Cover Cropping is a best management practice for farmland that has been seeing increased popularity across the nation due to its ability to help with weed control, nutrient recycling, erosion prevention, compaction relief, and many other benefits. While more producers every day are making the switch and trying cover crops on their farm, many of them find a species that they like working with and tend not to explore the other options. Depending on the issues facing any farm, a cover crop can be tailored to assist in those issues and can bring tremendous benefits to your soils. While anything planted with the intention of covering fields during fallow periods would be considered a cover crop, there tends to be three main types that producers favor:
Cereals/Grasses
Tend to grow quickly and establish well in the fall, with a deep root system that helps recycle nutrients that may have been lost to leaching over the winter. The quick vegetative cover also helps prevent nutrient loss through soil erosion over the winter. Different cereals can have different benefits. Cereal rye has a higher Carbon to Nitrogen (C:N) ratio and can act as a weed barrier during the early stages of the crop’s life, especially if it was rolled down before planting. Black Oats however have a lower C:N ratio and also have that deep root system that can help recycle nutrients and make them available earlier in the crops life than other cereals.
High biomass black oats cover crop.
Legumes
Legumes can produce high amounts of biomass with a lower C:N ratio, allowing the plant to break down quicker and release those nutrients to the following crop earlier in its life cycle. The main benefit to legume cover crops is their ability to convert atmospheric N into plant available N. It is for this reason that many people look to put a nitrogen fixing cover crop before a high N-using crop such as corn, as it allows them to cut back on N applications the following season, as well as the costs associated with that application.
Root Crops/Brassicas
Brassicas tend to perform very well in the cold weather and put out a lot of growth quite quickly, aiding in weed control and suppression during the winter months. The tillage radish offers a unique benefit to a crop field, these plants grow much larger than your grocery store varieties and help break up hardpans, and other impenetrable surfaces in the soil. This can help reverse soil compaction and works well if partnered with other compaction preventing methods. These crops tend to leave behind a “minefield” of phosphorus the following year when they decompose.
Blending different varieties of cover crops is recommended to find the right fit for each farm. Blending can help you address multiple issues and provide biodiversity to your operation for example, If you have a sandy field with low organic matter, you may want to try high biomass, low C:N ratio crop blends to help build organic matter such as a vetch and black oat. If you have heavier soils that are prone to weed control and compaction issues, a cereal rye and tillage radish blend may help address those specific issues. Take time every year and think about what cover crops would fit your farm best and do not be afraid to try different crops for different fields.
Read more articles in the Winter 2024 CSWCD Newsletter here.
Cereal rye and hairy vetch cover crop.
Comments