Having no-tilled since 1972, Paul Schaffert has learned a few things while growing corn, wheat, soybeans, sunflowers, milo and grain sorghum on a 2,000-acre irrigated and dryland farm in Indianola, Neb. The lessons have come even harder recently, because the area, which normally receives 10 to 17 inches of rain each year, has been suffering through a drought for the past several years and irrigation is now restricted to 13 inches per year.

If you're waiting for Asian soybean rust to appear in your fields before you spray, Marty Wiglesworth suggests you reconsider.

Soil scientist Richard Mulvaney and several colleagues at the University of Illinois believe they have developed a reliable way to determine the optimum nitrogen fertilizer application rate for crops.

To avoid contamination of nearby waterways, no-tillers should not apply liquid manure to their fields when a tile line is flowing, according to a USDA researcher.