How to Design a Cover Crop Mixture for Multiple Goals
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- Опубліковано 29 лип 2024
- Researchers from the “Cover Crop Cocktails” research project at Penn State highlight the main benefits that different cover crop mixtures (3, 4 and 6 species) can provide and how to design one.
Thank you to all my ag science people out there doing research!! It's so helpful to so many!
Where possible you should increase the species diversity to at least 8-14 different species to truly start to get benefits of cover crop mixes. Even different varieties within a species will help. More diversity the better. Other reasons not mentioned might include addressing soil compaction, or making other nutrients available such as phosphorus (eg with buckwheat), stimulating mycorrhizal fungi etc.
Universities only care about studying bare minimum, they still get paid by chemical ag
This claim is not true, and extensive research by the Penn State team has demonstrated that. Instead, the mix should have the best species for functional diversity, and additional ones only get in the way. Such a mix always outperforms a hodgepodge of 8+ components.
Thank you for a helpful and informative video.
Good, solid advice.
Thanks
Great info. It would help if we could see the plants up close when you mention them.
How are these mixtures on cattle ? beef and or dairy for digestion ?
We are going to take land in field corn and start producing vegetables next year. What cover crops should we plant over Fall and next Spring
Will your seed mixes self-seed if allowed to mature?
Smart.
Hi. Are these mixes available commercially anywhere for purchase? Would it be possible for you to post a a summary of the specific mix rates? Some parts of the video mentioned the rates but others did not. I’m in SW PA so I want to try these. Thanks.
kings agri seed has some good summer/fall/spring mixes
Are the clovers inoculated?
Inoculated with what?
Deer hammer our buckwheat cover crop in northern Pa (tioga county). In an effort to provide soil building nutrients, and organic matter in an area surrounded by red oak forests.. what can I plant for cover crops that deer will not browse to death?? Thx in advance
wally, I can relate to what you are up against there. I am a habitat pro and do a lot of food plot work. My advice is to put on a lot of cereal grains in the late summer. Deer have a hard time keeping up with them. But, I always plant cover crop mixes. buckwheat is pretty low preference so if you are getting wiped out, there is not enough food in the habitat. So you need a bigger area. I have found that hairy vetch in the mix along with winter peas, brassicas, cereal grains will stand up to deer pressure and come back in spring. I always have a clover base in there as well in case you want to make it a perennial plot.
The other improtant thing to keep in mind is that food plots are a supplement...proper forest management provides most of the deer's food and cover. Here are a couple videos on the subject:
studio.ua-cam.com/users/video4BvyQCuNAxM/edit
studio.ua-cam.com/users/videomiq1zXuN3dM/edit
Mustard is untasty for deers, it should discourage them eating other cover crops growing within mustard.
1:10 1:26
Interesting stuff, but so poorly edited between major charges in volume and all the plants he pulls out of the ground trying to show and name are not in the visible frame and he keeps holding them all in the same hand. Not helpful.