For decades, the spring season was consistently stressful for Sparland, Ill., grower Jay Riddell. He dedicated days to running a field cultivator though his 1,500 corn and soybean acres while hoping for a suitable seedbed to plant into. 

Factor in the 100 Hereford cattle he tends to on his operation, and he couldn’t help but wonder if a more feasible solution existed to balance the workload. Intrigued by the prospect of strip-till, he rented a DMI bar ahead of the 2008 season and applied anhydrous into fall strips to evaluate the system. 

He’s since transitioned rigs and abandoned fall anhydrous due to inconsistency window of opportunity after harvest. The newfound simplicity of planting the following spring was enough for him to commit full-time, purchasing the 8-row Orthman 1tRIPr system he uses to this day.

“Spring goes fairly quick and easy. We can just go out and hop in the planter,” Riddell says. “Having residue between the rows, our strips are often dry a day before anything would be fit to field cultivate, but we could go out and plant if we wanted to. The strip is just so unbelievably mellow after going through the freeze and thaw.”

Managing the operation with his father, Bill, and oldest son, Ryan, roughly 95% of…