No-Till Farmer Podcast

In September of 2021, No-Till Farmer commissioned a project to determine the most significant research and publications that assisted in the understanding, and adoption, of no-till agriculture. Randall Reeder, retired ag engineer from Ohio State University and Don Reicosky, retired USDA soil scientist, collaborated on a detailed process to complete the large and aggressive project in advance of three important no-till milestones in 2022.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with Mitchell Hora on the sidelines of the Big Soil Health Event in Riverside, Iowa and spoke with him about, getting named to the list, the potential for regenerative agriculture, his company’s web-based application TopSoil, and more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Paul Schaffert, founder of Schaffert Manufacturing Company in Indianola, Neb. about his early successes in no-till, how innovation continues, how he transitioned from farming to manufacturing, and more.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with No-tiller Rick Clark to hear about many of the ways his operation and mindset have had to change in order to succeed with the transition. He explains his 70/30 theory on weed suppression, how learning to crimp cereal rye was a lightbulb moment that really pushed his practices forward, and how he came to appreciate beneficial predator insects. He also discusses how a personal health issue has helped him develop his thinking on the intersection of soil health and human health.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Terrasym, Frank Lessiter talks with Lloyd Murdock, professor emeritus at the University of Kentucky about his early lessons from no-till, how soil changes over the decades after tillage stops, an experiment that took years to take off, and more.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with Hickory, North Carolina, no-tiller Russell Hedrick to hear about his latest venture, a mobile grain milling operation he launched alongside partners Liz Haney and Sarah Varble called Regen Mills. Join in to hear how the trio sees this as a way to return more profit to farmers, how this new approach to grain milling supports that goal, the requirements and expectations they have for farmers signing on to the program, likely financial returns a farmer could expect to see and more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Dick Wittman, a no-tiller in Lapwai, Idaho, about his transition to no-till, his resource management mindset and how Wittman is positioning the next generation of farmers in his family for success.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with Paul Mikesell, founder and CEO of Carbon Robotics, a new company that is tackling weed control with a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and lasers. This past year, in 2021, the company released its first production units of a machine called the LaserWeeder, which has the potential to eliminate the need for herbicides or tillage for weed control. Join in to hear about how the LaserWeeder can distinguish between crops and weeds, how it effectively kills weeds without chemicals, why grasses are more challenging to eliminate than broadleaf weeds, when the technology might be rolled out to row crop farmers and more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, we’re sitting in on a presentation by Ray Weil, Soil Scientist at the University of Maryland to discuss his research. He explains how cover crops influence nutrient profiles, optimal planting dates for cover crops and how well different kinds of cover crops can penetrate dense, compacted soils.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Tim Brannon, former Allis-Chalmers territory manager and current president of B&G Equipment, Paris, Tenn., talks with Frank Lessiter about the early days of Allis-Chalmers and shares some memorable stories from the road as he introduced no-till planters to growers around the world.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with Anthony Bly, Soils Field Specialist with South Dakota State University Extension, who was a presenter at the event. In an interview with associate editor Sarah Hill, Anthony discusses the interconnected relationship between water and soil, how cover crops fit into profitable cropping systems, the importance of minimal soil disturbance and more.

Listen to no-tiller & philanthropist Howard G. Buffet's keynote presentation at the 2010 National No-Tillage Conference in Des Moines, Iowa. At the time of his presentation, Buffett (son of billionaire investor Warren Buffett) had been no-tilling since 1992 on 16,000 acres in Illinois and Nebraska as well as another 6,000-plus acres in South Africa.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Terrasym, Frank Lessiter gets into the weeds with Kelly VanBeek, wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Migratory Bird Program to discuss which no-till fields provide the best habitats for songbirds, what cover crops are most hospitable to birds and finding a balance between productivity and conservation on farmland.

For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with Tom Cotter, a no-tiller and strip-tiller in Austin, Minnesota, right after a Minnesota Soil Health School session he hosted at his farm. He explains how he has skirted many of the problems facing hemp farmers by following the farm-to-table production model to grow the product for his own Superior Cannabis Company stores in Austin and Duluth.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, Frank Lessiter talks with Betsy Bower, an agronomist for Ceres Solutions in Lafayette, Ind., about the task force and some of the hottest areas in no-till farming – from carbon sequestration to biologicals and more.

Carbon market programs are a hot topic amongst farmers today, as they represent a potential new revenue stream for growers who implement conservation practices such as no-till, strip-till and cover crops. But every program is a little different in how they approach qualifying acres, establishing baseline measurements, practice verification, farmer compensation and more. For this No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with representatives from three companies who were talking with farmers about their carbon programs at the 2021 Farm Progress Show. We spoke with Ben Gordon, carbon and ecosystems global portfolio leader with Corteva; Lisa Streck, grower carbon lead with Bayer Carbon; and Cristian Barcan, sustainability officer with Rabo Carbon Bank. Listen in to hear about how these three companies are navigating the complexities of the carbon offsets market and bringing this new offering to U.S. farmers.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by The Andersons, we caught up with Lance Gunderson, president and co-owner of the recently launched Regen Ag Lab in Pleasanton, Nebraska to talk about some of the new soil tests, how they differ from conventional tests and why it matters.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Director of Agronomy at Fall Line Capital and no-tiller in Manitoba, Canada, Scott Day about no-tilling in the harsh climate of Canada’s prairies and how diverse crop choices have become a legacy of no-till on his farm.

Finding ways to improve farm profits without taking on more acres is one of Zack Smith’s goals. In fact, the Buffalo Center, Iowa, strip-tiller has a name for it – biohacks. With his mindset of finding natural, vegetative solutions for farm problems, he recently started developing a unique autonomous structure he calls the Stock Cropper that integrates strip-cropping with mobile grazing.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Amy Bartow about the NRCS’ recent initiatives to promote the establishment of pollinator plots and strips. Tune in as they discuss native vs. non-native pollinator mixes, the importance of diversity in the mix, the pollination value of cover crops, how no-tillers can make extra income with pollinator habitat, how weed management fits into the equation and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by The Andersons, we chat with independent crop consultant Jeremiah Durbin about those physical, chemical and biological aspects of soil health and how he uses his mechanical background to help trouble-shoot issues in the field.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Jackson, Wisconsin, no-tiller Ross Bishop about how he got turned on to no-tilling back in the 1990s and how that impacts his operation today. Join us as they discuss using cover crops and planting green, no-tilling in 20-inch rows, why he’s experimenting with growing Kernza, the benefits of using sulfur and dry boron and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we chat with Ross Evelsizer of Iowa Resource Conservation and Development. As the director of the organization’s Multi-Cropping Iowa project, Evelsizer works with growers around the state to implement cropping systems that help achieve soil health goals while expanding market opportunities.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Vincennes, Ind., no-tiller Ray McCormick about his approaches to conservation and farming intersect. Join us as they discuss how he got the idea to seed covers with an air seeder attached to his combine header.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, Frank Lessiter continue his talk with Retired Michigan State Agronomist Jerry Grigar, about many of the lessons learned from decades of using no-till practices on Jerry’s 140-acre farm, where he no-tills black beans, soybeans, oats, wheat and hay.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we chat with no-tillers Sheldon Luehmann of Lewiston, Minn., and Mike Unruh of Winona, Minn., as well as Lance Klessig, a Resource Specialist with the Winona County Soil & Water Conservation District.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we caught up with chief of the NRCS, Terry Cosby to hear about how his childhood experience on the farm shaped his views on conservation, his goals for the agency during his tenure, his thoughts on the Biden Administration’s plan to have 30% of U.S. lands and waters under conservation by the year 2030, and much more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, Frank Lessiter talks with Retired Michigan State Agronomist Jerry Grigar about many of the lessons learned from decades of working with farmers to improve no-till techniques and equipment.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, we're featuring Josh Lofton, Cropping System Specialist with Oklahoma State University. Lofton will discuss the timing of cover crop termination, differences in termination timing for various cover crop species, improper cover crop termination, and more.

Recently retired from a multi-decade career with the NRCS, agronomist Barry Fisher has been a long-time booster of no-till. Based in his home state of Indiana, Fisher’s efforts helped the state’s no-till acres grow to the point where it was among the states with the highest percentage of no-till ground in the U.S. Fisher devoted much of his government career to encouraging the adoption of no-till and cover crops. Over the years, he’s worked with thousands of farmers while conducting numerous field days and has tested a wide variety of no-till equipment options to demonstrate no-till best practices. In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Fisher about his lengthy career and the changes in no-till equipment and strategies he’s witnessed over the years. Join in as Fisher talks about why aerial seeding cover crops in ridge-till fields was successful, the equipment upgrades that made the biggest impact on-till success, how learning to manage the microenvironment around the seed made a big difference for corn-on-corn systems, how no-tillers can adopt organic practices by getting the soil to function at a higher level and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, we chat with Léa Vereecke and Nic Podoll, two recent additions to Rodale’s consulting team, to learn more about the process of transitioning land to organic.

With the current interest in climate change, sequestering carbon and farmers getting carbon sequestration payments being at an all-time high, many no-tillers have been excited about the thought of earning additional income through incentive payments. Whether it’s through current privately-financed carbon programs or new ones being developed by the Biden administration in Washington, there’s considerable interest in sequestering carbon to avoid the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. But adding carbon incentive payments to your bank account may be easier said than done. There appear to be a number of roadblocks to getting on the carbon sequestration bandwagon, especially when it comes to being paid for having no-tilled for a number of years. Today’s spring 2021 episode of our “No-Till Influencers and Innovators” podcast will zero in on whether veteran no-tillers can qualify for carbon payments.

“A highly functional soil will reduce the negative impacts of our agricultural practices…Runoff and soil erosion are major contributors to degrading water quality…and as we discuss soil health, we are simply promoting the practices that by default will address both of those right off the bat…” – Bill Stangel, independent agriculture consultant, Madison, Wis. Healthy soils are key to productive and profitable farm operations as they can increase nutrient availability, improve water infiltration, reduce soil erosion and much more. But they can also lessen the negative affects some farming practices have on the environment. For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we chat with independent agriculture consultant Bill Stangel of Madison, Wis., who joins us to discuss some of the ways farmers can minimize environmental impacts by focusing on developing healthy soils. Listen in to hear about how different cropping systems are able to store carbon below ground, how soil type affects nutrient and water management plans, lessons learned from installing on-farm phosphorus reduction systems, the challenges of dialing ion nitrogen use efficiency, why matching the crop to the soil matters and much more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, we chat with soil health experts Ray Archuleta, Gabe Brown and Russell Hedrick at a Soil Health Academy training seminar held in Watertown, Wis. They talk about how regenerative agriculture is different from traditional conservation farming techniques, that can help farmers make more money and reduce inputs, why they like the Haney soil test and much more!

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we’re sharing the story of Kindred, North Dakota no-tiller Lynn Overboe, as narrated by frequent No-Till Farmer contributor Dan Crummett. Farming 1,200 acres near the North Dakota-Minnesota border, about 30 miles from Fargo, Overboe has developed a number of solutions and hacks to improve his chances of success over his past 2-plus decades of no-tilling.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer "Influencers & Innovators" podcast, brought to you by Martin Industries, Frank Lessiter talks with Jason Casselman, a no-tiller from Fairview, Alberta, Canada to find out how they make no-till work so far north.

Join us as North Dakota no-tiller Gabe Brown discusses that experience and shares his thoughts on how government programs could be designed so as to allow farmers to adopt regenerative practices more easily rather than hinder their efforts, how regenerative ag can unlock biological functions in the soil, why he’s not advocating farmers sell their carbon credits – yet – and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer "Influencers & Innovators" podcast, brought to you by Montag Mfg., Frank Lessiter talks with Retired Agronomy Consultant Harold Reetz about his approach to fertilizer management, including the 4Rs — right source, right rate, right place and right time — as well as other practices that underscore success in a no-till system.

Our guest for this week’s podcast is Brendon Blank, an independent certified forage specialist who works for Byron Seeds. Based in Ixonia, Wisconsin, Brendon helps farmers solve management problems by designing cropping systems that make better use of the land and human capital while focusing on diversity, enhancing animal health, and improving the soil.

In this podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Allen Berry about the various configurations he’s tried, why he’s currently planting 20-inch non-GMO corn, his thoughts on whether or not no-tillers need coulters, and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we’re checking in with co-founder and co-CEO of Big Iron Auctions, Mark Stock as he shares some industry trends and predictions. Join us to hear Mark’s thoughts on the importance of transparency and honesty in online auctions, what the recent high commodity prices and low interest rates mean for the industry as a whole and much more.

For this podcast, Frank Lessiter talks with Rich Follmer, who became known as the ‘grandfather ‘ of strip-till, about that early strip-till toolbar, how he started building berms in the fall, his thoughts on using cover crops in a strip-till operation, the future of the strip industry and much more.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, fifth-generation grower Kelly Garrett discusses how his management practices align with the carbon credits marketplace, why he started entering National Corn Growers Association yield contests, the benefits of using a soybean byproduct fertilizer and much more.

For this podcast, we, sat down with Bill Richards to talk about the history of no-till adoption on his farm, the early innovators that helped him along, such as Kinze founder John Kinzenbaw and international product engineer Ralph Bumheckel, and some of the equipment modifications he made that helped him successfully adopt no-till.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Yetter, we’re sharing a conversation with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, entomologist Dr. Jonathan Lundgren to discuss a new research paper he’s written called “Defining and validating regenerative farm systems using a composite of ranked agricultural practices.”

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, editor Frank Lessiter talks with Thompson about how his understanding of no-till evolved through experiments with ridge-till, skip-till and strip-till before he converted 100% to no-till in 1991.

For this week’s podcast, we’re sharing a conversation between Cover Crop Strategies associate editor Sarah Hill and Bill Johnson, professor of weed science with Purdue University. In this interview, Johnson discusses how field management impacts weed problem, how herbicide applications influence cover crops and cash crops, herbicide antagonism, how cover crops can mitigate weed growth, and more!

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer Influencers & Innovators podcast, editor Frank Lessiter talks with Marion about the discoveries he’s made in his nearly 4 decades of no-tilling, including why he says no-till offers at least a $50 per acre advantage over tillage, what he considers his biggest mistakes early on, his thoughts on getting P & K deeper into the soil profile, plans for capitalizing on the $4 return he gets for every $1 of applied nitrogen, and much more.

In this episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, we share a reading of a story from David Moose, which explains how he’s succeeded with continuous soybean acres by widening the rows, cutting populations and using a biological seed treatment to aid in germination.

For this episode of the No-Till Farmer "Influencers & Innovators" podcast, brought to you by Mosaic Susterra, No-Till Farmer editor Frank Lessiter talks with the production ag manager for the Spokane Conservation District, Ty Meyer who discusses how no-till got started in the Palouse area, the challenges of integrating cover crops on dryland acres and much more.