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Benefits of No-Till Drilling & How You Can Get Started

Louisiana GLCI
14 minutes ago
3 min read

No-till drilling is a technique of planting crops or pasture forages without disturbing the soil through tillage. There are many benefits to no-till planting, including reduced soil erosion and increased soil organic matter.

The 5 Soil Health Principles are important to consider when establishing a forage management system on your farm.

Keep the soil covered
Minimize disturbance
Maintain plant diversity
Keep a living root
Integrate livestock

Cattle farmer Hayden LeJeune said, “My favorite soil health practice is to minimize disturbance, and that’s exactly what the no-till drill does. When using it to plant new pasture forages for grazing, you can barely see the impact left by the tool. It essentially cuts a hole, put the seed in and covers it back up with the press wheel so that you can barely see the seed is there.”

LeJeune uses a no-till drill on his grass-fed beef farm to plant summer and winter grasses and other forages to extend and expand the diversity of his forage base, which keeps his cattle and soils healthier.

On August 14, 2026, 41 producers and agriculture professionals gathered in Leesville, LA to learn how to operate a no-till drill. At the workshop, subjects discussed were basics of grazing, how to select seeds, the five soil health principles, and how to hook up, set up, calibrate, and operate a no-till drill.

Hosts LGLCI and Calcasieu SWCD began with a goal to create an instructional video about how to run the no-till drill, which expanded into an in person workshop taught by both a drill-operating professional, Nathan Hood from Great Plains, and rancher, Hayden LeJeune. Thank you to SWCD and NRCS for providing additional assistance to make this workshop a reality.

Following the event, one workshop attendee put it simply: "No-till drill is not that complicated".

Additional feedback from attendees include "[the workshop] was really helpful on learning how to set the drill and utilize forages"; "there are many resources available to me locally"; and "I learned the seed drill capabilities".

An instructional video was produced, and will be released soon though the LGLCI YouTube channel. Follow us on social media or subscribe to our email newsletter to be alerted when the video is published.

The attendees watched a demo of the drill planting around 4 rows of seed and then go hands-on experience with the mechanics of setting up the drill.

We also discussed the economic benefits of using a no-till drill, which include being able to use less seeds. Additionally, using a no-till drill allows a more flexible planting window, since the drill typically covers the seeds as it plants it. The seeds are able to sit in dry soil until moisture comes.

The Land Pride drill shown at our workshop is owned by Calcasieu SWCD and is available to landowners/farmers in the area for rent. Several SWCD offices have a no-till drill available to rent (list accurate as of August 2026):

Vernon, Beauregard Parish (Calcasieu District)

Desoto Parish (Desoto District)

LaSalle Parish (LaSalle District)

Vermilion Parish (Vermilion District)

Lafayette Parish ( Lafayette, St. Martin District)

East Baton Rouge, Livingston Parishes (Capital District)

Iberia Parish ( Iberia District)

Catahoula Parish (Catahoula District)

Franklin, Richland Parish (Northeast District)

Winn, Jackson, Caldwell Parishes (Dugdemonda District)

Natchitoches Parish (Natchitoches District)

Networking is a key factor at LGLCI events, and there were many farmers meeting other farmers and professionals to help each other along the way in the future. Events like this are at the center of LGLCI’s mission, which is to promote ecological and economical grazing practices, typically with farmer-to-farmer education.

Lunch was provided by Calcasieu SWCD, with generous donations from Duhon & Son's Meat Processing. Seeds for our demonstration were provided by O’Neal's Feeder Supply in Deridder, LA, and demonstration help by Nathan Hood from Great Plains.

If you're interested in future LGLCI events, workshops, field days, and conferences will be posted on our website and social media accounts. We are always planning new events and videos. If there is ever a topic you would like us to feature, send an email to info@louisianaglci.org and we'll consider it.