Plan Ahead for Fall Cover Crops

The state fair has started and schools are getting ready to be back in session. Before long it will be time to get combines out and get started on harvest 2021. I wanted to take a little time to talk about cover crops today and how they can be used to provide many soil health benefits. Ive been receiving some calls about NRCS cost share and every year this becomes more of a hot topic. Cover crops can do a variety to things to keep our soils healthy, from erosion control to increasing organic matter and scavenging excess nitrogen and other nutrients just to name a few. Cover crops are also something that we can make as complex or as simple as we want and still accomplish our goals. The cereal grains such as wheat, rye, and oats are very easy to establish and provide very good erosion control. We can also blend these with brassicas, or legumes to create a specialized blend for the exact needs of your farm. Harvest is right around the corner so now is a perfect time to get a plan in place for cover crops on your field. If you have any questions or would like to learn more about cover crops for your operation give your local SFG agronomist a call. We would be happy to help with a seeding plan.