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Cover Crop Topic Room: Soil and Fertility Management

Organic Fertilizer and Cover Crop Calculator

Type: Western SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This free online tool compares the nutrient value and cost of cover crops, organic and synthetic fertilizers...

Estimating Plant-Available Nitrogen Release from Cover Crops

Type: Western SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This Oregon State University fact sheet explains the basics of plant-available nitrogen (PAN); when...

Understanding Soil Microbes and Nutrient Recycling

Type: North Central SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This fact sheet provides information about soil microbes, nutrient recycling, and microbial soil organic...

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Using Cover Crops to Improve Soil and Water Quality

Type: North Central SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This fact sheet highlights the physical, chemical, biological, and economic benefits of using cover...

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The Biology of Soil Compaction

Type: North Central SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This fact sheet discusses how soil porosity, water infiltration, soil aeration, and soil structure increase...

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Cover Crops for Soil Health and Nutrient Conservation and Update on the PSU Cover Crop Interseeder

Type: Northeast SARE Multimedia

Dr. Sjoerd Duiker presents how cover crops can be used to conserve nutrients over the winter, reduce...

Cover Cropping: On-Farm, Solar-Powered Soil Building

Type: Southern SARE Grantee-Produced Info Product

This information sheet gives an overview of how to use cover crops to maintain good levels of nutrients...

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Optimizing Weed Suppression and Nutrient Use Efficiency in Cover Crop-Based No-Till Organic Corn

Type: Northeast SARE Multimedia

In this webinar, Hanna Poffenbarger of the University of Maryland and Steven Mirsky of the USDA-ARS...

Nitrogen Management with Cover Crop Mixtures

Type: Northeast SARE Multimedia

Charlie White, of Penn State Extension, presents case studies of how mixtures of different cover crop...

Also, visit SARE's database for reports on these research projects:

Corn Silage Production with Kura Clover Living Mulch and Winter Rye Cover Crop; Soil Erosion, Nutrient Runoff, and Soil Physical Properties (2010, Wisconsin)
Lighting up the Black Box: Improving Legume Performance on Organic Farms by Optimizing Microbially-Mediated Plant and Soil Nitrogen Cycling Processes (2010, North Carolina)
Balancing Nitrogen Sinks and Sources Using Cover Crops on Manured Fields (2010, New York)
Optimization of Corn Production Following Legume Green Manures (2008, Wisconsin)
Using Oilseed as Biological Plow to Reduce Soil Compaction and Recycle Nutrients (2008, Ohio)
Learning from Farmer Innovation in N Fixation for Improved Nutrient Management on Organic Farms (2007, New York)
Managing Soil Food Webs for Enriched and Suppressive Soils: Effects of Cover Crop Diversity and Quality (2007, California)
Selecting Cover Crops for Diverse Functions: An Integrated Soil Management Approach for Organic Strawberry Production in North Carolina (2007, North Carolina)
Estimating Nitrogen Contribution from Cover Crops in Organic Vegetable and Cane Berry Farms (2006, Oregon)
Evaluating Winter Crops for the Environment and for Profit [on dairy farms] (2005, Ohio)
Multipurpose Brassica Cover Crops for Sustaining Northeast Farmers (2003, Maryland)
Winter Cover Crops for Corn Production in the Northeast: N Balance and Soil Moisture Status (1989, Maryland)

Dig deeper into cover crops research: SARE has funded hundreds of research and education projects related to cover crops since 1988. This topic room features only a glimpse into SARE's entire portfolio of cover crop research. To discover more, visit SARE's database of projects and conduct full text or advanced keyword searches.

Managing Cover Crops Profitably, 3rd Edition

Type: Book

Managing Cover Crops Profitably explores how and why cover crops work and provides all the information needed to build cover crops into any farming operation.

Published: 2007

Pages: 244

Online Version: Free

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USDA-NRCS Soil Health Initiative

"Unlock the Secrets in the Soil" is a national initiative by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to promote awareness and education about soil's importance as a natural resource and its vital role in agriculture.

Farmers Say Cover Crops Work

During the fall of 2012, corn yields increased 9.6% when planted after a cover crop, compared to side-by-side fields with no cover crops, and soybean yields improved 11.6% following cover crops. Because of this, and witnessed improvements to soil and water quality, farmers across the Midwest are rapidly expanding their cover crop acreage.

Learn more about farmers' experiences with cover crops in the 2012-2013 Cover Crop Survey. Read a summary or download the full report.

Other Cover Crops Resources

The following organizations offer excellent cover crops resources:

The Midwest Cover Crops Council has extensive information on cover crops for Midwestern farmers, including species descriptions, selector tools, innovator profiles, Extension material and more.

The eOrganic Community of Practice maintains a collection of articles, videos and webinars on organic research, production and certification. This collection includes a section on cover cropping in organic farming systems.

"Unlock the Secrets in the Soil" is a national initiative by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to promote soil's importance as a natural resource and its vital role in agriculture.