Driving back from Indianapolis to Milwaukee after attending a very unique event at a no-tiller's home, I couldn't stop thinking about one sentence that I heard.

The event, which was hosted by Conservation Ag Foundation director and No-Till Innovator alum Mike Starkey, was meant to help show the benefits of no-till and cover crops to today's property owners and why these practices can be so beneficial if used on the lands that they own and rent to farmers. 

Starkey gave a short presentation to the 20+ attendees about his own no-till operation and the benefits he and his own landlords have seen from farming the land in that way. But it was another farmer who presented to the group that said the sentence I couldn't seem to shake. 

Carter Morgan started farming at a young age as the fourth generation on his family farm in Cayuga, Ind., growing corn, soybeans and wheat. He also currently serves as a soil health consultant at the local Soil and Water Conservation District where he promotes no-till, cover crops and conservation management. So he is no stranger to "growing the game," when it comes to these practices. 

During his presentation, there were a few good questions from the landowners in attendance — a good sign that they were paying attention and wanting to make sure they understood the intricacies of no-till and cover crops as he was explaining them. One landowner asked Carter if getting his tenant to stop tillage would quickly show him and the farmer in question a return on the investment. This is where Carter delivered the memorable line. 

"Stopping tillage is not no-till," he said. 

He went on to make sure the landowner was grasping his full message about no-till and cover crops and a full conservation system. And the landowner listened and took notes. 

But without these types of events and conversations, we will never get that message across as clear as Carter did. And the landowner left the meeting with a full page of notes and a stack of educational materials. 

I brought with me to the meeting a box of about a dozen copies of recent issues of the No-Till Farmer Conservation Tillage Guide as well as a few copies of the No-Till & Cover Crops Handbook. The box was completely picked through after I told everyone to help themselves. I even had a landowner ask me if I could follow up with her after the meeting and make sure she could get a copy because she wasn't fast enough to grab one. 

So, it is clear to me that this unique idea for a meeting had some serious value in the greater Indianapolis region. And if that is true, then I believe it would be valuable in nearly every other state in the country. 

At the 2027 National No-Tillage Conference in Indianapolis, Mike Starkey will share with other no-tillers how they can host similar meetings in their own counties and continue to "grow the game."

Related Content:

• Educating Landowners on the Merits of No-Till & Cover Crops,
• [Podcast] Planting Green and Other No-Till Strategies with Mike Starkey,
• [Webinar] Getting More For Less From The Fertilizer You Apply