Now that the calendar has turned to September, it’s a great time to be thinking about cover crop decisions for your operation. If you are new to cover crops and are trying to figure out the best way to implement them on your farm, here are a few suggestions to keep in mind.

Fall Management
Depending on the species or mix of cover crop, management can be more or less intensive, so you’ll need to figure out how much time can be devoted to managing cover crops in the fall. Obviously, the fall is a very busy time with harvest, fall tillage, and other applications being made. Will there be time for someone in the operation to effectively see that the cover crops are seeded in a timely manner? There are many different seeding options when it comes to planting cover crops, and each one has their benefits. For me, application method and timing are what drives the type of cover crop utilized.

Earlier Application
For operations short on help or wanting to maximize as much of the growing season as possible, consider an aerial application or high clearance seeder. At a cost of about $14.00/A., both are great options for planting. These applications also allow for a more diverse mix to be planted depending on how much of the growing season remains. As far as timing with aerial or a high clearance seeder, applications should be made into standing corn when there is about 20 to 30 percent daylight in the center of the row. For soybeans, the field should just be starting to turn from green to yellow. As with any broadcast application, we need a little help from Mother Nature to get it going. For most cover crop species, it takes at least 0.5 in. or more of rain for good germination.

Post-harvest Application
Post-harvest application timing definitely has its benefits, as well. Whether using a grain drill, VT tool with a mounted air seeder, or broadcasting with a light incorporating pass, each are great options that provide excellent seed to soil contact to accelerate germination and provide better root growth. However, since it is typically after harvest and closer to the first freeze dates, these methods can greatly limit which species can be used in a cover crop mix, unless earlier season corn hybrids and soybean varieties were planted.

In summary, it’s important to maximize the dollars spent on cover crops as much as possible. Understanding timing of application and which products will winter terminate versus which will make it through the winter heavily play into that equation.

~ Ryan Moore – Small Seeds Manager