Cover Crop Seed Innovation - Blackmer

Cover Crop Innovations

Tracy Blackmer

Feb. 18, 2014Cover Crop Solutions

tblackmer@covercropsolutions.com

Tile drainage• Nitrate moves freely with water• Most of nitrate loading from tile

lines• Tile lines usually run before and

after corn and soybeans are taking up N

Nitrogen Loss

Notice the lack of green on the land and the water flowing from tile line

Water Quality

July 29, 2014Big Creek ReservoirIowa, USA

No Swimming permittedDrinking water source

Most common reason for cover crops• Erosion control often a “gateway”

usage of cover crops.• Requirements for erosion control

are not necessary the same as other usages.

• Specifics must be adapted to local issues

Benefits of Cover Crops

Cover Crop Seed

More than cereal rye Hairy Vetch

TillageRadish®

CrimsonClover

AnnualRyegrass

WinterPeas

Oats CerealRye

Triticale

Cover Crop Roots

Planted cover crops• In trash cans• Triticale, Radish, Clover, and Annual

Ryegrass• Soil mix to easily separate roots

Root Can Study

Roots are often under estimated

Key Point

34 days of growth

Crimson clover

Key Point

34 days of growth

Nutrient Scavenging

Increased N Scavenging

• Fall planted cover crop• Captures N at lower depth• This N could be lost by next

spring

Nitrogen Capture

Ray Weil, University of Maryland

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

05

1015202530354045505560

Tillage RadishNo Cover Crop

Nitrate N in each 6 inch soil layer (lb/a)

Soil

dept

h (in

ches

)

Plant uptake• Holds leachable

nutrients• Relocates nutrients• Increases available

forms of nutrients

Nutrient Uptake

Nitrogen Application• Angle with NH3 • Plant differences

Early Season Nutrient Stress

June 3, 2014

Iowa Prevented Planting Case Study

• There was a pre-plant application of 60 lbs N/a. No additional N was added.

• Around the 1st of Aug. the field was disked, the Tillage Radish® seed was broadcast and a roller was used to get a firm seed contact.

• A good stand was established.

Case Study – Nutrient Catch Crop

Cambridge Iowa, 2013

Nutrient Analysis

• An average of 364 lbs of N were taken up by the Tillage Radish®

• Plus other nutrients

Case Study – Nutrient Catch Crop

Case Study – Nutrient Catch Crop

Nitrogen Needs

• Only 50 lbs N/a was needed to optimize grain yield for 230+ bu/a corn.

• Despite over 350 lbs N in the TR catch crop, N was still needed, but at a much lower than anticipated amount.

• The lack of full N credit is speculated to be a loss from rain rather than a lack of N release.

Cover crop roots can “loosen” the soil

• Roots can go deeper than most tillage operations

• Can keep aggregate stability.

Soil Conditioning

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350

0

5

10

15

20

25

Soil penetrometer resistance with and without cover crop

Tillage RadishNo Cover Crop

Penetration Resistance (lbs/in2)

Soil

Dep

th (i

nche

s)

Increasing Root Growth

Increased Rooting Depth

• Fall planted cover crop• Following season’s corn roots• More corn root growth at

lower depth

Increased Corn Rooting

Weil and Chen. 2007

0 2000 4000 6000 8000

0

5

10

15

20

25

Tillage RadishCereal RyeNo Cover Crop

Corn Root Growth (roots/sq yard)

Soil

Dep

th (i

nch)

Increasing nutrient availability

• Cover crops increased nutrient availability in the top 10 inches

Increasing Nutrient Availability

University of Maryland with the Tillage Radish®

• 70 comparisons over 5 years• 12 bu/a corn yield increase• 8 bu/a soybean yield increase• No yield decreases

Yield Trials

Nematode control strategies• Non-Host crops• Biofumigants• Hatch and Starve• Increasing the Suppression

Nematodes

Isothiocyantes

+ Myrosinase

In Brassica tissue

Volatile “bio-fumigant”

Glucosinolates

Rupturing Cells

Somecontrol

Limited impact

Odor

Nematode Reduction• Field studies in IL have shown a

meaningful reduction.• Data from each site was

replicated three times over 2 years.

• Mechanism not understood, but looks promising.

• More research needed.

Soybean Cyst Nematodes

Site No Cover Cereal Annual Crop Rye

Ryegrass

----------------SCN

Eggs-----------------

1 7533 717* 117** 2 3650

320* 0** 3 1559 722*

386* 4 1202 390* 279*

*significant 0.05

**significant 0.01

Mike Plumer, Univ. IL

Nematode Reduction• Field studies in IL have shown a

meaningful reduction.• Data from each site was

replicated three times over 2 years.

• Mechanism not understood, but looks promising.

• More research needed.

Soybean Cyst Nematodes

Site No Cover Cereal Annual Crop Rye

Ryegrass

----------------bu/a----------------

1 48.9 53.8 55.7 2 48.2

52.3 60.6

Mike Plumer, Univ. IL

Soybean grain yield following cover crops

Inter-seeding?• Can you plant a cover crop earlier

in the season?• Need light to get established• Will it hurt yield?

Establishing a Cover Crop

Penn State University

Corn Yield as Affected by Interseeding

Untreated control Annual Ryegrass Legume mix Grass-legume mix140

145

150

155

160

165

170

175

180

185

190

Corn

Yie

ld (b

u/a)

Effect of Interseeded cover crops

Penn State, 2013

Establishing a Cover Crop

Most common cover crops used for interseeding

RootMax Annual Ryegrass Tillage RadishCrimson Clover

Thank you.

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