If there’s anything you can’t accuse Ed Winkle of being, it’s narrow minded.

That’s because this no-tiller, crop consultant, FFA advisor and recent winner of the No-Till Innovator’s Award from Blanchester, Ohio, is constantly seeking new ideas to boost clients’ yields at an affordable price.

You won’t see him recommending top-of-the-line equipment. In fact, Winkle’s own piece of machinery is what he dubs a $35,000 White no-till planter special that he fixed up himself.

You also won’t see him telling clients to use costly fertilizers that don’t perform. Everything this consultant recommends has to boost no-till yields and bring in more dollars than it cost the farmer.

“As a consultant, I try to generate $10 for every $1 that’s invested,” he explains. “So when you spend your dollars at meetings like the National No-Tillage Conference, it’s the speakers’ job to make sure you get back ten times what you paid in registration costs. Fortunately, they always do.”

1. Get Online

Of course, coming up with new ideas isn’t an easy task. It was about a year ago when Winkle came across an amazing discovery. He’s been hooked ever since.

“My number one recommendation is that every farmer gets himself on the Internet,” he persuades. “I know a lot of people think the Internet is bad, but it’s just like any form of media. There’s good in it and there’s evil in it. We’ve found an awful good bunch of farmers online and we can share our trials and experiences with…