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Cover Crops
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Related topics can be found here:
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Cover Crops for Sustainable Crop Rotations
SARE'S 2013-14 Cover Crops Survey Report
Cover Crop Report Documents Yield Boost, Soil Benefits and Ag Retailer Roles
Managing Cover Crops Profitably, 3rd Edition
Managing Cover Crops Profitably explores how and why cover crops work, and provides all the information needed to build cover crops into any farming operation. Along with detailed management information on the most commonly used species—including grasses, grains, brassicas and mustards, and legumes--Managing Cover Crops Profitably offers chapters on the role of cover crops in broader topics such as crop rotations, pests and conservation tillage. It also has appendices on seed suppliers and regional experts.
Download or purchase it here:
Managing Cover Crops Profitably explores how and why cover crops work, and provides all the information needed to build cover crops into any farming operation. Along with detailed management information on the most commonly used species—including grasses, grains, brassicas and mustards, and legumes--Managing Cover Crops Profitably offers chapters on the role of cover crops in broader topics such as crop rotations, pests and conservation tillage. It also has appendices on seed suppliers and regional experts.
Download or purchase it here:
Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) promotes cover crops and assists with farm transitions of all kinds. See Sarah Carlson's presentation here:
More practical cover crop advice from PFI's Sarah Carlson:
Upland Sandpiper After the Rain -- Photo by Johnathan Nightingale
Connection to no-till soybean fields and habitat for rare bird species found by researchers in Illinois.
... farmers and conservationists could work together to maximize the ecological role that no-till lands are already playing in the Midwest. Michael Ward, Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences.
The study adds to the evidence that agricultural practices can have a broad influence on bird abundance and diversity. Jeffrey Brawn, Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences.
... farmers and conservationists could work together to maximize the ecological role that no-till lands are already playing in the Midwest. Michael Ward, Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences.
The study adds to the evidence that agricultural practices can have a broad influence on bird abundance and diversity. Jeffrey Brawn, Professor of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences.
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Modern Farmer recently published a story connecting pesticide use to depression in farmers. The findings of a 20-year study on the topic are alarming--and provide another important reason to incorporate cover crops into your operation. Read the story here: |
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And for more information on how cover crops can control pests, read SARE's article, Managing Pests with Cover Crops, by Sharad C. Phatak and Juan Carlos Diaz-Perez, here:
Under Cover Farmers
The NRDC and Ray Archuleta Show the Benefits of Cover Crops in an Easily-Accessed Video
Are cover crops the answer for soil protection and increased yield? Hear what some skeptics think of cover crops after seeing them applied in the field. Don't miss this informative, thought-provoking film.
Connect to the Midwest Cover Crops Council here.
Take it from an Iowa farmer...
Barry Fisher on Integrating No-Till or Strip-Till with Cover Crops:
Jay Fuhrer on Innovative No-Till: Using Multi-Species Cover Crops to Improve Soil Health:
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) has a Learning Center page of resources for cover crop information, including a link to a YouTube series of videos entitled Cover Crop Innovators.