Herbicides and Cover Crops

Herbicides and Cover Crops

cover crops weed control

Cover Crops are a great way to improve your soil health and enhance your weed control.  Issues with using cover crops include the ability to plant them in a timely manner and the ability to get a reasonable stand.  One of the factors standing in the way of a good stand is what residual herbicide have you used on the current crop.  No-till Farmer writes about Corn and Soybean Herbicides and Rotation to Cover Crops .  They say that for most herbicides, you should not have a problem.

Soil Health Partners

Soil Health Partners

cover crops

Soil Health Partnership is a farmer led movement to promote use of cover crops.  Yesterday on the last day of the Farm Progress Show in Boone IA, the corporate sponsors announced a committeemen of $4 Million over the coming years to support the group.  Their goals include establishing research protocols to support cover crops.

Cover Crop Time

Cover Crop Time

cover crops

If you have not planned your cover crop strategy for the fall, now is the time to think about what you want to do and get set up to do it.  This Prairie Farmer article gives some ideas.

The easiest to do is cereal rye after corn in fields where you are going to soybeans.  Corn planted in to cereal rye is not for beginners, although I know some people who are doing it.

In thinking about cover crops, set your goals in order to decide what ti plant.  Midwest Cover Crops Tool can help in decision making.

Cover crops can help with weed control, improve tilth, build organic matter, and help implement No-Till.

Cover Crop survey

Cover Crop survey

cover crops

I did not realize how long it has been since I posted.  We are putting the finishing touches on winter work.  Planning to head to the field tomorrow.

No-Till Farmer is trying to get people to complete a cover crops survey.

Contrasting Cover Crop Presentations

Contrasting Cover Crop Presentations

cover crops

Last week, I heard contrasting presentations on cover crops.  Emerson Nafziger made a presentation in Litchfield on Wednesday.  He looked at research from several years of data on cover crops.  In his presentation he looked mainly for yield increases, and he did not find any.  It reminded me of  presentations on No-Til in the late 80's and early 90's.  He seemed to be missing the point.  Cover crops are a long term proposition and short term benefit can be difficult to assess.

Anthony Yannarell presented his research in Champaign on Saturday.  Unlike many researchers who prefer to look at yes or no answers, Yannarelll was looking into the why of cover crops and their weed control effect.  He used red clover in his research and found that leaving the entire plant on the surface was most effective in weed control,  One of the real benefits of cover crops is the weed control I am seeing.  While the weed control may not pay off in yield, hopefully you are getting some savings on herbicides.

Kill Annual Ryegrass Early

Kill Annual Ryegrass Early

cover crops

but not too early. Cover crops can be as easy to kill as having them freeze out, or as difficult to kill as Annual Ryegrass.  Many farmers I know have successfully planted soybeans into green cereal rye, but Annul Ryegrass is not so easy to get rid of.  Start by trying to kill it early.  It is too cold now. Wait until daytime temperatures are in the 50's so that some photosynthesis is taking place.  more details are available in a recent Prairie Farmer Article.

Cover Crops and Soil Health

Cover Crops and Soil Health

cover crops

Healthy Soils For Healthy Waters was the title of the Symposium that kicked off the Edge of Field Monitoring and Nutrient Management Conference.  The highlight of the whole conference was listening to David Brandt of Ohio discuss his system of cover crops and No-Till.  Brandt has been using cover crops for over 30 years.  His soils test very high for microbial respiration.  This indicates high microbial activity.  His figure of a $72 per acre net benefit to using cover crops is a  compelling reason to go for it.  I also had the privilege to visit with Brandt in person.  He talked a good bit about the benefits of using multiple cover crop species to enhance benefits.  He has tried as many as 12 species, but finds little addition benefit beyond using 8 species.

In an informal discussion over dinner, one of the Ohio State University professors in attendance indicated that he did not think that you could ever get enough nitrogen out of cover crops to have top yields.  Brandt disputed those remarks saying that he could raise 250 bushel per acre corn if he planted cover crops after harvesting wheat instead of going to double crop soybeans. Brandt is also experimenting with inter-seeding soybeans between corn rows for their nitrogen benefit.  The more we hear about cover crops, the more compelling it seems to use them,