LIKE MANY FARMERS, Carter Morgan relies on crimping to terminate his cover crops. However, unlike some of his peers, Morgan has stopped purchasing variety not stated (VNS) cover crops and has instead embraced the specificity of using the exact variety of cereal rye that meets his needs.

Since the founding of the multigenerational dairy farm in Waterloo, Wis., in 1980, they’ve adopted sustainable farming practices, added a cheese factory to increase the value of their milk, and operate a manure digester that generates enough electricity to power their operation and 300 neighboring homes, making them a carbon-negative company.

DALE STEVERMER of Easton, Minn., is soft-spoken but comports himself with confidence and pride. That shows on his 450-acre farm — everything is clean, tidy and each item in its place. 

BY GIVING UP a few bushels of corn, no-tillers who raise livestock can come out ahead financially by planting and grazing 60-inch rows, says Jack Boyer, a Reinbeck, Iowa, no-tiller.