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Cover Crop Benefits

Feb 28 2014

Broadcast Recording Available from National Cover Crops Conference

Folks,
I was privileged to attend and also speak at this conference.  Please take some time to look in on the many awesome presentations that were presented in Omaha.  Dave
Broadcast Recording Available from National Cover Crops Conference

 

To meet some of today’s biggest challenges in agriculture, including rising food demand, a shrinking land base and climate change, farmers should be encouraged to adopt a holistic approach to enriching their most valuable resource – the soil – according to a panel of experts who helped open last week’s National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health.

 

“Cover crops to me are just the next natural step in trying to have a broader system, and I think the single biggest issue we have as farmers in this country is we don’t farm with a system in mind,” said panelist Howard G. Buffett, a philanthropist and Illinois farmer.

 

To learn more, watch a recording of opening sessions from the National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health, held Feb. 17 – 19 in Omaha, Neb. Joining the 300 farmers, scientists, and industry and government representatives who met in Omaha, approximately 6,000 others participated by gathering at more than 200 local soil health forums nationwide, where this recording was broadcasted live.

 

Also available online are presentations from breakout sessions and 10 short videos of innovative farmers describing their use of cover crops.

 

Conference organizers are developing a formal list of recommended actions to increase cover crop adoption based on discussions at the conference and local forums. To see it when it becomes available, keep an eye on www.sare.org/covercropsconference or join SARE’s mailing list.

 

The conference recording features a discussion of how cover crops can improve soil health and the major barriers to their increased adoption, and was led by Buffett and fellow panelists Jason Weller, chief of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Ray Gaesser, Iowa farmer and American Soybean Association president. Following them is a panel of farmers who are pioneers in the use of cover crops, no-till and other soil management practices.

 

Conference speakers addressed a wide range of ongoing challenges to cover crop adoption, including the need for more specialized seeding equipment, more advocacy by farmer leaders, more research on their economic benefits, and changes to insurance and conservation programs that better encourage their use.


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SARE Outreach operates under cooperative agreements with the University of Maryland to develop and disseminate information about sustainable agriculture.

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Written by Dave Robison · Categorized: Cover Crop Meetings, Online Training Seminars · Tagged: Cover Crop Benefits, cover crop meetings, cover crop presentations, cover crops, Howard G. Buffett, Midwest Cover Crop Council, National Conference on Cover Crops & Soil Health, SARE

Dec 28 2012

Kura Clover – The Perennial Cover Crop

Kura Clover is an interesting option for cover cropping no-till corn producers. Why? Because Kura Clover forms a “living mulch.”

I have been working with Dr. Ken Albrecht from the University of Wisconsin-Madison on Kura Clover since the summer of 2000.  During that summer as I traveled through eastern Iowa and NW Illinois I envisioned that before 2005 all of that region would have Kura Clover on it!

That never happened. But I am still very excited about Kura Clover as a feed source and cover crop.

For Kura Clover to be best utilized on your farm you really need to graze it the first two years and periodically thereafter.  Cattle milked similarly on this mixture as what they did on alfalfa!
For Kura Clover to be best utilized on your farm you really need to graze it the first two years and periodically thereafter. Cattle milked similarly on this mixture as what they did on eating alfalfa haylage!

What’s so great about Kura clover?

Kura clover:

  • Produces high yields with little additional nitrogen
  • Fixes gobs of nitrogen
  • Forms a “living mulch”
  • Survives forever – stands last 30+ years
  • Makes livestock producers/row crop farmers smile
  • Provides diverse options in the field
  • Saves cover croppers money – a one time investment in seed
  • Controls erosion 
  • Is easy to work with in corn production

Why hasn’t Kura clover taken over the cover crop/forage world?

  • It establishes slowly.
  • It requires livestock (cattle or sheep) to be a part of the program for optimal benefit.
  • You cannot plant corn into Kura Clover every year.
  • You cannot plant soybeans into Kura Clover.
  • It must be inoculated with a special inoculant for it to establish/thrive.
  • It costs a lot in establishment year.
  • There are few producers of Kura clover seed – the biggest is CISCO Seeds.
This Kura Clover was ready to be sprayed with the second application of glyphosate to burn it back so the corn could take off.  This plot yielded over 185 bu/ac the year this photo was taken.
This Kura Clover was ready to be sprayed with the second application of glyphosate to burn it back so the corn could take off. This plot yielded over 185 bu/ac the year this photo was taken.

 

Corn growing in Kura Clover in Arlington, Wisconsin.
Corn growing in Kura Clover in Arlington, Wisconsin.
Note that this photo (taken in October 2002) shows large ears and a beautiful crop of Kura Clover growing under the canopy.
This photo (taken in October 2002) shows large ears and a beautiful crop of Kura Clover growing under the canopy.

 

 

 

 

Written by Dave Robison · Categorized: Cover Crop Benefits, Kura Clover, Types of Cover Crops · Tagged: Cover Crop Benefits, cover crops, grazing cover crops, Kura Clover, Living Mulch, produce Nitrogen with Cover Crops

Oct 26 2012

Is it Ever Too Early to Plant Cover Crops?

Is it ever too early plant cover crops?  YES.

As many of you have figured out, I sell seed for a living.  I also have been a farmer or involved on the farm since I was a little boy.

But first and foremost I am an agronomist.

The temptation of a seed salesman is to recommend planting a cover crop either too early or too late – and then somehow justify it. However, as an agronomist and a former farmer, I simply cannot do that. I also want to be able to look at myself in the mirror without guilt.

Cover crops have to work for the farmer, not the seed salesman.  There are several fantastic seedsmen out there and I do not want to disparage that fine profession.  I feed my family by being a seedsman and marketing seed. Most seedsmen are a trusted source of information and quality seed.

Questions I Get A Lot

The planting date question comes up a lot. For example:

  • How soon can a farmer plant cover crops after wheat has been harvested?
  • Can a farmer plant clovers into corn at “the last cultivation?” (even though only a few farmers still cultivate).
  • When is it too early to plant radishes?
  • When is it too late to plant radishes?

Money has not always been good in agriculture and I doubt that this current boom will last forever (it never did before).  So I want to give answers based on sound agronomic practices that will work 90% of the time.

Question: Can you plant crimson clover at “lay-by”?

Yes you can.  My granddad did that practice back in the 1950’s.  Of course he planted in 38″ rows with 16-18,000 plants per acre.  He did not use herbicides but he did cultivate.

However, how many of us farm like my granddad did?  A few of you might –  with good reason to do so (specialty corn or organic production).  But, can it work with modern herbicides and plant populations pushing 35,000 plants per acre?  Maybe, but not consistently – and probably not.

I think I tried to say “no” but I’m aware that some farmers have done it.  But, can we do a practice if it is not going to work 90+% of the time?  Not on a large scale.  Can we afford to try it on a few acres?  Maybe.

Here is a northeast Indiana farmer’s testimony of his success spreading crimson clover into his growing corn at sidedress time.  I am sharing this exactly as it was sent to me – trusting that it is accurate. I do not know the farmer who submitted the testimony.

I broadcast 10 lbs/acre of crimson clover at sidedress time this year. I seeded it on 6/6. We got essentially no rain from the first week of May until the last week of July. I figured the clover wouldn’t grow, but it laid there until we got rain and by harvest we had a nice stand. I’m not sure how this would work in a ‘normal’ year, but it sure worked good this year. I left some check strips and the clover didn’t affect the yield.   The seeder was just an old 12V spinner seeder I clamped onto our N toolbar. I’m attaching pictures of it and the clover stand. 

Photos provided are below.

My Observations

My guess is that this farmer used only glyphosate and no residual herbicide.  It was also terribly dry this summer and this seeding would have been more like a “dormant seeding”.

This was not at all typical for an Indiana summer. It was the driest July on record and June and August were also very dry.  Note how short the corn is in the photo with the corn head.  There was a lot of corn 3-5′ tall this year in Indiana.  I’d guess that a 5 foot height would cover the corn height in this field.  If the crimson would have been planted in a “normal” year I would be surprised if he would have had success like this.  But, boy, it sure is a beautiful stand in these photos!

If you try this practice, just experiment with a few acres to see what works on your farm.

Seeding Crimson Clover at “lay-by” in June in NW Indiana.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note how short the corn is in the photo. Contrary to the belief of Illinois and Iowa farmers, this is not typical for NW Indiana corn! Most likely the rains that came in August were adequate to germinate the clover and there was plenty of sunlight getting to the ground so the seedlings had heat, moisture, and sunlight. What a beautiful cover crop!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a beautiful stand of crimson clover between rows of harvested corn! Unfortunately the lack of corn fodder shows that the corn was under severe stress in 2012. While achieving a nice cover crop is important, I would prefer 200+ bushels/acre corn and a less advanced stand of clover at harvest time.

Question: Can you plant radishes right after wheat harvest?

No.

Even if you use an excellent radish,  it will bolt.  I don’t care which radish you use – it WILL BOLT if you plant it too early in the summer.

Bolting means that it will try to produce seed.  Generally a radish that bolts has a smaller and shorter tuber and most of the plant energy goes to seed production instead of root tuber production. If you wait until early August and use the proper radish you will see very little if any bolting.

I have been in several fields this fall that had no plants bolted.  I have also seen many fields that had a high percentage of plants that bolted.  Some claim that the exceptionally high soil temperatures in the summer of 2012 caused the August planted radishes to bolt.  That may be the case.  One thing I know for certain, if a radish is planted in July, it almost always bolts and can produce viable seed in the fall – and that could create potential problem for years to come.

Dave’s Best Advice

Wait until August to plant your cover crop radishes.  Use the few weeks between wheat harvest and planting cover crops to clean up weeds that were in the wheat field and also control volunteer wheat.  Patience is a great virtue.  It is important that you see an excellent return on your investments that we make in cover crop seed and seeding cost.  Our goal should not be “to be done first” but rather to have the best cover crop and healthiest soil.

I hate seeing fields like this as I know there was potential for seed to be produced and dropped to the soil possibly creating some issues in future years. Was this field planted too early or was the wrong radish planted? I do not know but I do know that farmers should chose wisely on planting time and what radish to plant.  Thankfully not every plant bolted so there are still plenty of plants “doing the radish thing” in the soil very well.

Written by Dave Robison · Categorized: Cover Crop Benefits, Cover Crop Challenges, Cover Crop Research, Education, Timing of Planting · Tagged: corn, Cover Crop Benefits, cover crop radishes, cover crops, Crimson Clover, drought 2012, planting date for cover crops, problems with cover crops

Feb 27 2012

Cover Crops Enhance Water Infiltration/Percolation

In late September of 2011 I was walking in our family corn field in central Indiana–in the pouring rain. Following the wettest spring in the eastern corn belt in 100 years we had a summertime drought that saw less than 2 inches in July and August combined. In that same time period we had 32 days above 90 degrees.

We just had 3 inches of rain yet my soil was dry at 1/2 inch in this area that had been tilled wet in the spring.

On this September day we were having rain…3 inches worth of glorious rain! I threw on my rain coat and Tingley boots, grabbed my shovel and went into the corn field where our cover crop plots had been planted in the fall of 2010 and killed in May 2011. As I walked through the field I noticed that where the soil had been tilled (see previous blog post) I was seeing dry soil underneath my boot track! Now catch the scene here…no rain for much of 60+ straight days…now a 3″ rain and virtually none of the moisture getting into the soil! Literally I had less than 1/2″ of the soil depth that was moist! Dry footprints followed me all the way to the end of the field. I was not happy.

When I reached the area where the cover crop test plot was (that area was not tilled this spring) I dug into the check area that was no-tilled yet did not have a cover crop. In that area I dug into the soil and I found moisture 2 1/2-3 inches deep. This area was now no-tilled for 23 straight years. That made me feel better.

Water was standing (or running off) of the soil that was tilled wet in the spring of 2011. There was very little infiltration from a 3 inch rain

 

In this photo we see infiltration at 2 1/2 - 3 inches deep. This soil has been no-tilled for 23 straight years.

 

Then I dug in the area that had been no-tilled for 23 straight years and had a cover crop the previous winter. I was very pleased when I dug in the areas where we previously had annual ryegrass and cereal rye and found moisture had filtered (penetrated) in 7 (seven) inches deep!

Water infiltrated 7 inches deep where we had corn no-tilled into cover crop rye.

 

 

 

This section of the field had a cereal rye cover crop in 2010-11 and was no-tilled. Note the lack of water standing on top of the soil! Where did the water go? Into the soil!

 

Watch these videos on what I found when digging for earthworms in this sections with cover crops and no-till and where there was tillage without a cover crop. I believe we have an additional answer to why I had so much better infiltration where I had the cover crops..earthworms and roots!

This "rogue" radish provided information that we had a compaction zone at about 3 inches deep in our no-till field; thus reducing water infiltration where we had no cover crop.

Yet, I wondered, why did the moisture stop at 2 1/2-3″ in the no-till plots? I found the answer from a rogue radish. We had a few radishes that came up in the field that had been planted in the fall of 2010 (the fall of 2010 was so dry that many of the radishes did not come up until very late…or not until spring, or in a few cases until mid-summer).  As I previously wrote, Radish does have some hard seed.  I dug around one of the radishes and found a constriction in the radish at 2 1/2-3″ deep! Even after 23 years of no-till I still had a compaction problem! I believe that is one reason why cover crops help producers to transition from conventional tillage to no-till…cover crops penetrate through compaction layers.

Written by Dave Robison · Categorized: Breaking Up Compaction, Cover Crop Benefits, Water infiltration/percolation · Tagged: cereal rye, Cover Crop Benefits, cover crops, no-till, Radish, reducing compaction, roots, soil compaction, soil health, water management, water utilization, Winter Cereal Rye

Nov 10 2011

Cover Crop Field Day Set at Robison Farms

CISCO Seeds, Robison Farms, and Dougherty Fertilizer are sponsoring a Cover Crop Field Day and Root Dig at the Greenwood, Indiana farm. If you’ve not had an opportunity to see cover crops in a real life farm setting, this will be a great meeting for you . There will be multiple species available to look at and expert agronomists on hand to answer questions.

 

When:

Wednesday, November 30, 2011 from 2-4 P.M.

Location:

Corner of Five Point Road (300 East) and Main Street (Rocklane Road) east of Greenwood, IN

Contact:

If you have questions or need further information contact  Don Robison at donrobison@ciscoseeds.com or 317-357-7013

  • Rain or shine we will have a gathering (call if the weather is bad for “plan B”)

 

Cover Crop Field Day Highlights

Come see ten different mixes and/or species of cover crops in a large plot setting.
  • 1100’ lineal feet of cover crop plots
  • 10 different mixes or straight species shown
  • guaranteed weather! (not saying what kind)
  • working with NRCS, SWCD, and Dougherty Fertilizer
  • root digs (weather contingent)
  • Cover Crop Agronomists on hand for tours and Q/A sessions
  • See over 150 acres of various Cover Crops withing 1/2 mile of plots

 

Purpose of the cover crop field day

To see different species of cover crops in a real to life situation. This was a soybean field that had the cover crops applied over the top of the standing crop at roughly 50% leaf drop.

 

Species You Will See

 

  • Radishes
  • Turnips
  • Crimson Clover
  • Oats
  • Winter Rye
  • Annual Ryegrass
  • Austrian Winter Peas
  • Several Mixes including the above species

 

 

 

Directions:

From Indianapolis

  • Take I-65 South to Exit 99. Turn Left at end of ramp and travel 1.5 miles east to the plots

From Louisville

  • Take I-65 North to Exit 99. Turn Right at end of ramp and travel 1.5 miles east to the plots

From Columbus, OH

  • Take I-70 West to Indianapolis, follow 465 South to I-65 South to Exit 99. Turn Left at end of ramp and travel 1.5 miles east to the plots

From Terre Haute

  • Take I-70 East to Indianapolis, follow 465 South to I-65 South to Exit 99. Turn Left at end of ramp and travel 1.5 miles east to the plots

 

Just down the road we plan on digging another pit where Annual Ryegrass and Appin Turnips were applied after hog manure was knifed in after wheat.

Written by Dave Robison · Categorized: Cover Crop Plots, Education, Field Days · Tagged: aerial application of cover crops, Annual Ryegrass, Austrian Winter Peas, cocktail mixes, compaction, corn, Cover Crop Benefits, cover crop mixes, cover crop plots, cover crop radishes, cover crop seeding rates, cover crops, Crimson Clover, earthworms, flying cover crops into corn, Groundhog radish, no-till, Oats, oats and radishes, oilseed radishes, Radishes, reducing compaction, scavenge nitrogen, seeding rates, soil compaction, soybeans, tillage, timing of planting cover crops, Wheat, Winter Cereal Rye, winter rye

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