill.) — "Staying Positive Establishing, Maintaining Soil-Protecting Waterways" and "Harvest Performance Tips And No-Till Residue Management"
• Joe Nester (Bryan, Ohio) — "Adopting Variable-Rate Fertilization For Improved No-Till Profits" and "Overcoming Today’s Difficulties With Glyphosate"
• Jamie Scott (Pierceton, Ind.) — "Getting A Good Annual Ryegrass Stand… And Controlling It"

2010 Presenters

• Fred Below (Urbana, Ill.) — "The Formula For No-Tilling 300-Bushel Corn" and "Nitrogen Use By Corn: How Much, When, Where And Why"
• Steve Groff (Holtwood, Penn.) — "Ground-Breaking World Of Tillage Radishes" and "New And Emerging No-Till Cover Crops"
• Jeff Reints (Shell Rock, Iowa) — "Lessons Learned From Strip-Tilling In The Spring Vs. Fall"

2009 Presenters

• Marion Calmer (Alpha, Ill.) — "Figuring Out Return On Investment With Soaring Fertilizer Costs" and "Harvest Strategies To Improve No-Till Planting Conditions"
• Neal Kinsey (Charleston, Mo.) — "Building Better No-Till Soil Biology — Why You Need It And How You Can Feed It" and "Improving Upon Tough No-Till Soil Conditions"
• Phil Needham (Calhoun, Ky.) — "Successful Opening, Closing The Slot With No-Till Planters, Drills" and "Efficient Fertilizer Placement In No-Till Systems"

2008 Presenters

• Marion Calmer (Alpha, Ill.) — "How Are You Going To Handle All That Residue? — Or Why You Want A Residue ‘Mat’ Rather Than Having A ‘Mattress’ With Continuous Corn" and "Set Your Combine Properly For More Efficient Corn Harvesting"
• Jill Clapperton (Spokane, Wash.) — "Why No-Till Creates The Perfect Habitat For Beneficial Soil Biology" and "Still More Soil Microbiological Action" and "Creating The Right Habitat For More No-Till Soil Biological Activities"
• Phil Needham (Calhoun, Ky.) — "Chop It, Distribute It, Do It Evenly" and "Profiting From A High-Tech Approach To No-Tilling Wheat"
• Clarence Swanton (Guelph, Ontario) — "Weird Weed Science — The Real Reasons Why Early Weed Competition Slashes Your No-Till Corn Yields" and "Why A Knowledge-Based Weed Management System Is So Critical To Your No-Till Success"

2007 Presenters

• Dwayne Beck (Pierre, S.D.) — "When It Comes To Managing Carbon, Do You C What I C?" and "Keep It Cheap, Cheap, Cheap… Keeping No-Till Cover Crop Costs In Line"
• Marion Calmer (Alpha, Ill.) — "Concentrate On Those Most Critical Combine Settings For Profit-Boosting No-Till Harvesting" and "Make Those Critical Corn Head, Grain Platform Settings For Better No-Till Harvesting"
• Paul Jasa (Lincoln, Neb.) — "Think Whole Systems When It Comes To Selecting Your No-Till Equipment" and "Tackling The 4 Most Critical Functions Of No-Till Seeding Rigs"
• Elwynn Taylor (Ames, Iowa) — "Managing No-Till Under Weather Stress"