John Phillips, formerly of Bloomsburg, Penn., lives on a more than 30-acre farm in Batangas, Philippines, with his wife and 10-year-old daughter. They grow dozens of fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices and flowers using no-till and natural farming methods. The No-Till Passport series is brought to you by Martin Industries.

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Cover croppers seeking to improve the effectiveness of using a roller-crimper to terminate standing covers ahead of the planter may want to consider adding flames to the procedure.

A lot can change in 30 years. In the early 1990s, Perrysville, Ohio, brothers Steve and Carl Ayers were adopting no-till and cover crops on 700 acres of continuous corn on their 650-cow dairy operation, creating a standard for other growers in the area to emulate. 

Planting will soon be underway for most Illinois farmers, and while brain bandwidth might be in scarce supply, it’s worth casting a thought down river.

No-tillers can turn new technology into an asset if they’re prepared for advancements coming in the not-so-distant future.
That’s the opinion of Scott Shearer, chair of the department of food, agricultural and biological engineering at Ohio State University, who shared his predictions at the 2022 National No-Tillage Conference about how autonomous farm machinery will change the structure of the agriculture industry.

Roy Pfaltzgraff III, Haxton, Colo., successfully farms where it’s “bone dry.” But with a combination of persistence and a willingness to try new things, the family operation is thriving despite the lack of moisture.