When compacted soils become a problem, as they can anywhere in the country, cover crops can be an effective solution, according to experienced no-till farmers. But you need to know which crop will work in your area to provide the kind of long tap roots needed. Visitors to Farmer’s Forum, the message board of No-Till Farmer, offered a number of possibilities recently. We share their ideas here, as well as thoughts about an assortment of other topics.

Students interested in conservation tillage issues can turn their thoughts into college scholarship grants. A total of $5,000 will be awarded for the top three essays in the third annual Conservation Tillage Essay Contest.

Jan Layman never expected to be a die-hard no-tiller. “I never thought I’d be preaching the evangelism of no-till. I enjoyed working the ground,” admits Layman of Kenton, Ohio.

Turning your original no-till planter into something that better fits your specific cropping needs was a hot topic on the No-Till Farmer Farmer’s Forum message board recently. Also, veteran no-tillers hit the keyboards to voice their opinions about one farmer’s interseeding concerns and another no-tiller’s questions about his White 5100 planter.

Many growers looking for a new way to provide both burndown and season-long weed control will soon have a new tool available in their herbicide arsenal. That’s because a compound named Expert from Syngenta Crop Protection was recently approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for use in corn and grain sorghum.

Several new label uses and new insecticides came in for special attention at the recent National No-Tillage Conference in Indianapolis, Ind.