No-till on the Plains, Inc. is a 501c3 non-profit educational organization providing information for producers to adopt high-quality continuous no-till systems, and to further develop those systems. While adopting high-quality continuous no-tillage and utilizing the best agronomic practices has the potential to improve producers’ efficiency and profitability greatly, many other benefits accrue to society, such as greatly reduced soil erosion of cropland, less sedimentation of rivers, lakes, and streams along with improved wildlife habitat, all while sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide in soil organic matter.
Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays had the chance to catch up with Western Oklahoma Farmer and Vice President of No-till on the Plains, Jimmy Emmons, about their winter conference coming up on January 21-23, 2025 in Wichita, Kansas.
“This is the 29th annual conference so we’ve been around for quite a while. I’m honored to be on the officer team of this great organization,” Emmons said.
The goal of the conference is to promote good conservation practices, from no-till to grazing management to cover crops for people from all walks of life. “We understand that not everyone is on the same playing field – some are new, some have been doing it for a while, and then there are some veterans that have been at it for multiple years,” Emmons commented. “That is why the first two days of the conference are focused on getting started and where you are at, then the third day is where we zero in on the advanced side and take them to the next level.”
Keynote speakers include Dr. Dwayne Beck, Professor Emeritus of Dakota Lakes Research Farm, Russell Hedrick, a No-till producer from Hickory, North Carolina, and Jeff Lowenfels, Author of Teaming with Fungi, Teaming with Microbes, and Teaming with Bacteria.
Although now retired, Beck is known for transforming the Dakotas to no-till beginning in the late ‘80s after the farm crisis. He also diversified the crops raised in the area through poly-cropping techniques.
Lowenfels’s books teach utilizing fungi, bacteria, and microbes to free nutrients in the soil, including nutrients from fertilizers.
In North Carolina, Hedrick continuously breaks yield records in regenerative agriculture by utilizing Soil Health Analysis Package tests and tissue tests to zero in on the individual nutrients that crops need at the time and the amounts that they need.
“It is a well-rounded conference that talks about where we’ve been, from no-till to understanding the microbiome, to really zeroing in on the plants and nutrients,” Emmons said.
With the variable weather patterns in Oklahoma, the soil needs to absorb and retain as much moisture for as long as possible when rain does fall.
“In an arid environment like Western Oklahoma, it is really critical to understand how soil functions and be able to take those big rains because we know after a drought, there are always big rain events coming, sometimes in the middle of a drought,” Emmons said. “We just saw that in Oklahoma with a prolonged drought coming on, and then had half or two-thirds of our annual rainfall in two weeks.”
Emmons said that the conference is valuable to anyone who wants to reduce inputs and expenses on their operations and manage their land to better withstand challenging weather patterns.
“What we really want to do at No-Till on the Plains is have farmers and ranchers talk about how they have increased profitability by managing their farms at a very high level to be successful and profitable,” Emmons concluded. “Most of us like to learn from others who are doing it. There is nothing wrong with experts, and we have experts talking, but we also have farmers who have worked with experts and put it in the ground to show how that land works very well.”
Registration is now open at a discounted rate until December 13, and more information and the registration link can be found on the website.
