benefits of cover crops

Are Cover Crops Right for Your Farm?

October 25, 2023 | Posted in Seeding Practices

Source: Farm Progress

Getting the greatest benefit out of cover crops requires a management level on par with corn and soybeans. Growers should start by testing a cover crop on a single field and expand.

Midwest Cover Crop Council Outlines Cover Crop Benefits to Congress

May 24, 2023 | Posted in Investing in Regenerative Ag

The Midwest Cover Crops Council (MCCC) released its first legislative letter addressed to the house and senate ag committee chairs in partnership with the Southern Cover Crops Council, Northeast Cover Crops Council, Western Cover Crops Council, South Dakota Soil Health Coalition, and the North Central Regional Association of State Agricultural Experiment Station Directors (NCRA).

I55 Dust Storm Crash Illinois State Police.jpeg

Cover Crops: Responsible Choice for Preventing Deadly Dust Storms

By Michaela Paukner posted on May 18, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health

On May 1, 2023, high winds blew soil from recently tilled fields across a 2-mile stretch of Interstate 55 in central Illinois, causing blackout-type visibility on the roads. Seven people died and another 37 were hurt in a 70-car pileup resulting from the dust storm.

Cover Crop Workshop Series to Be Held in February

By Liz Ripley posted on January 18, 2023 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: Iowa State University Extension and Outreach

Iowa Learning Farms, in partnership with the Consortium for Cultivating Human And Naturally reGenerative Enterprises (C-CHANGE), will host cover crop workshops on Feb. 1, 14, 21 and 22 from noon to 2 p.m each day. Farmers and landowners are welcome to attend the free events, which include a complimentary meal.

This Week

Cover Crop Strategies' Best of the Web: Sept. 2, 2022

September 2, 2022

Cover Crop Strategies editors encounter a variety of articles, social media posts, podcasts and videos that offer a unique look at various aspects of our great agricultural industry. Here is our favorite content from the past week. The Best of the Web This Week series is brought to you by Salford Group.

[Podcast] Dave Brandt on Lessons Learned from 45 Years of Cover Cropping

March 31, 2022 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health, Termination

For this episode of the Cover Crop Strategies podcast, brought to you by La Crosse Seed, contributing editor Martha Mintz chats with Dave about some of those benefits as well as the lessons he’s learned in his 45 years of using cover crops.

[Podcast] Russell Hedrick on Building Soil with Cover Crops

March 23, 2022 | Posted in Seeding Practices, Soil Health, Termination

This week’s podcast, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, contributing editor Martha Mintz chats with first generation farmer Russell Hedrick from Hickory, N.C., about how he has used conservation practices like cover crops and no-till to stop erosion, improve soil function and build soil aggregation by about an inch each year.

Terminate Cover Crops at the Right Size

June 8, 2020 | Posted in Termination

Source: KMA Radio

Cover crops provide many benefits, ranging from soil health to erosion control, and can also be an important tool in an integrated weed management program. However, termination of cover crops is an important factor to consider to ensure that they don’t hurt your cash crops yield, said Andy Luke, University of Missouri Extension regional field specialist in agronomy. Read more in this article from KMA Radio.

Cover Crop Options after Corn or Soybean Harvest

October 3, 2012 | Posted in Soil Health

Source: By: Paul Jasa, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension Engineer

With this years drought conditions there is less residue than normal in many fields. In some, the crop was harvested as a forage or cut as silage, leaving very little residue at all. Without residue to absorb the energy of raindrop impact and keep the wind off the soil surface, soil erosion will be greater and surface crusting could be a problem. Also, without the water-conserving residue mulch, soil moisture losses by evaporation will be much higher.