Three individuals and one organization are being recognized as the 23^rd Class of No-Till Innovators for their commitment to the advancement of no-till farming.

Sponsored by Syngenta and No-Till Farmer, the program strives to honor farmers, researchers, businesses and services, and organizations for their work in assisting the growth of no-till practices regardless of the types of crops or equipment used.

The 2018 honorees are:

• Eileen Kladivko, Purdue University, professor of agronomy, Research & Education
• Jim Hershey, Elizabethtown, Pa., no-tiller, Crop Production
• Vertical-Till Injector (Phil Reed, Washington, Iowa no-tiller) Business & Service
• Colorado Conservation Tillage Assn., Organization

Eileen Kladivko – Research & Education

Since 1982, Eileen Kladivko has been a professor of agronomy at Purdue University, teaching both undergraduate and graduate students. Her job entails all three missions of the land-grant university — research, extension and education.

Kladivko first found an interest in no-till while working on her Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin, where she studied soil science. Her research was related to nitrogen cycling and how it might change in a no-till system in comparison to a conventional-tillage system where plows were used.

Since her Ph.D. work, Kladivko has undertaken broader research on soil physics, soil biology and soil management. The main focus of her research has been on identifying soil management systems that improve environmental quality and promote agricultural sustainability, including:

• Impacts of tile drainage on crop yields and nitrate losses to surface waters when cover crops are used
• Interactions of…