Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey is a fourth-generation farmer from Spirit Lake, Iowa. His priorities as Secretary include advancing science and new technologies to better care for Iowa’s air, soil and water.

For some farmers, their early transition to strip-till conjures up fond memories of higher yields or improved fertilizer placement, while for others, building those first berms serves more as reminder of how far they’ve come in their operation. Looking back on a decade of striptilling, Mike Shuter recalls both the pains and the gains encountered on 2,500 acres of strip-tilled corn at Shuter Sunset Farms in Frankton, Ind.

During the last 75 years that American farmers have used commercially available fertilizers, broadcast application of dry and liquid nutrients have produced mixed results. When strip-till began emerging in the late 1980s, farmers started taking advantage of more targeted applications.

Building the perfect berm doesn’t happen overnight. Practice makes perfect when setting your fields up for success with good seed-to-soil contact and residue management. For more than 15 years, crop and equipment consultant Kevin Kimberley has worked with strip-tillers to set up their rigs by picking the right row unit setup and troubleshooting problems that arise from an imperfect strip.

Since 2007, Dr. Joel Gruver has been a professor of Soil Science and Sustainable Agriculture in the School of Agriculture at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Ill. He’s conducted intense research tied to cover crop usage in conservation-tillage systems and organic grain production. Gruver will focus on the integration of cover crops within strip-tillage systems and explore key opportunities and challenges based on recent research results and the experiences of innovative farmers using both strip-till and cover crops. He will also discuss the impact of cover crops on nutrient availability and soil moisture dynamics within strip-tillage systems and also consider the compatibility of cover crops with current strip-till technology and potential new technologies.

University of Minnesota nutrient management specialist Fabian Fernandez understands the nutrient application flexibility that a strip-till system offers. His current research focuses on nutrient management in corn cropping systems and identifying and implementing sustainable nitrogen management practices aimed at minimizing environmental impacts and improving yields. Fernandez will compare nutrient management practices for strip-till and no-till and how to properly take soil samples to accurately represent the fertility of a field when banding fertilizer in the strip vs. a broadcast application.

Conservation tillage is the only option for Bill Darrington to farm the rolling hills of western Iowa, to maintain soil structure and maximize nutrient uptake in the soil. Since 1987, he’s evolved from no-till and strip-till to a hybrid of the two farming practices. This includes deep-banded, multi-level placement of fertilizer during a spring strip-till pass and multiple foliar applications, along with timed insecticide and herbicide applications to provide crops with a robust nutrient package.

After nearly a quarter-century of strip-tilling a variety of crops, third-generation farmer Eric Wallendal and his wife, Megan, still view their Grand Marsh, Wis., operation as a work-in-progress. All of their strip-tilled acres are under center-pivot irrigation and in 2014, they spring strip-tilled 2,000 acres of soybeans, forage corn and snap beans.

Farming shallow, red clay soils prone to compaction and runoff, southwest Missouri farmer Gary Wolf is especially conscious of preserving nutrients and water in his soil to grow a quality crop. In 2007, Wolf purchased his first strip-till rig to help retain moisture and limit runoff in corn.

Lowpoint, Ill., farmer Todd Mooberry understands that every field is different and one size doesn’t fit all with strip-till. Mooberry began strip-tilling corn in 2001 on his 1,800-acre operation and seeking ways to better adapt the practice to the variable soil types and slopes on his farm. He designed several products to improve strip-till efficiency, including a strip-freshener attachment to run through soybean stubble in spring as an alternative to no-till. Mooberry will offer some tips and equipment strategies to help minimize erosion concerns on rolling ground, better time fertilizer application and utilize cover crops in strip-till.