Guests look on as the drainage tile demonstration prepares to begin in a field just east of Craig Grain Supply. Liles Enterprises, LLC, hosted a drainage tile demonstration for any interested farmers and landowners in the area. (Jakub Prater photo)

By Jakob Prater, Mound City News Reporter

A large group of area farmers attended a drainage tile demonstration beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, August 12, at Craig Grain Supply, Inc. just outside of Craig, Missouri, right off of Interstate Exit 92. It was hosted by Liles Enterprises LLC, and featured many different vendors for local farmers to visit. Aside from Liles Enterprises, vendors present included K.C. Bobcat, Fratco, BRON, Holganix, and Hydramaxx. Guests were encouraged to visit vendors and ask any specific questions about their products. The demonstration was well-attended and the parking lot was pushed to its limits for capacity. Robert Liles, co-owner of Liles Enterprises, welcomed everyone shortly after 10:00 a.m. He thanked Jarod Graves, the owner of Craig Grain Supply, for letting them use the property. He also thanked Steve Cunningham for letting the demonstration take place in his field directly to the east.

Liles said that the idea for the demonstration began all the way back in January 2025. He was at a convention for the Missouri Land Improvement Contractors’ Association (LICA) and talking with some colleagues about how they could bring people together to show them about the drainage tiles. This was the first time Liles Enterprises has hosted a field day. Liles said that they wanted to show live installation of drainage tiles to the farmers since it isn’t commonly practiced in this area of the country.

“I think it’s a growing industry in this area. They do it across the upper Midwest and out east, and I think the time is right now for everybody to see it here in northwest Missouri, southeast Nebraska, southwest Iowa, and northeast Kansas,” Liles said.

Liles said that the slot tile used in the demonstration that day was from Fratco, of which Liles Enterprises is a distributor. The dual wall slots carry more water because of the smooth interior. While most pipes are black, Liles said that it wasn’t a bad idea to use these white pipes since it isn’t damaged by heat like black pipes, which only adds to its lifespan. He also demonstrated how flex tap tees for attracting water can be easily and quickly installed with a hole saw. After explaining more of the specifics, Liles encouraged everyone to ask questions. He also introduced his LICA colleague Kelly Nelson and said that he could also answer specific questions. Nelson does research with the University of Missouri and is a Skidmore, Missouri, native.

Following Liles’ introduction, the farmers were hauled out into the field owned by Cunningham to witness the drainage plows in action. They rode out in two tractor trailers fitted with bleachers that came from the Graves-Chapple Extension and Education Center. There was a BRON 585 drainage plow and a Hydramaxx 3330 double link plow. Drainage pipes are fed into the machines, which are driven over trenches. The machines automatically deposit the pipes and cover them with dirt, saving farmers lots of time and energy. The field demonstration was finished at around 11:30 a.m., and guests were treated to a free lunch shortly after. The meal included ham balls, cole slaw, and pasta salad, courtesy of Paula’s Cafe. Guests were invited to stick around to discuss anything with the farm equipment vendors before the event wrapped up at around 1:00 p.m. Liles said that he was grateful for the vendors’ support and pleased that so many interested farmers attended the field day.

“There’s a lot of landowners here today, a lot of them I’ve talked to over the past three or four years pitching the idea of a systematic or pattern tile system,” Liles said. “I think this is a pretty good place to show them that it can work and I think down the road it’s just going to grow.”