Tag Archives: cover crops

Killing Annual Ryegrass – Part 2

Annual ryegrass is a vigorous plant. Planted last summer or fall, the roots can be established to more than 5 feet into the soil. So, even if there’s only 6 – 8 inches of top growth, treat annual ryegrass as a mature plant. Successful control of annual ryegrass with glyphosate or other herbicides depends on:

Using full herbicide rates
Spraying during favorable weather conditions
Using good spraying practices.

Click here for a free brochure: Annual Ryegrass Management

Click here to go to the Annual Ryegrass website, for more detail on management.

Controlling annual ryegrass in the spring is best done:

In warm weather
When the ryegrass is actively growing.

Annual ryegrass can be a challenge to control if the herbicide is applied when:

There is cool, cloudy and wet weather, or
When the ryegrass has reached the joint growth stage (stem elongation).

Timing – Control (burndown) of the annual ryegrass cover crop:

Is most successful when the plant is small, 4-8” in height
Annual ryegrass is more difficult to control after the first node has developed
Burndown occurs before the middle of April

Annual Ryegrass Touted in SARE Cover Crop Videos

In a series of videos produced by Sustainable Ag Research & Education (SARE): called Cover Crop Innovators, Midwest farmers talk about their experience with annual ryegrass and other cover crops.Click here for the whole series:

Or, click here to see the video on Indiana farmer Jamie Scott

Click here to see the video on Indiana farmer Dan DeSutter

SARE Ties with DuPont-Pioneer on Cover Crops

In February, a select group of 300 cover crop experts gathered in Omaha to discuss the prospect of massively enlarging the number of cover crop acres in the Midwest.

At present, there’s an estimated 2,000,000 to 3,000,000 acres of corn and soybean cropland now being improved with cover crops each year. The meeting’s purpose – to explore how to expand that number to 20 million acres in the next six years.

Click here to see presentations of innovative growers who are showing the way how we’ll get there.

Managing Annual Ryegrass this Spring

Controlling annual ryegrass in the spring with glyphosate or other herbicides depends on: (click here for the larger, more detailed version)

Using full herbicide rates
Spraying during favorable weather conditions
Using good spraying practices.

Controlling annual ryegrass in the spring is best done:

In warm weather
When the ryegrass is actively growing.

Annual ryegrass can be a challenge to control if the herbicide is applied when:

There is cool, cloudy and wet weather, or
When the ryegrass has reached the joint growth stage (stem elongation).

The next post will have more specific guidelines. In the meantime, check out the Annual Ryegrass website for more detailed infomation.

Dupont Pioneer Looks at Cover Crops – Annual Ryegrass

Managing Winter Cover Crops in Corn and Soybean Cropping Systems

DuPont Pioneer Agronomy Research Summary – 2014 (Click here for full report)

Table 1. Potential benefits of cover crops.

Potential Benefit	Description
Retain Soil Nutrients	Cover crops scavenge soil nutrients as they grow and ultimately release them for following crops to use. This reduces the potential for nutrient losses, especially N.
Prevent Soil Erosion	Cover crops help hold soil in place, reduce crusting and protect against erosion due to wind and rain.
Build Soil Organic Matter	Cover crop biomass contributes to soil organic matter, which helps to improve soil structure, water infiltration, and water-holding and nutrient-supply capacity.
Break Soil Compaction	Cover crop roots can act as “living plows,” breaking up compacted soil layers. Cover crop shoots can also help protect the soil from the impact of heavy rains.
Add Nitrogen (N)	Leguminous cover crops fix N as they grow. This N mineralizes after the cover crop is terminated and becomes available for use by future crops.
Conserve Soil Moisture	Cover crop residues increase water infiltration and limit soil evaporation. This helps to reduce moisture stress during drought conditions.
Suppress Weeds	Cover crops shade the soil, which can reduce weed germination and growth. Some cover crops also have an allelopathic effect on weeds.
Provide Additional Forage	In some areas, it may be possible to graze, hay or chop cover crops before terminating in the spring.

In recent years, interest in adding cover crops to corn and soybean cropping systems has increased as their potential benefits have become more widely recognized. Most of these benefits are realized over time as their ongoing use improves soil quality and function (Table 1). Thus, cover crops are best viewed as a long-term investment in soil productivity.

Cover Crop Selection – Grasses, Legumes, Brassicas

Grasses, including winter cereals such as rye, wheat, barley and triticale, are the most widely used cover crops in corn and soybean cropping systems. Winter cereals are typically planted in late summer through late fall and produce a small to moderate amount of root and above-ground biomass before going dormant in the winter. Vigorous growth resumes in early spring, and large amounts of biomass are produced by mid to late spring. Some growers prefer non-winterhardy cereals like oats, which establish rapidly in the fall but winterkill and leave behind little residue to manage in the spring. Annual ryegrass is another option if spring residue levels are a concern.

Annual Ryegrass at Commodity Classic – Feb 28

Annual ryegrass is among the most popular cover crops. As such, it will be among the key elements in a Cover Crop learning session at the Commodity Classic this year, in San Antonio, TX. The session will cover both the trend in cover crop use nationally, but also specifics on how to make cover crops work for your acreage.

The Conservation Technology Information Center and DuPont Pioneer are sponsoring the session. Here’s a link to a full story and details about attending

The learning center session, “Cover Your Assets: Improve Productivity, Efficiency and Soil with Cover Crops,” will take place Feb. 28 at 1:45 p.m. in the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, Room 217BC.

The presenters include Mike Plumer and Jamie Scott, both of whom have been long time annual ryegrass advocates. Mike worked for decades for the U. of IL as an Extension Educator. Jamie is an Indiana farmer, whose business now includes providing annual ryegrass seed flown onto about 60,000 acres each year.

Additional experts are Rob Myers, regional director of extension programs for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program and Karen Scanlon, CTIC executive director, who will moderate the session.

“Cover crops are an exciting topic that continues to gain the spotlight,” Scanlon said.

Annual Ryegrass Seeded into Springtime Corn!

Yes, you read correctly…farmers in Quebec, Canada began experimenting, 5 years ago, with spring seeding annual ryegrass into new corn…when the plants showed between 4 and 6 leaves.

Apparently, the annual ryegrass goes dormant when the corn canopy closes over in June, leaving the grass in shade until harvest. After harvest, sunlight sets the annual ryegrass growing again like gangbusters. According to a new article in Corn Guide, the grass soaks up residual N, P, and K going into winter. The author reports, also, that even in early years, farmers see a bump in corn production from the addition of annual ryegrass. See the full article here.

Cover Crop Learning Opportunities this Winter

In February, in Omaha, a cover crop symposium is attracting cover crop innovators, big seed dealers, seed growers and equipment company reps to discuss how to quickly grow the cover crop usage.

Cover crops are now planted on approximately 2 million acres in the Midwest. One of the symposium’s central topic is how to turn that number into 20 million acres in the next couple of decades, or sooner.

The daylong symposium will be telecast live to 200 sites around the US, in hopes that a much larger audience can access the information.

On Feb. 6, Dan Towery will present on soil health and cover crops to the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association in Brodhagen, west of Toronto.

In March, Dan and Hans Kok will present a 2 hour webinar sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency. Their presentation is on how cover crops can impact water quality…largely by keeping soil and nutrients in the fields, less susceptible to erosion. Soil biology can influence yields, Towery said, and cover crops are a key contributor.

Annual Ryegrass in Winter: What’s Goin’ On Down There?

With the frigid weather in the Midwest this winter, it may be that the top growth of your annual ryegrass is looking poorly. Without any snow cover, freezing temperatures can suck the moisture and life out of any plant.

But don’t despair just yet. In past winters, what looked like a total winterkill in January turned out to be a false alarm. Whether the crop survives depends on whether the crown of the plant was still viable. If the crop was planted in a timely fashion, and the annual ryegrass got enough time to establish well, the chances are better for its survival.

Assuming that the annual ryegrass is dormant on the surface, it’s amazing to realize that throughout the winter, the roots continue to grow. In some years and in some soils, the roots can grow to more than FIVE FEET DEEP. In doing so, the roots break through compacted soils, creating channels that the corn and soybean roots will later follow.

New Year, New Cover Crop for You?

Some may have formed this New Year’s resolution back in the summer: to give annual ryegrass a try as a cover crop.

As stated by many experts, don’t start too big with something you have little experience with. Cover crops are like driving on the highway, using a rifle for hunting game or playing full-tilt in a new sport – you run a better chance of success if you put your sights low the first year. Here are some tips:

Talk to others about their experience with annual ryegrass cover crops. Preferably, talk to a neighbor, who has similar soil condidtions
Research your local options for cover crop seed. Ask questions to find out whether your seed dealer is more interested in sales or in conservation tillage
Buy a variety of seed that has a track record for success. Specifically, you’ll want a variety that has been used in your area, and one that has shown hardiness for withstanding winter weather.
Plant a small parcel the first year, perhaps 10 acres or a bit more
Commit to keeping a very close eye on all details of the process: soil type and condition planting date, weather data during the time the cover crop is growing and inputs like nitrogen.

For more info on all these factors, visit our website

Ryegrass Cover Crop

A Cover Crop that Builds Soil and Boosts Production