The following was originally posted on May 27, 2011 when the Eastern Corn Belt was suffering with severe flooding and wet conditions. In 2013 the Upper Midwest – especially Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin – is flooded and wet. Many farmers are considering taking the crop insurance for prevented planting. Even if it would stop raining […]
Prevented Planting Row Crop Acres – Which Cover Crops Can Help? Read More »
With an abundance of prevented planting acres in Wisconsin and Minnesota in 2013, there is a need for cover crops to help build soil during the soil’s “idle” time. In this post I’ll mainly focus on summer annual grasses that work well in the Midwest. These recommendations will focus on whether feed is needed or
Summer Annual Grasses for Cover Crops for Prevented Planting Acres Read More »
This article was originally posted on December 14, 2010. Benefits of Mustard Mustards are a good cover crop for a variety of reasons. One of the main benefits is that they have high levels of glucosinolates. According to Cornell University: The practice of using mustard cover crops to manage soil-borne pathogens is known as biofumigation.
Mustard as a Cover Crop Read More »
Sometimes apparent myths prove to be true and sometimes they prove to be…myths! In March 2013 I asked my brother Don Robison from Robison Farms to help me figure out how cover crops might effect soil temperatures. We have looked at data in previous posts trying to answer the question “Do Cover Crops that Survive
Myths Debunked on Cover Crops and Colder Soil Temperatures? – Final Report Read More »
I am blessed to hear from farmers around the world about their cover cropping adventures. One young man, Brian Scott, from Carroll County, Indiana has generously shared his information with me again this spring. This post is Brian’s report from early May, 2013. To see Brian’s photographs, click here. We dug a few pits in
Root Pit Reveals 40″ Cereal Rye Roots Read More »
National Wildlife Federation has extended the deadline for submitting applications for farmer cover crops champions and outreach cover crop champions – local and regional cover crop leaders who can provide region-specific information and farming knowledge to farmers and crop advisors. Selected applicants will receive benefits in the form of financial support for time and travel,
Cover Crop Champions Wanted Read More »
Almost two years to the day I posted an article about Killing Tall Annual Ryegrass. The problem of a wet and chilly 2011 has resurfaced an ugly head to be a wet and COLD spring of 2013. But over the past week or so temperatures have warmed into the 70’s and 80’s with cover crop
Cover Crops: Buy One Year, Get Another Year Free Read More »
UPDATE FROM RMA–Haying and Grazing of a Cover Crop – FINAL – 5-8-13 Cover Crops and Crop Insurance on Collision Course again? Cover Crops and Crop Insurance issues seem to be heading to a collision course again this spring in much of the Midwest. In the Corn Belt wet fields have prevented planting with less
Cover Crops and Crop Insurance – Spring Reminders Read More »