No-Till on the Plains Whirlwind Expo Aug. 28 in Alliance

No-till on the Plains, Inc. will host an event which will provide producers with ways to increase profitability and gain a better understanding of the importance of soil health.By utilizing continuous no-till, over five inches of water can be saved per acre, greatly improving yields. Fuel and labor requirements can be cut by 50% or more. Soil erosion by wind and water can be reduced by an average of 4 to 14 tons/acre, greatly reducing blowing soil and surface water pollution. Funded through a grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust, No-till on the Plains is pleased to offer this high-quality educational event to all interested Nebraska producers.

The Whirlwind No-till Expo is set for Tuesday, August 28. It will kick off promptly at 8:00 a.m. at the Knight Museum and Sandhills Center at 908 Yellowstone in Alliance. The day will begin with an outdoor Rainfall Simulator demonstration provided Dan Gillespie, NRCS No-till Specialist (please bring your lawn chair) after which attendees will carpool out to Watson Brothers farms for field tours and speaker discussions. Lunch will be provided at the Knight Museum where cutting edge speakers and PowerPoint presentations will be featured. Then another trip back out to Watsons’ fields will round out the day. A $30 registration fee is required by August 24 for attendance.

Featured presenters at the event include Dr. Ray Ward, president of Ward Laboratories and highly knowledgeable fertility expert from Kearney, Nebraska; University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension Engineer Paul Jasa who is an invaluable source of information on no-till planting equipment and system management; producer Mark Watson who has been continuous no-till for almost two decades; and Emporia, Kansas producer Gail Fuller who has been continuous no-till since 1995, dryland farming on loams and silty loams and incorporating livestock, intensive grazing, and cover crop polycultures into his no-till system. These prestigious speakers all work closely with No-till on the Plains and are well-respected by those in the no-till community.

Featured producer Mark Watson farms 3,500 acres with his brother Bruce, and they have been completely continuous no-till since 1994. Their farm consists of dryland and irrigated acres, raising wheat, corn, pinto beans, and field peas. Bruce and Mark were selected as Master Conservationists for the state of Nebraska, and Mark serves as the No-till Education Coordinator for Western Nebraska. As part of the driving tour, Mark will show attendees fields featuring no-till corn on corn, no-till edible bean production, and no-till corn (fully irrigated and limited irrigation) in wheat residue. Mark will share his thoughts on residue management as well as the economical aspects of cover crop use.

No-till on the Plains has hosted almost two-dozen Whirlwind Expo’s since 2001 across Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma, impacting thousands of producers in those states. Executive Director Brian Lindley shares, “Regardless of your experience level with continuous no-till, this event will meet -- and hopefully exceed -- your needs through the motivation, vision and experience of our excellent speakers. Come ready to learn!”

No-till on the Plains is a regional organization that reaches over 3,000 producers yearly. The producer-run group promotes practical and scientific application of continuous no-till farming. For more information on the Whirlwind No-till Expo or to pre-register by August 24, contact No-till on the Plains, Inc. at 888-330-5142 or register online at www.notill.org.