By Ellen Friedrich, VT Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets
There are many different reasons why farmers and gardeners choose to use cover crops. As Heather Darby, an Extension Professor and Agronomist with the University of Vermont explained, “Cover crops are a critical component of our northeastern cropping systems and can help improve soil health, nutrient cycling, crop yields, and build overall soil resilience.”
However, not all cover crops are created equal. Different cover crop species & varieties are associated with different benefits and have different growing & management requirements. Choosing what cover crops are right for your farm and figuring out how to harness all the benefits of cover cropping can be challenging. Fortunately, the Northeast Cover Crop Council (NECC) has developed online decision support tools that can assist farmers, and those that work with farmers, with implementing cover crops.
Online support tools developed by the Northeast Cover Crop Council include a Cover Crop Selector Tool which can help farmers choose which cover crop species can best help them meet their farm goals, and a Cover Crop Nitrogen Calculator which helps predict nitrogen release after cover crop termination. These tools have been developed with special attention to the individualized needs of farmers. They provide context-specific information & recommendations which account for differences in climate and soils across farms and fields. According to Heather Darby, all the information included in the NECC resources is based off high-quality research which took place in the Northeast, “These tools have been built with data produced in the northeast and vetted by researchers and farmers”.
Heather Darby has been involved with the Northeast Cover Crop Council’s executive committee since the organization’s inception in 2016, including serving as the committee chair for the past two years. “It is a great organization with a simple goal of expanding and enhancing the adoption of cover crops across the northeast,” Heather shared. “The organization has representation of farmers, researchers, agricultural industry, government organizations, researchers, and extension from every state in the Northeast.”
The Northeast Cover Crops Council website holds a treasure trove of information about different cover crops species in the Northeast. This information is valuable for anyone who wants to learn more about different species or management options, whether you have been using cover crops for decades or are completely new to them. To access and take advantage of the Northeast Cover Crops Councils’ free-to-use decision support tools and other cover cropping resources visit their website at https://northeastcovercrops.com/
Cereal rye (Secale cereale), one of the most widely used cover crop species in the US, is one of many species featured in NECC Cover Crop Selector Tool