Good business sense plus compassion for their fellow no-till farmers have partnered to create a scattering of custom no-till planting and/or equipment rental enterprises. Here are solid ideas from five entrepreneurs to think about, whether you’re a veteran or novice no-tiller.

With the recent focus on the benefits of cover crops, it is ironic that research plots evaluating corn planted into hairy vetch sparked my initial interest in no-till. Those first impressions were made when I was a student at Western Kentucky University nearly 25 years ago.

Most modern agronomists would laugh at the planting dates followed by our forefathers. Times were different. The economy was different. And the information we knew about the soil, most effective planting dates and what it ultimately means to the crop was definitely different.

My first “no-tilling” experiences were in 1989 when I planted soybeans directly into old corn rows. I saw immediate labor and fuel savings and harvested yields that were consistent with conventional tilling.

They're thinking big down under. The 120-foot planter manufactured by Multi Farming Systems is already the world’s largest, the company says, and negotiations are under way to build a 302-foot version at customer request.

A series of dry springs and a problem with potential carryover of a soybean herbicide back in the 1980s were the two primary incentives that drove us to try no-till.