I think readers will find our experiences with no-till to be equally foreign and familiar. Foreign in the fact that on our family farm, the horsepower that runs our field operations comes from actual draft horses. Familiar in that we've gained many benefits from making the move to no-till.

We live in an area of Lancaster County, Pa., where small dairy farms of 50 to 60 cows are common and fields are small. Many of the farms are Amish-owned, where real horses provide the power.

Making the transition to no-till was a big step for Lapp Brothers Farms in making their soils more productive. But to get even more yield and tonnage out of corn silage meant taking a narrower view.