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The basic concept of a
cover crop is to cover up the soil with another living plant once
you harvest your main product. For example, if a farmer harvests his
soybeans or corn in the fall, he may work the ground by tilling (or
not tilling) the waste, the roots, or left over ‘trash’ from the
plant into the soil. By deciding to plant something with a shorter
season, such as radishes, turnips, winter cereal rye, oats, or
annual ryegrass, these roots will break up compacted soils, add
nutrients, and help protect the soil from winter erosion.
Cover crops also have another benefit, which is suppressing the
production of weeds, increasing moisture and nutrients, improving
yield potential, attracting pollinators, and providing a habitat for
insects and wildlife, as well as food to animals during the winter
months. Cover crops can also add not only to your pantry but to the
freezer. Cover crops are a good way to attract large animals, such
as deer, for harvesting. Just remember, you cannot just hunt any
place you see a cover crop, or in this situation a ‘deer plot,’ all
the same rules and regulations apply with deer permits and gaining
permission from landowners. Here are a few advantages to cover crops
that can be applied to your smaller vegetable garden as well.
Cover crops help use
moisture. - Spring crops need moisture to give them that boost
to start well. Planting a cover crop in the fall will help retain
the moisture and not allow it to dry out as much before planting in
the spring.
Cover crops increase water infiltration. - We all know water
is a necessity for anything to grow. However, there are ways to help
water do a more thorough job. Planting deep-rooting cover crops will
help build organic matter and break through soil compaction layers.
This will increase the way the water moves down through the soil,
which will help reduce water ponds standing on the surface.
Cover crops can suppress
weeds. - Even in a small garden or flower bed, the most daunting
job is pulling those weeds. You can go to bed in the evening and
wake up to a flowerbed full of weeds. Can you imagine acres and
acres of having to control some of the most invasive weeds such as
water hemp, giant ragweed, or marestail (horseweed). Even in a
vegetable garden, crabgrass, dandelions, or mustard can choke out
those baby plants. Planting a cover crop will help suppress these
pesky weeds.
Cover crops can be a source
of livestock feed. If you have any type of livestock, you
can use this as a grazing or forage harvest system for the animals.
This not only feeds livestock, but it will also help minimize soil
compaction. Even if you have dogs or cats, there are several things
that you can plant in the off-season, such as legume and grass mixes
or oats, parsley, mustards, wheat/rye, and catnip. Rabbits eat an
overabundance of alfalfa, so that might be a good choice if you have
rabbits. Make sure you check with your vet about the proportion,
kind, and frequency when adding or making Fido lunch with these rich
substitutions. You will also want to do your research on when and
how to harvest these cover crops. It wouldn’t make sense for you to
plant a cover crop that you cannot harvest or use. Some choices
might be more expensive on the back end because of additional
equipment needed, and others might be fairly easy to harvest and
use, so just be knowledgeable before you decide.
Cover crops can feed
wildlife. - Wildlife does not only include deer for the hunters,
but it is an excellent food source for earthworms and insects that
northern bobwhite quail and other birds look for.
Some cover crops fix nitrogen in the soil. - Something that
we all need and do not pay much attention to is nitrogen. Legume
cover crops will add and supply nitrogen in the soil for next year’s
production crop by letting the cover crop decay.
Other cover crops scavenge for existing nitrogen in the soil.
- In addition to fixing the nitrogen in the soil, if planning
deep-rooting cover crops gather nitrogen from deep in the soil and
release this into the rooting zone as plants decay, which helps any
future crops.
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Cover crops can reduce soil
erosion. - Erosion is a valid concern with the ever-changing
weather patterns that are unknown nowadays. Covering the soil with a
cover crop will help reduce both wind and water erosion.
Cover crops recycle
nutrients within the soil. - Whether planting acres upon acres
or a small vegetable garden, all living plants are pivotal to the
nutrient cycle. The biology of your soil is managed by living
plants. A field with good soil biology will build a healthy
ecosystem for years to come.
Cover crops build organic
matter. - Organic matter comes from living things, including
plants and animals, which break down over time through microbial
activity. This can include living, dead, decomposing plants or
animals, as well as microorganisms. This organic matter is a major
contributor to soil health, and we need good soil health to grow
better plants with a better yield.
Government Programs -
The government provides agricultural subsidies, grants, programs,
financial assistance, monetary payment, and other types of support
to farmers or agribusinesses. You will need to do your research to
find the best program for your situation. Some resources are listed
below. Please keep in mind, these do not cover your personal
vegetable garden.
- USDA
- Illinois Department of
Agriculture
- Natural Resources
Conservation Service (NRCS)
-
www.farmprogress.com
- Farmers.gov
- Farmdoc daily
- Farmanaut
- Practicalfarmers.org
Cover crops are a smart
way to increase your growing capabilities, feed yourself or your
animals, and add nutrients to the soil. If you are new to this,
do your research before you begin, talk to others who already
have cover crops, and start small. What do you have to lose,
except possible soil nutrients, erosion, and a little bit of
time?
Cover Crop reference
sites:
Cover Crops and Crop Rotation | Home
10 reasons to use cover crops
https://www.usda.gov/about-usda
/general-information/initiatives
-and-highlighted-programs/peoples
-garden/soil-health/cover-crops-and-
crop-rotation
https://www.nifa.usda.gov/about-nifa/blogs/importance-cover-crops
https://www.farmers.gov/blog/cover
-crops-benefit-both-commercial-farmers
-and-urban-gardeners
https://cropsandsoils.extension.wisc.
edu/articles/why-cover-crops/
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