Ed Roll is no stranger to Conservation
Cover. Not only has Ed served 25 years
with the Indiana State Department of Agriculture Division of Soil Conservation
as a Resource Specialist, he has also spent 30-years-and-still-counting working
on his own farm. Ed has spent that time
practicing what he preaches to other land owners. He regularly utilizes cover crops to
replenish nutrients and increase soil health.
I regularly work with producers to get Conservation Cover on
the land. This process has recently been
helped by utilizing Clean Water Indiana cost share funds. I also serve as a member of the Conservation
Cropping Systems Initiative (CCSI) South East Indiana Regional Hub which
sponsors various educational events.
According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service
website, interest in cover crops has skyrocketed over the past few years in the
eastern Corn Belt. Remarkably though,
cover crops are an age-old practice for maintaining soil productivity. They have been used for years to control
erosion and improve water infiltration.
Cover crops also work to balance the biological community as well as
many other environmental benefits. (
http://www.in.nrcs.usda.gov/ )
Planting a winter cover crop is a great way to improve soil
health through the off-season. While
other land sits dormant, cover crops build fertility for the following year. Cover crops can improve soil texture, boost
organic matter, prevent erosion, suppress weeds, and provide food and shelter
for beneficial insects.
Selecting the correct cover crop to plant is important. It depends upon whether a producer wants to
scavenge nitrogen or produce nitrogen for the next year’s row crop. It can also depend upon the desire to
conserve other nutrients and moisture. The Midwest Cover Crops Council has a great
website that can help you select cover crops to best fit your needs (
www.mccc.msu.edu).
In general, there are two basic types of winter cover crops:
1) Those that grow vigorously in
fall but are easily killed by cold temperatures (such as oats and radish in
most areas of Indiana).
2) Those that survive winter cold
and resume growth in spring (such as clovers, winter rye and wheat).
The first kind is relatively easy to manage because they
normally winter kill. The trade-off is
that you must sow these covers earlier to get adequate growth and maximum
benefit before the plants are killed by the cold. Oats and radishes are examples that should be
sown by early September in the north and a couple weeks later in the south.
The second kind of winter cover crop — those that overwinter
and continue growing in spring — can be sown a bit later into fall. This includes wheat, cereal rye or rye
grass. These crops will need to be
terminated in the spring at planting time.
Seeding methods for cover crops may vary depending on the
preferred seeding dates. Some producers
drill the seed or broadcast it after harvest.
Another option is to utilize aerial seeding while the primary crop is
still in the field.
My brother, Jack, and I utilize cover crops on part of our
1200 acres that we operate in southern Indiana.
We especially appreciate the benefits of erosion control, nitrogen
scavenger, nitrogen producer, weed control and others. We are careful to sow only the amount of cover
crops that we know we can manage.
Our cover crops are selected to match the next year’s crop, as
well as the specific fields that will receive the greatest benefit. Each year presents a new opportunity to try
something different to see what works for us.
I am fortunate to have the
opportunity to work with Indiana State Department of Agriculture-Division of
Soil Conservation. My work has provided
me with a good knowledge and a renewed interest in cover crops. This matches up well with my years of farming.
In the summer of 2012,
I selected a few fields that I was going to plant in corn for the 2013 growing
season. I decided that with the high cost
of nitrogen I would see if I could produce some myself with the help of Crimson
Clover. I felt that clover was the best
fit for my management system. I
considered aerial seeding, soil types, termination timing and cost.
I look at cover crops like a medical prescription and consider
what side effects may be present. I
weigh out the “what ifs” that I need to
consider. It’s important to remember
that cover crop management is different for everyone. You need to see what works for you.
Due to the wet spring I started no-tilling corn a couple
weeks later than normal so that put my
Crimson Clover in full bloom which I believe marks the peak for producing
nitrogen. I allowed a couple of days to
chemically burn down the clover and was still able to get my corn planted.
As I continue to watch the crop progress, I have found that
it was easier to terminate the Crimson Clover than I had thought. Another benefit that I have noticed is weed suppression;
I normally would have had to come back over this particular field to spray for
weeds. With the thick mat of clover, I
eliminated the need for that pass.
