With some midwestern no-tillers facing concerns with cold and wet soils, building fall strips may be a good way to dry out and warm up these problem soils before no-tilling in the spring.

Concerned about the future of no-tilled corn, Illinois Department of Agriculture officials are launching a program aimed at expanding conservation tilled acres. The program will include research on the benefits of fall strip-tilling to overcome the cool, wet soil problems often found with no-till.