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I shared this presentation at the CCA conference in Springfield IL on 12/11/2014
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Ever seen anything like this?
Champaign Cty, IL
How about this?
This is not your grandfather’sCC planting equipment!
Sciota, IL
1922
Unprecedented farmer interest has been a key driver of the
cover crop revolution
1 week
Farmer to farmer communication about CCs facilitated by the internet and digital
cameras has stoked the fire
2012 – SARE Survey Results
Seed vendors have have played a key role in the CC revolution
How much is good
technical support worth to farmers?
http://www.greencoverseed.com/
Q. Which cover crops collect/remove nitrogen (N) the quickest or most efficiently? Q: How do I determine which cover crops are best suited for my soils and typography? Q. What is the carbon-nitrogen penalty, meaning how many units of carbon to how many units of nitrogen? How do I account for that? Q. I am just starting to grow cover crops. Which ones are easier to start with? Which ones should I stay away from? Q. Can I plant cover crops on fields in continuous corn? Q: Which cover crops are better for weed control? Q. We’ve had trouble getting a good stand of cover crops the last two years. Last year, we planted cereal rye and radishes on the corn ground going into soybeans. We planted cereal rye, radish and crimson clover with a plane on ground going into corn. Our fields are in northeast St. Clair County. Q. A Monmouth farmer asks, “Is there a better product and/or faster working product than what I’m doing if the rye has any size to it? Burndown of annual rye is frustrating and slow. I was told to always use Roundup 32-44 oz., 1 pt. 24-D, A.M.S. on the first trip. Then the second trip put down my residual. Sometimes with the wet and busy spring, it is tough to fit in. I want to keep a cover crop on in the winter.” Q: When cover crops decompose, what amounts of nitrogen do they contribute back into the soil? Q: What should I consider about reliability of cover crop seed sources? What about seed mixes?
Cover crop FAQ on FARMWEEKNOW.COM
Each Q is answered by multiple IL CC specialists
No chapter on cover crop economics !
+30
~200 profiles since 2008
What role should CCAs play in cover crop
decision making?
Well… what do you want your cover
crop to do for you?
What needs to be adjusted to find the best fit?
Where are the best places for cover crops on your farm?
When is the best time for establishment and termination?
Are you familiar with the term Precision Conservation?
Cover Crops
Adapted from Magdoff and Weil (2004)
CCs affect many agronomic factors simultaneously
Feed livestock
Control erosion
? ?
Increase management
Host pests
Become a weed
Prevent soil drying
Dry out soil excessively
Interfere w/ equipment
performanceSuppress crop
growth
Tie up N
Add cost
Cover Crops
Adapted from Magdoff and Weil (2004)
Not all effects are positive
Can you think of any agtechnologies that substitute
for management skill?
Cover crops require and reward management more than broadly adapted technologies
Wow...cover crops are not idiot-proof!
Miguez, F.E. and G.A. Bollero. 2005. Review of corn yield response under winter cover cropping systems using meta-analytic methods. Crop Science. 45:2318-2329.
Carlson, S. 2013. Winter rye cover crop effect on grain crop yields: Year 4. Practical Farmers of Iowa. Ames, Iowa.
#1 way to make cover crops pay!!!
EQIP CSP
Material costs•seed
•inoculant•herbicide•fertilizer
Operational costs•establishing •terminating
•managing residues
DIRECT COSTS OF CC
+20 lbs N/a
Preceded by spring planted radish
Field operation IA* IL IN* MO*
Fertilizer buggy 4.15 (1.50-7.50)
4.72 (3.07-6.37) 4.97 (3-15) fert6.02 (3.50-15)
fert+seedHarrowing 8.10 (4-
12.50)6.78 (3-12)
Cultipacking 6.55 (3-10) 8.50 (5-15)
Broadcast w/ ATV 10.35 (8-12) 7.44 (3-12.50)
Conv. grain drill 13 (7.50-20) 11.40 15.89 (13.63-18.15) s
13 (8-24) sg14.09 (10-24) gc
No-Till grain drill 15.35 (12-25) 14.60 14.47 (10.80-18.14)
14.80 (10-24) s14.25 (5-25) sg
Air seeder 16.40
Per acre costs of cover crop planting operations based on custom rate surveys
Costs Program 1 Program 2 Program 3 Program 4Seed 11.25 7.50 11.25 9.00
Seeding operation 4.15 15.00 10.00 10.00Seed incorporation 6.50
Herbicide 2.00 2.00Termination
operation6.50 6.50
Total 30.40 31.00 21.25 19.00
Examples of total cover crop management programs ($/ac)
Program 1
Seed: 90 lbs/ac cereal rye
Seeding operation: spread w/fertilizer buggy
Seed incorporation: rolling stalk chopper
Herbicide: 24 oz. glyphosate
Termination operation: 90’ boom spray rig
Program 3
Seed: 90 lbs of cereal rye
Seed bed preparation: none
Seeding operation: aerial seeding
Herbicide: no added cost, burn-down standard
Termination operation: no added cost, burn-down standard
Program 2
Seed: 60 lbs/ac cereal rye
Seed bed preparation: none
Seeding operation: no-till drill
Herbicide: 24 oz. glyphosate
Termination operation: 90’ boom spray rig
Program 4
Seed: 3 bushels of bin-run oats
Seed bed preparation: none
Seeding operation: aerial seeding
Herbicide: none – winter-kill
Termination operation: none – winter-kill
IA and IL Aerial Applicator Survey (May-June 2010)
Name Location Experience w/CC Cost
Cady Aerial Spray Rock Falls, IL
no exp., no customer
interest $8.00/a norm app $8.50/a cc
Benoit Aerial
Spraying Kankakee, IL turnips and rye $8.00/a norm app $10.00/a cc
Franks Flying
Service Morrison, IL ryegrass and c. rye $8.00/a norm app $10.00/a cc
Reeds Fly-on
Farming Mattoon, IL
yes, c. rye, small part
of business $8.00/a norm app $12.00/a cc
Killiam Flying
Service Carlinville, IL
rye, wheat on beans,
rye on corn$8.00/a norm app $10.00/ac
or 10/lb
Curless Flying
Service Astoria, IL ryegrass and turnips $8-15.00/a all app.
Klein Flying
Service
St. Francisville,
IL annual rye and turnips~$12.50/a cc, $9.00/a liquid
app
Agriflite Services Wakarusa, IN rye, wheat, ryegrass ave $15.00/a for cc app.
Al's Aerial
Spraying Ovid, MI rye and wheat$10-15.00/a cc $10.00/a
liquid
IL CC Business Directory
?
Opportunities for planting cover crops
• Dormant seeding early or late winter• Frost seeding• In the spring
• When planting summer crops• Prevent plant scenarios• Before canopy closure
• After small grains• After vegetables
• After seed corn or silage corn• Aerial or high clearance seeding into standing crops in late
summer/early fall as canopy opens• After early corn/bean grain harvest
• After full season corn/bean grain harvest
PSUinterseeder
crimson clover and
annual ryegrass are very shade
tolerant
West Union, IA
I run a delayed burn down..... Usually mid to late May. I have switched back to older chems..... I miss the Callisto, we’re supposed to only get a few weeks residual, but 2yrs ago I seeded some clover every week tilAugust..... In August, still fried clover after emergence. With that said, I did have a bunch of clover pop the next spring, just doubt I got much benefit from it..... Since it showed up about the week I sprayed.
This is how you begin!
Corvus Atrazine
Flexstar
Lexar Halex
WIU student project
Ghosts of cover crops past: quantifying the effects of cover crops on subsequent crop-weed-soil interactions
http
://agroeco
logyu
nh
.blo
gspo
t.com
/20
13
/08
/stud
ent-research
-usin
g-ph
ytom
eter-to.h
tml
With hairy vetch, a rule of thumb is to cut a 4-foot-by-4-foot area and weigh it. Then
multiply the weight by 25 to calculate total nitrogen produced. Figure half of that is
available to crop in next 60 days. If the vetch is tilled into soil, more nitrogen is available sooner.
Cover crops should not be viewed as the missing puzzle piece(s) in current cropping systems!
Perennial-based
crop rotations
Perennial bio-energy cropsPermanent pasture systems
Winter cover crops
RY
E
…while also improving soil
health
Crop Fence row
Same soil type and landscape position
Students in my Soil Properties class just finished analyzing paired soils from their farms
< -- Spring
Next fall -->
Some things are priceless
WIU Organic Research farm
Student’s home farm
