Today’s post focuses another in-field conservation practices covered in the Whole Farm Conservation Best Practices Manual and the great decisions trees related to cover crops!
Cover crops are plant species, such as oats and cereal rye, planted to reduce soil erosion, improve soil health, and provide water quality benefits during the months of the year when crops are not actively growing on farmland. Incorporating cover crops improves soil health by:
- Improving soil structure
- Reducing soil compaction
- Protecting the soil surface
Cover crops are seeded in the fall, either before or after harvest. They are not harvested as grains, but can be grazed or harvested as forage. Cover crops go hand-in-hand with no-tillage and strip-tillage.
6 Tips to Success for Starting Out with Cover Crops:
- Oats ahead of corn
- Cereal rye ahead of soybean
- Selecting the seeding method that fits your system (see decision trees below)
- Terminate 10-14 days ahead of corn and 3-7 days ahead of soybeans
- Spring tillage of cover crops is NOT recommended
- Adjust planter settings to higher residue system
The manual provides more detailed information on each of these tips and more, so download a FREE copy for your farm today.
Also be sure to check out our YouTube video series Cover Crops: Farmer Perspectives and Adding a Cover Crop to a Corn-Soybean System, as well as our recent webinar – Succeeding with Cover Crops & No-Till: A Guide for Spring 2020 and virtual field days for more great information.
Iowa Learning Farms 
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