Passage of a unique concept that got Congressional consideration during the writing of the 2018 Farm Bill could put more dollars in the pockets of no-tillers. It’s an idea that farmers who use no-till, cover crops and conservation-minded crop rotations to protect the soil should be rewarded with an equivalent of auto insurance’s “good driver discount” when it comes to paying crop insurance premiums.

With low grain prices and a declining wheat acreage, Guy Swanson believes winter canola could replace a considerable amount of the winter wheat grown in the western U.S. The result could be higher incomes for no-tillers, bonus opportunities for turning out a high-quality product and a dramatic reduction in soil erosion.

Here’s a quick view of what’s happening with Farm Bill negotiations and how they could impact long-standing conservation programs that play an important role in no-till and cover crop adoption.

Jon Stevens is a no-till and strip-till farmer in Rock Creek, Minn. In this video he talks about his first no-till experiences with equipment changes, planting strategies, weed control measures, trial-and- error and overcoming challenges.

Jon Stevens is a no-till and strip-till farmer in Rock Creek, Minn. A shortened growing season in 2018 led to experiments with interseeding cover crops, using clovers, ryegrass, vetch and oats. In this video he talks about how he originally got into no-tilling.

Underground Agriculture intends to focus on soil health intelligence to optimize equipment choices.

The results are in for the National Sorghum Producers Yield Contest and we’ll see how no-tilled submissions stacked up against conventional and reduced tillage. I think you’ll like what the data show.