I wish I had the authority to change the common description of how I farm from “ridge-till” to “ridge-planting.” I do very little tillage — once every three years I toss soil and residue from the valleys to the ridge tops using a ridging wing — but I’m planting all the time

The name could use an update. The process has transformed significantly between now and when the term was coined – and when I first tried a ridge-based farming system – back in 1984. I, along with many other farmers, failed at the practice then. Today, however, I’ve researched my way to a ridge-based system that works. 

I was never happy with conventional tillage. I didn’t want to farm that way, so when my dad helped me get started in farming and suggested I look at ridging, I did.

I wanted a practice that would preserve surface residue, require less equipment and fewer trips over the field, reduce erosion and limit compaction. I wanted to build soil organic matter (SOM) and have a perfect raised seedbed to plant into — not cold, and not wet. I wanted to eliminate deep tillage. On top of all of that, I wanted a practice that was agronomically productive. I was convinced farming on a ridge was the answer. I just had to find a…