Justin Krell says he started strip-tilling in 2017 mainly to make better use of his time and money — both important factors considering he’s trying to expand his farm while also working full-time as an agronomist for a seed corn company.

Precise placement, intensive soil-sampling and cover crop experiments help cut New York strip-tiller Donn Branton’s fertilizer rates in half and significantly boost corn yields over 40-year career.

In the 9 years since Illinois farmer Rock Katschnig first started strip-tilling, he’s seen improvements and benefits in every area of his operation — from yield increases to healthier soil to valuable time savings.

"As a soil scientist, I really started as a 5-year-old digging underneath the ash trees on our farm, looking to see what was going on underneath the soil. When I completed the work I did for Bayer Crop Sciences in 2022, I finished 1,820 soil pits in my life. I think I have a pretty good idea of what goes on underneath the ground," Mike Petersen says.

Over 100 strip-tillers and no-tillers took part in the event, which included an agronomy tour of the 400-acre research farm, a soil testing and nutrient management classroom and an equipment sandbox.

Fall strip-till can provide a wider window for planting corn in the spring and even boost yields. When done right, it creates a clean, warmer, mellower seedbed and provides an opportunity to apply nitrogen (N) — best if used with an N stabilizer — phosphorus (P) and potassium (K).

Farming practices in northeast Wisconsin have changed for the better in the past 7 years, thanks largely to the conservation efforts of Mike Pribyl and Brent Petersen.

Biologicals are like the Wild West of agriculture — products with big potential but little regulation. As a result, it can be difficult to determine what’s a worthy investment.