February 2008

Why are some producers more successful with no-till than others? Learn why from experienced no-tillers and experts at this year's Nebraska No-till Conferences Feb. 20 at UNL's Agricultural Research and Development Center near Mead and Feb. 21 at the Ag Center in Holdrege. Speakers will vary slightly at the two sites so check the Nebraska No-till Conference Web site for more details.

Presentations at both sites will begin at 9:30 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. Topics, speakers and locations include:

Dwayne Beck, manager of the Dakota Lakes Research Farm at Pierre, South Dakota, studies both irrigated and dryland no-till production and will share information on his experiences and how carbon can be managed effectively in no-till; Holdrege only.

Jerry Crew, Webb, Iowa, a producer with highly erodible farmland integrates many conservation practices, including grass waterways, terraces, contour croping, buffer strips, grid sampling, and integrated pest management all on a base of continuous no-till; ARDC only.

Dan Gillespie, NRCS no-till specialist, will use a rainfall simulator to demonstrate the benefits of residue cover and soil structue, due to no-till, on rainfall infiltration; Holdrege only.

Paul Jasa, UNL Extension Engineer and long-time no-till user and researcher, will address his no-till experience last year during "What I Heard Today and What I Learned in 2007" at the ARDC event and "Residue Management — Achieving Uniform Emergence" at the Holdrege event.

Duane Lange, Ord, 27 years of no-tilling leading to improved soil structure and water savings — rebuilding soil organic matter back to preplow days; both locations.

Lowell Sandell, UNL Weed Science Educator, will address tree control and various chemical and crop rotation solutions for no-tillers; ARDC only.

Keith Thompson, Osage, Kansas, no-tiller, uses crop rotation and cover crops with no-till to enhance soil quality and farm profitability; both locations.

The event is free and sponsored by UNL Extension in the university's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Nebraska Soybean Board, Lower Platte North Natural Resources District, Tri-Basin Natural Resources District, Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Farm Credit Services of America. John Deere Risk Protection and Ag Service Associates.

Preregistration is due by this Wednesday, Feb. 13. For more information or to register for the ARDC event, call (800) 529-8030 or e-mail Extension Educator Keith Glewen at kglewen1@unl.edu. For more information or to register for the Holdrege location, call (308) 995-4222 or e-mail Extension Educator Churck Burr at cburr1@unl.edu.