Two young growers from Minnesota — a state that has historically been challenging for cover crops. Two different types of planters and roller-crimpers. Two experiences that reinforced the growers’ beliefs in what covers can do for their operations.

Sheldon Luehmann of Lewiston, Minn., and Mike Unruh, just down the road in Winona, Minn., got acquainted when Unruh’s family did custom forage harvesting for the Luehmann family’s dairy farm. Luehmann watched as Unruh, who farms 700 acres of corn, soybeans, alfalfa, and cover crops with his father, journeyed into using no-till and cover crops, while the Luehmann family continued doing full-scale tillage. 

Unruh’s father, Dave, got him interested in cover crops back in 2013 when a prevent plant situation resulted in them seeding a cover crop mix on their farm, which was started in the late 1800s. They no-tilled into the cover crop in the spring of 2014. 

“I thought my dad was crazy,” says Unruh. “My grandpa thought he was crazy.”

That “crazy” idea paid off. The corn crop that was no-tilled into the cover crop was the best corn on the Unruh farm that growing season. 

“My dad started trying other things, like no-till corn into green rye,” says Unruh. “That worked out…