Learning about the benefits of planting cover crops.
On August 14, 2013 the University of Wisconsin is holding an Agronomy Field Day at the Marshfield Ag Research Station. The line-up of speakers looks outstanding and CEU credits are available for Certified Crop Advisers.
I will be speaking out at the cover crop plots looking at how we can use cover crops as forages and benefit the soil at the same time.
For past blog posts on using cover crops for forages looks here and here.
I appreciate Mike Baise from American Farmland Trust for sending me the document NRCS Cover Crop Termination Guidelines Non-Irrigated Cropland. The document was published June 2013 and should be very helpful to everyone using cover crops.
I know that there are lots of cover crop field days that I do not list on this site.
However, I usually try to get cover crop field days listed on the Midwest Cover Crops Council website when I hear about them. However, I have four field days that I believe will be attractive to all of my Midwestern cover crop friends.
The first “event” listed below is actually 2 events on back to back days held in neighboring counties.
Jasper/Newton County Cover Crop Field Days – 2 days of cover crop tours put on by Newton and Jasper Counties in Indiana (NW IN). Dan Perkins and Rose Morgan are two of the top SWCD people for putting on field days in Indiana and there will be lots to see.
TNT Farm – Terry Taylor (TNT Farm) is an avid cover cropper and an excellent farmer in down-state Illinois. Terry is hosting a field day on his farm on November 7, 2012 that promises to be an excellent opportunity to learn about using cover crops on heavier soils.
Dudley Smith Farm Beef Cow-Calf Field Day – I will be speaking on The Role of Cover Crops in a Grazing Program in Pana, IL on November 8, 2012. I will be working that day with the “best of the best,” Ed Ballard, who introduced me to cover crops and extending the grazing season while using cover crops. I have spoken in years past at this event and U of I always puts on a great meeting that is very valuable to beef cattle producers.
As harvest winds down it is time to plan for 2013. Please consider attending one of these four meetings to learn more about how cover crops can impact your farming operation.
I took a new management position in May of 2012 with Wisconsin based Legacy Seeds, Inc.
While my main responsibility lies in working with alfalfa and forages I also was pleased to find out that there were several folks in Wisconsin that were using cover crops! Well, you would figure that I’d get involved more with cover crops in the Badger state, and I have.
In February 2012 I conducted two cover crops meetings in the Fox Lake, WI area with over 75 producers present. The purpose of these meetings were to teach farmers about how cover crops can work in their farming operations. I was very pleased with the outcome of those meetings as over 10,000 acres were planted on farms that were represented at those meetings.
In July I held three more cover crop meetings in Eau Claire, Waupaca, and Brillion, WI. All combined, there were over 150 farmers present and I’m confident that there were at least 30,000 acres of cover crops planted by those farmers.
While I don’t have figures of how many cover crops were planted in Wisconsin, I think there were as many as 250,000. Many of those acres were after wheat was harvested and a surprising number after corn and soybeans.
Feed was one reason so many acres were planted. The severe drought has created a forage shortage.
But many farmers planted their cover crops because they want healthier soils and better production. Still others planted because they want to hold onto the nutrients from their manure. Whatever the reason, cover cropping is alive and well in Wisconsin – and growing.
You can click on the pictures below to see a larger image of each.
Drought ’12 is causing many cattle producers to consider cover crops for fall and winter grazing. Hay is very expensive and in short supply, and corn silage will be short in many areas. A lack of feed is leaving a number of dairy and beef producers looking to liquidate their herds.
Two years ago I wrote about grazing cover crops in the winter. It highlights the value of oats, cereal rye, and turnips in combination. There is also an attached video included with that article.
See this post for video from this past winter.
Several producers have seen beef cattle gain up to 3.5#/head/ day when grazing cover crops over the winter.
Gene Schriefer an Ag/Ag Business agent from Iowa County Wisconsin has seen great results with grazing cover crops. Gene reports:
I just completed my third season of grazing seed salad cover crops on my own farm and have been working with several of our local dairy and beef graziers about incorporating this into their rotation. Thus far the lowest RFQ has been 220. I’ve done summer mixed, cool season mixes and summer and cool season mixes together. While initial livestock experience has been skeptical, once they get a taste, cattle (and sheep) cannot get enough and refuse to eat orchardgrass/red clover.
Utilization with break wires appears to be 90% or more (I’ll need to do a pre/post grazing residual measure). In 2009, the first year I stockpiled an August seeding into December waiting for snowfall. An 11″ snow storm hit us early in December and I released the cattle. They bury their heads under a foot of snow digging out the crop. So far we’re pretty bullish on covers for grazing and looking at doing more. Uniformly everyone (myself included) find the ground to be very mellow the following spring for seeding…
I’ve been encouraging dairies to try cover crops for summer and early fall to aid in managing manure applications.
Here are some additional options that may work in different situations and for different animals too.
In many areas it is getting late to plant these species (as of July 25). However, with good fertility, good moisture, and warm temperatures I have seen yields as high as seven tons of Dry Matter of BMR Sudangrass in the Thumb of Michigan when planted after wheat.
However, that included high fertility and excellent growing conditions. If it remains dry you should not plant these because you will run out of time to get adequate production. There are better options for shorter growing periods.
If a producer does not want to have their cover crop overwinter then Oats and Turnips are a great choice for fall and winter grazing. Plant 2 bu/acre of oats and add 5#/acre of Appin Turnips.
As you can see in the photo it is best to strip graze this mix to get the best results and the most feed. This mixture needs nitrogen and I’d recommend that you apply 50#/acre of actual N at planting time. This can be planted after wheat or after corn silage harvest in most regions.
This mix is for the producer that wants fall and spring feed. I have worked with this mixture since the early 2000’s with Ed Ballard (U of IL Extension). We measured yields as high as 5 tons DM/acre in the fall and an additional 2 tons/acre in the spring at the Dudley-Smith Farm near Pana, IL (Central IL). It was planted after a wheat crop was harvested.
Plant 1 bu/acre Cereal Rye + 1 1/2 bu/acre of Oats and 5#/acre of Appin Turnips.
Nick Saathoff from Northern Illinois had excellent success in the fall and winter of 2012 grazing. Nick planted 1 bu/acre of Cereal Rye and I believe 5 # cover crop radishes. Nick grazed the cows up to Christmas in northern Illinois and had more rye to graze in the spring. While radishes are not grazed quite as well as turnips they still work well in this grazing situation.
While this is not my favorite mixture, it is one that provides good quality feed, produces nitrogen, and is a very good cover crop. Why is it not my favorite? Cattle do not generally graze peas as well as they do other high quality forages (especially turnips). If growing conditions are good (not too hot and with good moisture), this mixture can crank out the yield!
I’d prefer that this mix is harvested but hey – grazing can sure work well for this too! Inoculate the peas and plant this mixture 1-2 inches deep to achieve the best stand.
These mixtures both can provide excellent grazing opportunities. Cattle will graze the crimson clover better than peas and very possibly will survive the winter in many regions for spring grazing (with or without the cereal rye). These mixes work well planted 1/2″deep – or plant the cereal grains 1-2″ deep and seed the crimson clover 1/4 to 1/2″ deep. For best fall grazing opportunities plant these in late July through mid-August in the Upper Midwest and into early September in the Corn Belt. Be sure to plant pre-inoculated crimson clover or inoculate the seed before planting.
This mixture can provide very good grazing opportunities where good moisture, moderate temperatures, and high fertility are present. This will be the highest forage quality of all of the mixes listed in this article. However, if it remains exceptionally hot and dry, this mixture will not be as productive as those previously mentioned. This mixture works best when strip grazed or rotationally grazed.
