The Pennsylvania No-Till Alliance announced plans for their 3rd annual conference on March 13-14 in State College at the Ramada Conference Center.

The conference is geared to provide hands-on, practical information that any producer can take to the field and be more successful with their no-till system.

“The Alliance board was very specific when they directed the planning committee to create a program that would provide practical, field tested ideas that any producer can take to the field and put to use,” said Jeff McClellan, Alliance coordinator, “so the planning committee crafted a program that will focus on the nuts and bolts of no-till, and a format that will allow producers to ask questions specific to their operations.”

The conference will begin Tuesday afternoon, March 13 from 1:00 to 4:00 pm with an Earlybird Advanced Session geared especially for veteran no-till farmers looking to fine tune their system. The discussion will focus on the latest no-till theory and topics that can help experienced no-till producers refine their systems to a higher level.

Presenters will offer short reviews on a cutting edge no-till subject and then participate in roundtable style discussions to answer questions and ideas generated by the topic. Following the Earlybird session, The PA No-Till Alliance will hold its annual membership meeting.

A full day of no-till information is slated for Wednesday, March 14 kicking off with registration at 8:00 a.m. The conference will open at 9:30 a.m. with a welcome and opening remarks from the Secretary of Agriculture Dennis Wolff, followed by two of the most highly regarded no-till speakers in the U.S., Dan Towery and Ed Winkle.

“Both Dan and Ed are walking encyclopedias when it comes to understanding what makes no-till work, with practical ideas for solving tricky problems in all types of conditions” according to McClellan.

Dan Towery became a private consultant in 2005 dedicated to helping producers adopt continuous no-till systems after working 25 years as an agronomist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. While at the NRCS, Towery managed the National Crop Residue Management survey for the Conservation Technology Information Center and helped promote conservation practices suitable for production agriculture. Dan was the 2005 recipient of the No-Till Innovator Award in Research and Education.

Ed Winkle is a no-till grower, consultant, and Certified Crop Advisor who has spent his career developing a hands-on understanding and working knowledge of how to make the no-till system excel. His personal experience and entertaining presentation earned him the Outstanding Presentation Award at the 2005 National No-Till Conference.

Following the morning session are a series of panel discussions that will cover a range of hot topics related to no-till including: How to transition to no-till, Cover crops- selection, establishment and management, Controlling weeds so they don't control you, Leveraging seed traits for a no-till system, Managing fertility - material selection and placement, No-till manure management in the real world, Equipment options that yield results. Attendees will be able to pick and choose the topics they are most interested in and participate in as many as they choose.

Jeff Frey – Alliance board secretary, believes the panel discussions will be a crowd favorite.

“Based on feedback we received from last year’s conference, and from the experience of Alliance members that have attended the National No-Till Conference, we designed the afternoon session to be very open and encourage audience participation,” said Frey. “Many of the most useful, practical ideas we find come from other producers that have put those ideas to work to solve a problem. The afternoon session is all about connecting folks with specific questions or problems with producers and experts that have dealt with that problem before.”

A “No-Till Marketplace” will be available throughout the conference where attendees can visit with suppliers offering products geared to the no-till grower. Agribusinesses interested in exhibiting in the marketplace or sponsoring conference activities can secure one of the limited spots still available by contacting the Alliance office.

Conference registration forms and a complete agenda are available from local conservation district offices, cooperative extension offices, and on the Alliance website.

For more information, call the PA No-Till Alliance office at 814-863-4260 or send email to: info@panotill.com .

1/12/2007