Lessiter Media has announced the establishment of the Strip-Till Hall of Fame, to celebrate the rich history of strip-till and honor those who helped move the practice forward.  

“As the strip-till acreage continues to grow, we felt it was time to honor some of the innovators who played a key role in promoting the benefits of this reduced tillage system,” says Frank Lessiter, Lessiter Media founder and Strip-Till Farmer editor.  

The inaugural Strip-Till Hall of Fame class includes Richard Follmer, Jim Kinsella and Tony Vyn. They were introduced at the 2023 National Strip-Tillage Conference, Aug. 4, in Bloomington, Ill. 

Future inductees will be honored at the National Strip-Tillage Conference each year. If you would like to nominate someone for this award, please outline their accomplishments in a letter and email it to Nnewman@lesspub.com.

Grandfather of Strip-Till 

Photo by: Lessiter Media

Hudson, Ill., farmer and former shortline manufacturer, Richard Follmer, often referred to as the “Grandfather of Strip-Till,” designed one of the first commercially successful strip-till rigs for Midwestern growers dealing with cold soils. 

“We built a homemade 12-row bar with some crude row units at first to clear a path in the field,” Follmer says. “We went into production in 1992. We had to figure out what to call it and the only thing we could think of was strip-till.”

Follmer, the retired president and founder of Progressive Farm Products, introduced many no-tillers to the concept of strip-till during a presentation at the National No-Tillage Conference in 1995. 

“After wrapping…