Performance of red clover and oilseed radish interseeded into corn

View the project final report

• 2009 annual report

Commodities

• Agronomic: corn, rapeseed

Practices

• Crop Production: cover crops, intercropping, no-till, nutrient cycling, organic fertilizers
• Education and Training: demonstration, farmer to farmer, on-farm/ranch research, workshop
• Production Systems: general crop production
• Soil Management: earthworms, organic matter

Getting a cover crop planted and growing between the corn harvest and the first killing frost is basically impossible in much of the region’s climate, and interseeding is a proven way to establish a cover crop, improve the soil, and reduce dependence on nitrogen fertilizer. The farmer will test red clover and oilseed radish interseeded in a young corn crop to measure competition with the primary crop, weed control, cover-crop biomass, and corn yield in both the year the cover crops are established and the following year. Outreach will be done through a field day, a pamphlet, and a winter workshop; the test site will also be used as a demonstration field for undergraduate education.