Good morning from the road! We’re Iowa-City bound for the 2025 National Strip-Tillage Conference. I’m so amped up for the event that I just had to blog about it (don’t worry, safely from the passenger seat).

Technology Editor Noah Newman checks in from Iowa City with a preview of the 2025 National Strip-Tillage Conference, including exclusive insights from speakers on the program, a tour of the hotel and surrounding area, and a 1-on-1 interview with Iowa State’s Rebecca Vittetoe for a look at the pre-conference Strip-Till Field Day.

“When you approach the rootworm as just a problem that has to be solved, you’re not taking into account the animal’s biology,” Ann Marie Journey says. “You’re hitting it just at certain points or with certain methods or controls, and you’re not allowing yourself in effect to have a conversation to gain insight back from the rootworms about what it is that makes them successful in any given place."

With a world record corn yield of 623 bushels per acre, David Hula discusses his systems approach to strip-till, including hybrid selection, planter setup, nutrient management and weekly tissue testing in his keynote presentation: "600 Bushels & Beyond: Checking the Boxes for Strip-Till Success."

Global Neighbor’s Directed Energy Flora Control (DEFC) uses a blend of light, applied in high intensities for short durations, to affect plants and seeds.

The Wabash County SWCD Board of Supervisors are such believers in this event that they are going to pay for the cost of up to 10 registrations for the 2024 National Strip-Tillage Conference — a $429 commitment per registration by the district.