Cover Crop Strategies Podcast

Voles can be an ongoing problem for farmers, but planting cover crops can actually help deter the pests, according to this week’s podcast from Hoosier Ag Today featuring two Purdue University masters students. Find out effective predators for naturally dealing with voles, why voles don’t like brassicas, and why to avoid nitrogen fixing cover crops.

Chris Reynolds, certified crop advisor and resource conservationist from Illinois discusses why species choice is important when analyzing covers, how to determine planting dates for cover crops, when growers should start thinking about covers in the season, and more.

Grazing systems can also gain from the soil health benefits offered by cover crops, according to Matt Poore, Extension Livestock Coordinator and Ruminant Nutrition Specialist with North Carolina State University. In this podcast, Poore discusses using annuals to improve soil health in grazing systems for livestock.

Interest in organic farming has grown in the past several years, and Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff discusses how strategic planning can make a big difference in outcomes. Groff talks about why weed control is the biggest challenge when it comes to no-tilling organic with cover crops. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

If you saw last week’s podcast, we were talking about planting cash crops into heavy covers. This week’s podcast is part 2 of that discussion! Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff talks about what equipment you need to plant into heavy covers, why residue cleaners are important during planting, what problems to expect when planting into heavy residue, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

If wet spring weather has kept you from being able to plant, you may end up planting green into heavy cover crops, according to Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff. Dealing with heavy cover crop residues is doable, but your success depends on using the right equipment and setting it the right way. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Can manure be successfully used as fertilizer for cover crops? The answer is yes, but how manure is used depends on your goals and situation, says Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff. A few considerations when applying manure to cover crops, particularly in the spring, includes application timing, the growth stage of the cover crop, application rate, application method, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

The new “Rooted Collection” from Wrangler Jeans are made from cotton grown on farms that use cover crops. Roian Atwood, Senior Director of Sustainability with Wrangler & Lee, talks about the opportunity for land stewardship in cotton systems, consumer pressure on corporate decision making, how grazing systems add value to natural systems, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Dealing with slugs can be a real nuisance for many growers. Dr. John Tooker, Penn State University, discusses how seed treatments influence predator populations in the field, how soybean yields respond when slugs are present in fields with both treated and untreated seed, why predator populations are important in your fields and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Retired engineer Bob Recker is an expert on wide row corn. In this week’s podcast, Recker explains how 60-inch corn rows can improve soil health and water quality, why research and development are happening every day on the farm, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators) Editor’s note: For clarification, there has been no research stating that using 60 inch wide corn rows adds significant financial benefit.

In this week’s podcast, crop insurance expert and Wisconsin farmer Ryan Stockwell with the National Wildlife Federation discusses why crop insurance regulations are outdated, why crop insurance eligibility rules are unfavorable to cover crops, how crop insurance will be evolving, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff says black oats have impressed him the past few years as a cover crop. The winter hardy Cosaque variety of black oats seems to be most popular and can even be used as a forage. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Using cover crops is a way to protect the soil and mitigate soil loss, says Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff, and that includes in vegetable production. Groff also explains how vegetable production can be done with no-till, how bare soil can lead to soil-borne disease in vegetable crops, how soil health and plant health are linked, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

In this week’s podcast, Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff discusses cover crop species that are best for planting in late winter/early spring. Find out why spring oats, field peas, red clover and mustard are good choices, why buckwheat is not the best species to plant in the spring, why peas do so well when planted early, and more.

Fall 2019 was extremely wet during harvest, leaving many fields with ruts. In this week’s podcast, Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff explains how growers can use cover crops, no-till and improving soil health to overcome extreme wet conditions at harvest time.

In this week’s podcast, retired John Deere engineer and farm consultant Bob Recker provides insight on ways to boost soil health without taking fields out of production. Doubling row populations in 60-inch corn allows growers to experiment with cover crops, companion crops, and grazing livestock.

In this week’s podcast, fifth generation farmer Rick Clark from Indiana shares tips on planting green, a practice he’s been using for the past 8 years. Clark has been no-tilling soybeans for 15 years, and no-tilling corn and using cover crops for 10 years. Find out how Clark started using cover crops, why he does not use treated seed, fungicide or insecticide, and why data is so critical to good decision making on the farm.

Seeing earthworms is one of the hallmarks of healthy soil, but Paul Reed Hepperly says that their role is much broader than previously thought. There are 7,000 different species of earthworms that provide valuable benefits, including improving soil quality and increasing crop productivity. Find out how tillage impacts earthworm habitats, how earthworms reproduce, and more in this week’s podcast.

Many growers use treated cover crop seed to kill pests, but Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff says there are valid reasons to consider planting untreated cover crop seed. In this week’s podcast, Groff discusses the side effects of using treated cover crop seed, how treated cover crop seed affects predatory insects, how untreated cover crop seed can help manage slugs, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)

Farmers around the world face different challenges, but North American growers can learn a lot from how farmers in other countries solve problems. Pennsylvania cover crop expert Steve Groff shares insights on how growers use cover crops to retain moisture in the soil in Australia, managing soil erosion in Tasmania, observations on soil types and structure in France, and more. (Courtesy of Cover Crop Innovators)