What are some benefits of using cover crops in my corn-soybean rotation?
Cover crops can provide significant benefits to soil and water quality improvement, especially during off-season row crop production (e.g. corn and soybean), where the soil is vulnerable to water erosion and the potential of nutrient leaching to groundwater is increased. Living cover crops increase the potential of an active root system to intercept soluble chemicals such as nitrate, and provides a source of organic matter input through above- and below-ground biomass. Some of the challenges that producers face are the selection of cover crop varieties and the short window of growing, particularly in the Midwest. Winter hardy varieties of cover crops are typically planted after the row crops are harvested in the fall and provide cover for the soil until they are killed in the spring prior to planting of the next crop.
