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Cover Crop Topic Room: Water Management

An uprooted radish plant on the ground, showing root and leaves

Dryland Cover Cropping Boosts Yields

Type: North Central SARE From the Field Profile

Nebraska farmers Keith and Brian Berns found they could use cover crops in dryland farming to increase...

SARE Cover Crops Webinars

Type: North Central SARE Presentation

As part of the Missouri SARE State Program, Debi Kelly hosted two webinars on Cover Crops in fall 2012....

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

No-Till Wheat into Medic vs. Conventional Wheat (1999, Montana)
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

Download File (5.58 MB)

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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.