The educational materials listed on this page are about Soybeans.
Agronomic crops are field crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat and other grains. Soybeans are an important crop for both livestock feed and human consumption. Growing soybeans involves understanding soybean growth stages, the soybean market and production factors such as soybean yield per acre. Soybean farming can be a very profitable enterprise when a producer has enough acreage, the ability to increase soil fertility and a strong understanding of what it takes to increase the average soybean yield per acre. Although a producer has little control over the average soybean price per bushel that the market sets, a number of marketing strategies can be used to increase profit margins, while many production practices and overall soil management can improve the soybean crop in most soybean production systems. Key practices include agronomic, soybeans, cropping systems, cover crops, crop rotation, fertilizers, crop improvement and selection, physical control, soil management.
SARE’s Crop Rotation on Organic Farms A Planning Manual is a resource for farmers looking to integrate crop rotation into their operation to enhance organic matter and boost production. The Cover Crop Topic Room is a good starting point to learn about the benefits that cover crops can have on soil fertility to improve yield. A key resource to understanding the critical relationship between soil and crop is SARE’s widely used book, Building Soils for Better Crops. This book lays the foundation for understanding soil structure, soil fertility, and overall soil management.
Showing 1-20 of 31 results
Manage Weeds on Your Farm Video Series
In this series, experienced farmers from around the country talk about how they have found success controlling weeds by following ecological principles, and without resorting to the use of herbicides. To do so, they rely on a range of cultural and mechanical practices, including diverse crop rotations, well-timed cultivation and targeting weeds when they're at […]
Smart Water Use on Your Farm or Ranch
As producers throughout the nation grow increasingly concerned about water scarcity, farmers, ranchers and agricultural educators are beginning to explore new, conservation-oriented approaches to water use.
A Whole Farm Approach to Managing Pests
This 16-page bulletin helps producers—and the educators who work with them—use ecological principles across the entire farm to control pests.
Videos from the Field
SARE, in partnership with Cooking Up A Story, has produced a series of how-to videos showcasing production and marketing practices used by some of the nation’s most successful sustainable farmers and ranchers.
SARE Fellows Tour Sustainability in North Carolina
SARE Fellows Tour Sustainability in North Carolina RALEIGH, North Carolina – Organic sweet potatoes are in high demand in North Carolina, but growers face two major hurdles: weeds and wireworms. North Carolina State University researchers think cover crops might be a solution, and that would make third generation farmer Kelvin Bass a happy man. “I’m tremendously […]
Free Fact Sheets Identify Broad Benefits of Cover Crops
Along with cutting costs and increasing crop productivity, cover crops provide various ecosystem services that benefit the environment both on and off the farm. For instance, adding cover crops to a rotation can significantly increase the portion of the year when living roots are present for soil organisms to feed on, which can have a […]
Cover Crop Economics Report Now Available in Print
Cover Crops Offer Options in Wet Soil As more farmers across the nation begin to incorporate covers into their rotations, they find that this valuable conservation practice pays in more ways than one. Many farmers in states suffering from oversaturated fields that prevented or delayed planting are considering cover crops. To help farmers evaluate the […]
When Do Cover Crops Pay? New USDA-SARE Report Addresses the Question
Farmers around the country are planting cover crops on millions of acres to protect and improve the soil, and the more that farmers use cover crops, the more they value this conservation practice. Cover Crop Economics, a new report published by USDA-SARE looks at the economics of cover crops to help farmers answer that big […]
Cover Crop Economics
Cover crops can build soil health, control weeds, conserve moisture, provide grazing opportunities and more. But when do they start to pay for themselves? This analysis looks at the economics behind different management scenarios to determine if cover crops are likely to improve profitability in one, three or five years of use in corn and soybean rotations.
Improving Soil Health Through Cover Crops
Farmers around the country are discovering the power of cover crops to curb erosion and improve soil health. This video is from Pennsylvania, where a Penn State researcher and a grain farmer are partnering to spread the word.
Cover Crops for Soil Health Workshop
All session recordings and slide presentations from this three-day professional development workshop are available online. Hosted by Northeast SARE and Delaware State University in March 2016, this event addressed the latest research on the benefits and successful management of cover crops in grain, vegetable and animal production systems.
Cover Crop Innovators Video Series
Find short video profiles of farmers around the country who are using cover crops on their land.
Cover Crops for Sustainable Crop Rotations
Cover crops are one of the best ways to improve soil health, reduce off-farm inputs and protect natural resources. Find a wealth of educational materials developed out of decades of SARE-funded cover crop research.
2014 National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health
All session recordings and slide presentations from the National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health are available online. Held in 2014 in Omaha, Neb., the event brought together 300 agricultural leaders and innovators to explore how we can make American agriculture more sustainable through improved soil health. Attendees represented agricultural industry, the farm community, academia, government, commodity and conservation organizations.
Cover Crop Management and Termination
Planning for proper spring management of your cover crop needs to happen before April. Learn from two experts in the field on a couple different methods for termination.
Cover Crops Seed Selection and Planting
Whether you are new to cover crops or an advanced user, hear from two experts on how they chose and seed their cover crops.
Combining Livestock, Manure and Cover Crops
A livestock and cover crop combination is the fastest way to profit from your investment.
Cover Crops, Soil Health Principles and Maximizing Yields
Learn about basic soil health principles and how cover crops are key to making those happen on your farm.
Safe and Profitable Oil Production Fact Sheets
Information on edible oil production for small-scale producers.
Dryland Cover Cropping Boosts Yields
Every drop of water counts for farmers who practice dryland cultivation, a practice that relies on rainfall without the benefit of irrigation. So, when it comes to incorporating cover crops into a dryland rotation, many farmers hesitate, wondering: “How much moisture is the cover crop going to demand, and will I pay for it later […]