No-Till Farmer and Lessiter Media have announced that Watertown, Wis., no-tiller Tony Peirick has been selected as the 2026 Conservation Ag Operator Fellow. He will be the subject of a unique year-long content series that includes a deep dive into his management practices throughout the 2026 via articles, videos, and webinars.
Launched in 2022 to mark the start of No-Till Farmer's second 50 years of publication, the annual Conservation Ag Operator Fellowship program follows one no-tiller throughout the year. The editors of No-Till Farmer and Cover Crop Strategies return to the farm all year long to share the challenges, solutions and real-time decision making needed to make no-till and conservation ag practices work in real-world conditions.
Peirick farms with his brother, son and nephew in Watertown, Wis., where they oversee a 200-cow dairy operation, grow cash crops on 1,100 acres and provide custom fieldwork for other farmers. A long time no-till operation, Peirick successfully incorporated cover crops and aims to “plant green” whenever possible. He is a frequent presenter on how to make the planting green practice — and the termination of the covers — work in real-world production.
Peirick is an excellent fit for this program due to his extensive experience with no-till and cover crops over decades as well as his unique and expansive commitment to farmer-to-farmer learning and mentorship, the same principles on which the Fellowship itself was launched.
He has become a national resource — and example – for farmers leading and administering conservation programs at their own local level. He serves as the president of Dodge County Farmers for Healthy Soil and Healthy Water, the president of Fields of Sinsinawa — farmer-led learning center — and on the board of the Farm Bureau Of Dodge County.
Peirick was announced as the 2026 Fellow at the 2026 National No-Tillage Conference in St. Louis.
Content Coming to No-Till Farmer and Multi-Media Channels
The multi-media series that accompanies this fellowship program examines his approach to a variety of subjects, including cropping decisions, attachment/equipment purchases, test plots, seeding/planting conditions and on-the-go decisions in response to weather and other variables. Farmers may also ask Peirick specific questions at any time through the "Ask the Operator" online forum and a series of open-ended webinar discussions.
The capstone of the project includes a final report on performance and results, and a keynote presentation at the 35th Annual National No-Tillage Conference in Indianapolis from Jan. 12-15, 2027.
For more information on the program or the Fellowship Benefactor program to help support the transfer of this knowledge to American producers, contact Mackane Vogel at mvogel@lessitermedia.com.
