Articles by Martha Mintz

What I’ve Learned From No-Tilling: Patience and Like Minds Yield No-Till Success

From his first no-tilled acres to tweaking cover crops, working with a ‘No-Till Club’ helps Jim Riesberg forge ahead.

By Jim Riesberg and Martha Mintz posted on November 8, 2018 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Nutrient Management, Water Management

About 75% OF the acres around me still aren’t no-tilled. I can’t blame them. It wasn’t the easiest change to make, but it’s well worth it in my opinion.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Controlling Water Means Reducing Risk and Pushing Profits

Irrigation and building soil health keeps Darren Grogan’s crops in the water ‘Goldilocks’ zone for maximum production.

By Darren Grogan and Martha Mintz posted on September 12, 2018 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Soil Health, Water Management

No-till has resulted in our area having what I would venture to say are some of the strongest capitalized farms in the country. In fact, no-till is one of the only reasons we have farming in the area at all.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Harnessing Data, Tweaking Inputs Pushes No-Till Production to New Heights

Variable-rate technology helps North Dakota’s Chad Rubbelke better utilize precision data to apply nutrients precisely and boost crop yields.

By Chad Rubbelke and Martha Mintz posted on August 15, 2018 | Posted in Nutrient Management, Precision Agriculture, Soil Health

I was born into no-till, you could say. It’s really all I’ve ever known. My grandfather was a big proponent for the environment and was an advocate when my Dad pushed for reducing tillage on our farm in the early 1990s.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

No-Till, Along with Longer Rotations, Makes for Great Grazing and Improving Soils

A balance of cash crops and forage mixes used for intensive grazing helps keep Plum Thicket Farms moving in the right direction.

By Patrick Petersen and Martha Mintz posted on July 25, 2018 | Posted in Cover Crops, Soil Health

We weren’t farmers when my family moved to northwest Nebraska in 1995. I grew up in the mountains of Colorado with my mom, Nancy, who was working as a veterinarian and my dad, Rex, an architect.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Negotiating Challenges and Opportunities When Combining No-Till and Dairy

Cover crops and strategic nutrient-cycling rotations help manage manure, while twin-row cropping tackles late-germinating weeds.

By Kent Stuckey and Martha Mintz posted on June 9, 2018 | Posted in No-Till Farming 101, Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops

In the last 10 years I’ve seen no-till declining in my area. I simply don’t understand it, maybe it’s the draw of recreational tillage as we like to call it, but to me it’s just not sustainable in the long run.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Working with At-Risk Soils Leads to Experimentation and No-Till Success

Adding cover crops, winter wheat and making key equipment changes help keep soils in place in Wisconsin’s Driftless Area.

By Roger Bindl and Martha Mintz posted on May 12, 2018 | Posted in Seeding & Planting, Cover Crops, Nutrient Management

While I only truly count myself as being a no-tiller for the past 8 years since I started farming on my own, I’m no stranger to the practice. Of the 210 acres I farm, all but 38 acres are considered Highly Erodible Lands (HEL). The land my father, Wayne “Buzz” Bindl, farmed was similar and I’m sure this was one of the driving reasons he started no-tilling back in the early 1980s.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Using Precision At Every Turn Yields Success

Kentucky no-tiller Mark Chapman fully embraces technology to maximize his planter setups, nutrient inputs and crop rotations.

By Mark Chapman and Martha Mintz posted on April 14, 2018 | Posted in No-Till Farming 101, Nutrient Management, Precision Agriculture

WATCHING SOME OF the best soils we owned wash away in a big storm accelerated my family’s move to 100% no-till. My father, James, had tried no-tilling in the late 1960s, starting with soybeans behind the small amount of wheat we grew at that point.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Cattle, Cover Crops, No-Till and Improved Soil Health Provide Returns

Fifth generation of Doans keeping North Dakota’s Black Leg Ranch abundant with diverse business plan of cattle, crops and agritourism.

By Jerry Doan and Martha Mintz posted on March 10, 2018 | Posted in Cover Crops, Residue Management, Nutrient Management

Some of the soils I helped farm as a child in southwestern North Dakota are probably somewhere in South Dakota now. I grew up in the era of wheat and summer fallow. A lot of the ground around here is very sandy and marginal. Did it ever blow when we were tilling. I remember as a kid getting sent with a disc or a drag to try and make it stop blowing. It seemed so futile, and it was.

Iowa Brothers’ No-Till Success a Product of Tradition, Education and Attitude

A rigorous equipment maintenance program and trying new practices, such as deploying cover crops, keep the Pillings moving forward.

By Martha Mintz and Jim and Charles Piling posted on February 10, 2018 | Posted in No-Till Farming 101, Cover Crops, Equipment, Soil Health

WHEN WE STEP into our office, soil conservation posters serve to remind us why we do the things we do on our farm. Our soils need to be protected and nourished to keep waterways healthy and the nation’s food supply sustainable.

What I've Learned from No-Tilling

Making No-Till ‘Conventional’ is the Goal

Dedication to conservation and community has driven Dick Wittman and his family business partners to pursue no-till and share knowledge.

By Dick Wittman and Martha Mintz posted on January 13, 2018 | Posted in No-Till Farming 101

We’re not farmers, ranchers or loggers — we’re resource managers. That’s one of many mindset shifts our family has made as we transition from generation to generation farming wildly varying terrain near Lewiston, Idaho.

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Articles by Martha Mintz

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