Meristem Upgrades Residue Management with CYCLESTRIKE

Jan 24, 2025
By Jean-Paul McDonald
Assistant Editor, North American Content, Farms.com

New EXCAVATOR AMS boosts crop yield potential

Meristem Crop Performance has unveiled the enhanced EXCAVATOR® AMS powered by CYCLESTRIKE™, featuring a robust microbial blend for efficient residue breakdown. This innovative product, held in the patented BIO-CAPSULE® LR, activates at the point of use to ensure maximum effectiveness.

“This is the very best residue breakdown product on the market,” said Mitch Eviston, Meristem Founder and CEO. The new formulation helps farmers reduce synthetic fertilizer usage while maximizing the nutrition already present in their soil.

CYCLESTRIKE combines advanced biologicals with nitrogen and sulfur sources like AMS, creating a synergistic effect that speeds up residue degradation.

Farmers like Nick Fries, who have used the product for years, note marked improvements in stand count and crop quality. “We used EXCAVATOR AMS with CYCLESTRIKE, and the difference in treated and untreated was night and day,” Fries shared.

The upgraded system includes BioUp™, a solution that neutralizes chlorine in treated water, ensuring the microbes remain effective regardless of water source quality. This feature addresses a common issue faced by farmers using city water.

By advancing residue management, EXCAVATOR AMS with CYCLESTRIKE supports regenerative agriculture, improving soil health and promoting higher yields.

Meristem continues its mission to help farmers achieve more with less, providing innovative solutions for sustainable farming.

To learn more, visit the official Meristem website.

Photo Credit: Nick-Fries-Excavator

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.