About 75% OF the acres around me still aren’t no-tilled. I can’t blame them. It wasn’t the easiest change to make, but it’s well worth it in my opinion.

I look at the generations coming up after us in agriculture — such as my son, possibly — and those effected by the decisions I make on the farm, like my daughter and her family, whose drinking water is pulled from rivers in my watershed, and know that no-till is the right choice for my farm for so many reasons.

For my part I’ve long participated in no-till tours and field days, working with the soil conservation district and others to help demonstrate the benefits of no-till. What has long been a help to me on my personal no-till journey, though, is what I call my No-Till Club. 

There was a handful of us in the area that wanted to try no-till in the early 1980s. We were among the first in our area try it so there was a lot of uncertainty. Having the support of other like-minded people helped overcome the doubts.

The first couple of years we went together to rent a no-till planter and had our own little tours and meetings. Several times per year we would get together and go look at our fields. We’d compare notes, get a good look at how the crops were doing…