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 »
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 »
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 »
Fact or Fiction? Cover Crops that Survive the Winter Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring than Fall-Tilled Soil – Part 3 As of today (April 17, 2013) there is 0% corn planted in Iowa and Indiana with 1% in Illinois and Ohio. It is now wet and cold…not just cold. As my brother Don
Part 3- Do Cover Crops Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring? Read More »
Fact or Fiction? Cover Crops that Survive the Winter Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring than Fall-Tilled Soil – Part 2 On Friday April 5, 2013 my brother Don recorded the temperatures in soils on our home farm near Greenwood, IN (central Indiana). The previous week Don took soil temperatures coming out of a
Part 2- Do Cover Crops Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring? Read More »
Fact or Fiction? Cover Crops that Survive the Winter Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring than Fall-Tilled Soil This is a question I get over and over again. And most of the time it’s not really a question. It’s actually someone stating to me why they are not going to plant cover crops. But
Do Cover Crops Keep the Soil Colder in the Spring? Read More »
Cover crops are working in Iowa! While that may not mean much to my eastern corn belt friends it means a lot in Iowa and the upper Midwest. Working with Sarah Carlson from Practical Farmers of Iowa and Tom Kaspar from ARS at Ames, Iowa, we’ve been attempting to identify what cover crops will be
Cover Crops are Working in Iowa Read More »