Life Sciences Commons^™

The Effects Of Grazing Cover Crops On Animal Performance And Soybean Production, J. Brett Rushing, Rocky Lemus, J. G. Maples, J. C. Lyles

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Grazing cover crops has the potential to offset costs incurred with cover crop establishment, thus incentivizing management adoption. Information regarding cover crop species in combination with grazing and their subsequent effects on soybean production is limited. A field trial was conducted in Newton, MS from 2019 to 2021 to assess these effects. Cover crop treatments included oats (O), O + crimson clover (OC), and OC + radish (OCR) were applied in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Cover crops differed in nutritive analysis; O had significantly lower mean CP, but greater total daily nutrients (TDN). Weaned beef steers …

Corn Silage Yield And Quality, And Soil Health Metrics After Fall Cover Crop Grazing, J. D. King, K. A. Cassida, R. Erhardt, E. Burns, S. Snapp, M. Singh, C. Difonzo, A. Garmyn, S. Gruss, C. Macaluso

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Integrated crop-livestock systems can potentially produce more product per unit of land with minimal impacts on soil health and cash crop quality. In the Upper Midwest there is an opportunity to graze fall cover crops (CC) after winter wheat in a corn-wheat rotation. In East Lansing, Michigan, two CC treatments: 1) a pure brassica mixture (PURE), and 2) a complex mixture containing legumes, warm and cool season grasses, and brassicas (MIX) were planted after wheat, and grazed by lambs in the fall seasons of 2019 to 2021. The following year, soil health, corn yield and quality were measured from plots …

Extending The Grazing Season Through The Use Of Cover Crops, D. D. Harmon

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

The use of cover crops in integrated crop-livestock systems is not a novel approach but has increased in popularity over the last few years due to the renewed interest in soil conservation, nutrient cycling, and water conservation. Moreover, cool-season annual forages have the ability to extend the grazing season, reduce the need for stored or bought supplemental feedstuffs, and as a result, lower winter-feeding costs. Small grain cover crops, legumes, forbes, and annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) vary in their growth distribution and can be planted alone in monocultures or planted in mixtures to take advantage of the individual …

Productivity And Variability Of Pastures And Cover Crops In Lowland Rice-Pasture Rotations In Uruguay, Walter Ayala, J. Terra

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

No abstract provided.

Short-Term Soil Organic Matter And Carbon Responses To Contrasting Grazing Intensities In Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems, Erick R. Da Silva Santos, Jose C. B. Dubeux, B. G. C. Homem, Cheryl L. Mackowiak, Lynn E. Sollenberger, D. Wright

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Combining integrated crop-livestock systems under no-till management may improve soil organic matter (SOM) build up and improve soil C sequestration. Grazing cover crops appears as a possibility to combine crops and livestock in a farm system. Further SOM and soil C increase can be achieved by adding perennial grasses into crop rotations. However, the effect of grazing intensity in such systems are not fully understood. This 2-yr study investigated short-term effects of cropping system [winter cover crops-summer cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and winter cover crops-summer bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flüggé) rotations], grazing intensity (no grazing, heavy, moderate, and light …

Soil Compaction In Cropland Pastures Used For Winter Grazing, B. F. Tracy

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

In the northern United States, forage availability on cool season pastures declines rapidly late in the growing season (Moser & Hoveland 1996). To supplement low forage availability in the fall and winter, producers can graze livestock on cropland pastures containing annual cover crops and crop residues. Managed properly, cropland pastures can provide livestock with abundant, high quality forage that lasts long into winter. A potential issue with cropland pastures is that presence of cattle on moist, non sod-bearing soils could lead to severe soil compaction. The objective of this particular study was to determine how winter grazing on cropland pastures …

The Use Of Biological Soil Health Indicators To Quantify The Benefits Of Cover Crops, Alexander Wu

Masters Theses

Soils provide many essential functions that support the world. With a decline in soil health, these functions also decrease in efficiency, and can threaten the health of billions of people around the world. Typically, soil health tests do not use biological indicators, however microbes drive and perform vital functions to increase soil health. One way to increase soil health is through the use of cover crops to reduce soil erosion during fallow periods, increasing soil organic matter, as well as collecting nutrients from soil into their biomass. These cover crops are then terminated through various methods such as herbicides, disk …

The Use Of Cover Crops After A Maize Crop In The North Of Spain, D. Báez, M. Pinto, M. Rodríguez, G. Besga, J. M. Estavillo

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

This work intends to study N leaching losses in a field assay when crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) and italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) was incorporated into the soil and quantify the their effect on N₂O, N total gaseous losses under controlled soil moisture and temperature conditions. Field assay: A split-plot design where main plot was the cover crop and the subplot was the rate of fertilizer (0 and 150 kg N ha^-1) applied to the subsequent maize crop. Laboratory assay: Residues of italian ryegrass and crimson clover were mixed with soil in containers, …

Kansas Soil Health Partnership, C. B. Pires, I. A. Ciampitti, D. A. Ruiz Diaz, M. V. Sarto, Charles Rice

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

This study was part of a farmer-led initiative that fosters transformation in agriculture through improved soil health, benefitting farmer profitability, supporting a stable food supply, and preserving the environment. This study’s objective was to measure the effect of soil management strategies on the soil microbial community distribution and activity. Four farmers in Kansas were accepted into the program to conduct on-farm comparisons of a standard farm practice and an improved practice. This was ongoing research, and for this field research report, we are presenting the study at one of the selected farms. This site was located near Bucyrus, Miami County …

Management Implications Of A Rye Cover Crop On Nutrient Cycling And Soybean Production In Southeast South Dakota: Focus On Rye Seeding Rates And Termination Timing, Benjamin Brockmueller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Winter rye (Secale cereale L.) has become an important cover crop in South Dakota; yet, concerns over negative impacts on cash crop yields is one important limitation to the widespread adoption of winter rye in cropping systems. Two field studies were implemented at the Southeast Research Farm near Beresford, SD investigating the impacts of five seeding rates (0-90 kg ha^-1) and termination timings (April 19th- May31st) with the objectives of examining the roles of winter rye management practices on soybean production and yield from nutrient cycling of nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) in the agroecosystem. Plant, residue, …

Using Cover Crops To Recycle Nutrients In An Arkansas No-Till Corn System, Kelsey Lynn Hoegenauer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cover crops can provide many benefits to cropping systems including erosion control, weed suppression, and increased soil organic matter. Regardless of the intended goal for using cover crops, the changes to the nutrient flux in a cropping system caused by cover crops retaining and recycling nutrients needs to be considered in order to maximize the productivity of the following commodity crops. This research encompassed complementary greenhouse, field, and laboratory experiments to evaluate nutrient uptake and release by tillage radish (Raphanus sativus) and cereal rye (Secale cereale) cover crops, as well as the subsequent early-season recovery of recycled nutrients by the …

Conservation Agriculture In The Heartland: Farmer Perceptions Of Soil Health And The Adoption Of Cover Crops, Lillian Clarissa Cobo

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The benefits of cover crops are widely recognized by those interested in conservation agriculture and soil health. These benefits include soil erosion control, nutrient loss reduction, and overall improvement of soil health. However, while these benefits are well-documented, the adoption rate of cover crops in the American Heartland remains astoundingly low. While some studies have attempted to determine the reasons for this low adoption rate, the information relating to how farmer perceptions of soil health impact cover crop adoption is almost nonexistent. Furthermore, there is a clear absence of mixed method studies in the literature relating to this subject. This …

Cover Crops And Fertilization Alter Nitrogen Loss In Organic And Conventional Conservation Agriculture Systems, Rebecca E. Shelton, Krista L. Jacobsen, Rebecca L. Mcculley

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Agroecosystem nitrogen (N) loss produces greenhouse gases, induces eutrophication, and is costly for farmers; therefore, conservation agricultural management practices aimed at reducing N loss are increasingly adopted. However, the ecosystem consequences of these practices have not been well-studied. We quantified N loss via leaching, NH₃ volatilization, N₂O emissions, and N retention in plant and soil pools of corn conservation agroecosystems in Kentucky, USA. Three systems were evaluated: (1) an unfertilized, organic system with cover crops hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), winter wheat (Triticum aestivum), or a mix of the two (bi-culture); (2) an organic …

Electrical Resistivity Tomography Of Claypan Soils In Southeastern Kansas, M. A. Mathis Ii, S. E. Tucker-Kulesza, G. F. Sassenrath

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Claypan soils cover approximately 10 million acres across several states in the central United States. The soils are characterized by a highly impermeable clay layer within the profile that impedes water flow and root growth. While some claypan soils can be productive, they must be carefully managed to avoid reductions to crop productivity due to root restrictions, water, and nutrient limitations. Clay soils are usually resistant to erosion but may exacerbate erosion of the silt-loam topsoil.

Soil production potential is the capacity of soil to produce at a given level (yield per acre). The productive capacity is tied to soil …

Exploring The Physical, Chemical And Biological Components Of Soil: Improving Soil Health For Better Productive Capacity, G. F. Sassenrath, K. Davis, A. Sassenrath-Cole, N. Riding

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

“Soil health” is a term that is used to describe soil quality. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has defined soil health as “The continued capacity of soil to function as a vital living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals and humans (NRCS 2018).” For a farmer, soil health is the productive capacity of the soil, or the capacity of the soil to produce a crop or pasture. Healthy soils produce more and with better quality.

Soil health is critical for water and nutrient cycling. Soil captures rainwater and stores it for use by plants. Soil health is …

Cover Crop Establishment And Potential Benefits To Arkansas Farmers, Ashley Elizabeth Humphreys

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soybean farmers in Arkansas need best management practices (BMPs) that maximize the benefits of using cover crops including planting date and fertilization recommendations. An evaluation of cover crop species, planting dates, seeding rates, fertilizer rates, and N accumulation aids in providing these BMPs. The first objective of this research is to assess the effect of planting date on biomass production, as well as looking at the interaction of seeding rate or fertilizer rate for legumes or non-legumes, respectively, using Austrian winter pea (Pisum sativum), cereal rye (Secale cereale), black oats (Avena strigosa), wheat (Triticum aestivum), and tillage radish (Raphanus sativus). …

Scouting Benefits And Developing Innovations In Temperate Grassland To Sustainable Agriculture Production, Walter Ayala, Ethel Barrios, Ignacio Macedo, Jorge Sawchik, José A. Terra

IGC Proceedings (1997-2023)

Agricultural intensification raises concern about land use and future effects to natural resources. The world demand for grain, meat and forest products is increasing constantly. Changes are occurring at large scale, being a compromise for policy makers to contribute to identify opportunities to readdress the productive scenario. There is available technology to reduce impacts, without restricting necessarily productivity. Grasslands provide a large series of economical and ecological benefits to the agricultural systems, being the literature exhaustive in examples. Ley-farming and cover crops technologies are good examples of environmentally sound soil management practices. The society is also worried about an improper …

Decomposition And Nutrient Release Of Different Cover Crops In Organic Farm Systems, Jianru Shi

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Cover crops act as green manure adding organic matter to agricultural-soils. For legume green manures to be an effective nitrogen (N) source for organic farming systems, their N release must be in synchrony with crop N demand. The objectives of this study were 1) determine the decomposition rates of three common cover crops (white clover, (Trifolium repens,L ) red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) and soybean (Glycine max L) in order to determine when most N was released and its synchrony with subsequent corn crop uptake; 2) we focused on the effect of cover crops on soil …

Slurry Seeding Cover Crops, Edwin Alexander Suarez

Open Access Theses

Cover crops improve soil quality through increased organic matter, biological activity, aggregate stability, water infiltration, and nutrient cycling. Slurry seeding, the co-application of cover crop seed and swine (Sus domesticus) manure, is a new practice that saves fuel, time and labor. High salinity and/or ammonia, among other components in swine manure, may reduce cover crop seed germination and limit the use of slurry seeding. Ten cover crop species were evaluated to compare the effects of swine manure components on cover crop seed germination. Seed germination percentages and rates were affected by swine manure but not by equivalent salinity levels established …