Researchers’ trials have shown that combining cover crops with no-till creates soil health benefits exceeding those created by no-till alone. The two practices combined with applications of manure create the greatest soil health benefits.

While later cover crop termination in the spring can allow for more biomass accumulation, such later termination can change the C-to-N composition of the plants impacting residue decomposition. Therefore, identifying the best time for cover crop termination to provide optimal N cycling benefits can help farmers make decisions about cover crop management.

For the 2022 crop production year, eighty-four Nebraska crop budgets, including two cover crops and a pasture budget, were prepared by crop specialists and extension economists at the University of Nebraska -Lincoln. Higher fuel, fertilizer and pesticide costs are the main drivers of projected production cost increases for crops produced in 2022. Read more in this article from the University of Nebraska.

University of Nebraska–Lincoln researchers are leading a study of how a targeted restoration of perennial grasses amid cropland could bring about a variety of benefits, ranging from reduction in water and fertilizer use to expansion of wildlife habitat to encouragement of new bioenergy industry. The four-year, $4 million project will be conducted on University of Nebraska research plots and 12 to 15 on-farm sites in the Republican River Basin in west central and western Nebraska, said Daren Redfearn, the Husker forage systems specialist leading the work. Read more in this article from the University of Nebraska.

This week’s podcast, sponsored by Montag Manufacturing, features Chris Proctor, Weed Management Extension Educator, University of Nebraska. Proctor will discuss how cover crops help with weed suppression, how to incorporate covers into an integrated pest management program, the relationship between tillage, herbicide resistant weeds and cover crops, and more.