Strip-tillers who use soil tests to find where essential nutrients are located in the upper soil profile can better optimize fertilizer placement.

When Nick Viney partnered with Josh Trautman to form Badgerland Grain Farms LLC in 2006, they started with just 155 acres in south-central Wisconsin. But during the last 7 years, they've grown their Evansville, Wis.-based operation to more than 1,800 acres, an even split of strip-till corn and no-till soybeans, with about 180 acres of no-till wheat.

The Mid-Atlantic region is about to get to know another invasive stink bug species, the kudzu bug

This spring's cool, wet weather is making difficult for Iowa farmers to plant their soybeans and making it easier for a well-known pest to affect this year's crop. Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS), a soil-borne fungus, is a disease that is highly dependent on the weather and the resistance level of the planted soybean varieties.

Building fall strips without fertilizer offers Brandon Hunnicutt cropping flexibility and more precise nutrient placement.

A 3-year onfarm study in Minnesota shows that strip-tilling corn and soybeans saves $14 per acre vs. disk-ripping and chisel plowing, says Jodi DeJong-Hughes, a University of Minnesota Extension crops educator.

Trying strip-till on a small scale, using auto-steer when strip-tilling and taking advantage of cost-sharing programs are some of the ways prospective and current strip-tillers can improve their bottom line, says Dave Nelson, a Ft. Dodge, Iowa, strip-tiller.

Strip-tilled corn may get lots of attention, but Webster City, Iowa, strip-tiller Arlo Van Diest also likes using the practice for soybeans.

Using 30-inch rows in strips could lead to higher yields, lower seed cost, less disease and a boost in profitability.

Toledo, Ill., farmer Stan Holsapple says switching to strip-till vs. no-till produced a yield increase in corn of 8 to 12 bushels per acre.