Cover Crops???

[TheChickMan]

Hi, thanks for reading, I was wondering... Do any of you other BYC'ers out there plant covers crops on your garden after it quits producing. I am thinking about doing it as my SAE project for FFA. I have 12 rows of sweet corn I would try it on. I would leave four rows of sweet corn fallow, i would plant four to winter wheat, and another four row to oilseed radishs, hairy vetch, winter wheat, and winter peas. Sweet corn will be planted in the same spot next year and i would observe the difference in yield. i would kill all "green manure" as it is called with a herbicide such as roundup in the spring. Do any of you have experience with cover crops. Will there even be a difference in yield. Is it worth my time to try it. Thanks

 

[chickened]

Yes they work, I plant peas and buckwheat.

 

[jennh]

Why do you want to use roundup? Can't you just till the "green manure" in? I thought that was the whole idea of a cover crop, to till it in

Jen

 

[chickened]

Roundup has zero residuals in the soil and you end up doing more damage to your soil by over discing it to combat weeds. It usually only takes one treatment. Roundup is basically a super concentrated fertilizer that overdoses weeds. It is not really a conventional herbicide like garlon or crossbow although it is classed as one. And it is cheaper.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

Roundup has zero residuals in the soil and you end up doing more damage to your soil by over discing it to combat weeds. It usually only takes one treatment. Roundup is basically a super concentrated fertilizer that overdoses weeds. It is not really a conventional herbicide like garlon or crossbow although it is classed as one. And it is cheaper.

Actually I thought there was a study out this week or last week or something that roundup was causing problems when ysed over an over on the same peace of land over the years.. I will stick to mechanical fixes over chemical.

 

[Fred's Hens]

If one is certified or markets as organic, then RoundUp is a no no, of course.

Yes, cover crops are great for all the reasons given and more. Winter rye is nice. One challenge for those in the far north is that there just isn't much of a window. By the time you finally get your late cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc off the fields, the soil temps aren't conducive for germination of very many things. Those who garden in zone 5a or better, this isn't an issue, I suspect.

 

[chickened]

Actually I thought there was a study out this week or last week or something that roundup was causing problems when ysed over an over on the same peace of land over the years.. I will stick to mechanical fixes over chemical.

Like anything you over use it you will have problems. I think not leaving ground fallow every 7 years is worse. I have used roundup when breaking ground but do not use it after that as long as my tilling is well timed to destroy the weeds before seeding. Grass is the main thing I target with roundup.

Most of those studies against roundup are against Monsanto by the organic crowd and they have a dog in that fight.

 

[SweetSilver]

Why do you want to use roundup? Can't you just till the "green manure" in? I thought that was the whole idea of a cover crop, to till it in

Jen

This is where the interchangeablity of the two terms ends. "Cover crops" can add nutrients, but are used to hold and protect the soil (and feed chickens!) "Green manure" will specifically refer to using (young, usually) cover crops as a nitrogen source in the same way manure is used-- often by tilling it in, but I wonder whether some no-till method such as mulching over the crops would work. Hmmmmm.....

Sounds like an interesting experiment with several methods side by side.

 

[chickened]

They use annual rye here for over winter cover crops. It dies in the late fall and is then tilled in in the spring and will not have seeds.