Grown between harvest in the fall and spring planting, cover crops have numerous benefits:

• they can help slow the flow of surface water off the fields
• take up extra nitrogen
• improve soil health with their root systems and biomass.

 

 

 

 

Several resources are available for cover crop management:

Improving Cash Crop Stand Establishment in Cover Crops - Iowa Soybean Association publication (PDF file)

Midwest Cover Crop Council website

Practical Farmers of Iowa  website