Cover crop entries were hand seeded at locations into standing corn and soybeans and evaluated for fall ground cover, spring ground cover, and spring biomass production.
Key Findings
- Cereal rye and mustard tended to produce the most amount of fall ground cover.
- Sufficient rainfall following cover crop seeding is necessary for fall cover crop growth and overwintering potential.
- Cereal rye was the only entry to successfully overwinter and produce spring growth and remains a strong cover crop candidate even in the face of a challenging winter.