In the late 1980s and 1990s, the Soil and Water Conservation District of Bureau County, Illinois, distributed these signs to promote no-till farming.

Allis-Chalmers (A-C) is widely credited with designing, manufacturing and selling the first “commercially successful” no-tillage planters in 1966. Landoll Corp. acquired Allis-Chalmers landmark no-till innovation in 1993 and rebranded it as the Quadra-Planter. The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

As a follow-up to first installment in No-Till Farmer’s No-Till History Series on H.H. Bennett, here are 10 of our favorite quotes the first Soil Conservation Service director.

The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

Two ‘founding fathers’ were instrumental in setting the stage for no-tillage, yet never got to see it in practice before their deaths. The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

It’s often been said that a magazine cover is where editors announce their intentions. And our intention over our 50 years of history has been to provide no-tillers with both practical, meat-and-potatoes articles and in-depth content on emerging trends and practices meant to stretch the mind. 

The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

An Allis-Chalmers service department veteran recalls some of the difficulties with getting the first commercially-available no-till planters to market. The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

As our staff was delving into research for the “Timeline of No-Till History," ​the No-Till Museum we’ll be bringing to the National No-Tillage Conference in Louisville, and an all-new history series planned in 2022 to mark the “triple crown” of no-till milestones, we discovered some mystery over the first no-till planter. And it’s the kind of discovery that’s sure to fuel additional debates. The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

It’s been 50 years since No-Till Farmer launched, and a lot has influenced the practice in those five decades. From equipment and chemical innovations to government influence to cover crops and the soil health movement, many factors have impacted no-till — both good and bad. 

The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.

With no-till as a practice having been around for 60 years now, and No-Till Farmer for 50, we wanted to find out if we had readers who have been using the practice consistently for that long. The No-Till History series is made possible by Calmer Corn Heads.