Cover crop establishment in late-season crops, like sweet corn, may be difficult due to the relatively short operational window following crop harvest. In regions like western Oregon, where fall-precipitation can occur when the crop is still in the field, cover crops may not be able to be planted, due to...
Published March 1984. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Published January 1984. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Annual cover crops are widely used in the Willamette Valley of Oregon on hill land, in orchards and on overflow river bottom land. Cover crops are grown to prevent soil erosion and to increase soil organic matter. The objectives of this study were to determine the crops that would be...
Cover crops planted in late summer are an inexpensive way to build better soil for gardening. Cover crops often are
called green manure crops. They are grains, grasses, or legumes that will grow during fall and winter and that you
can plow, spade, or till under in the spring.
Muchas personas plantan un cultivo de cobertura
en el otoño después de quitar las plantas anuales. En
este caso, use una variedad que tolere el frío. El trébol
carmesí es excelente para el oeste de Oregon. Antes
del 1 de octubre, siembre 1⁄2 libra de semillas por cada
1,000 pies...
To the North West horticulturist there is no
problem which confronts him of so great moment as that
of soil fertility; and. no phase of horticulture is
more deserving of the attention of fruit growers, than
is given at the present time to the growing of orchard.
cover crops.
Published January 1998. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Hairy vetch is used as a cover crop, green manure, pasture, silage, and hay. It is capable of accumulating large amounts of dry matter and nitrogen. When planted alone as a winter cover crop in annual vegetable rotations, it can provide substantial amounts of nitrogen (N) to a following crop.
Rapeseed is grown for its oil and meal, and as a cover crop. Rapid fall growth captures part of the available soil nitrogen, which otherwise might be lost to leaching, and provides good ground cover over winter.
Common vetch is a viny, succulent, annual legume attaining a height of 24 inches when planted alone. It grows taller when planted with a tall companion crop that provides structural support for climbing.
Annual ryegrass is an erect, robust cool-season bunch grass that reaches a height of 3 to 4 feet. Plants are yellowish-green at the base and have 12-inch long glossy leaves. This species has a heavy, extensive, fibrous root system.
Buckwheat is not likely to increase
soil organic matter content much
because dry matter production is
relatively low and tissues are succulent
and decompose very rapidly
when incorporated. However,
buckwheat can improve short-term
soil tilth and has been used to
prepare fields for transplants.
Three experiments whose objectives were to investigate cover
crop kill by winter freeze, weed suppression by 'Micah' barley and
other spring cereals, and allelopathic potential of cereal covers
were conducted at the Vegetable Research Farm and in the greenhouse
and growth chamber facilities at OSU in 1989/90. Kill by winter...
Nitrogen (N) is an important nutrient for crop growth. Winter cover crops planted after a commercial crop is harvested, or relay planted before harvest, can provide N for subsequent crops, thus saving money and improving soil quality. Furthermore, cover crops can recover N remaining in the soil following summer crops,...
Puerto Rico’s climate varies greatly even if it is categorized as a tropical climate. On some parts of the island, there are desert like conditions where rainfall averages 36 inches a year unlike the western side or the central part of the island where rainfall averages 200 inches.1 Heavy rains...
Organic vegetable growers rely on legume cover crops as an economical source of plant-available N. This research evaluated N contributions to summer vegetable crops by cover crops (CC) residues by monitoring soil nitrate (NO3-N) concentrations during the summer crop growing season. Replicated field plots were established with three CC mixes:...
Perennial grass cover crops are frequently grown between the vines in non-irrigated Oregon vineyards. The primary reasons for using cover crops are erosion control and to allow machinery access in wet weather. Grass cover crops may also have an effect on vine performance. These effects, however, are not always clear....
Cover crop selection and management depend on many factors, among them the cover crop’s ability to accumulate dry matter (i.e., residues) and nitrogen (N). Dry matter provides energy for soil organisms, contributes to soil organic matter, improves tilth, and acts as a sink for nutrients.
Strip tillage is a form of conservation tillage that involves tilling
narrow strips for crop establishment while leaving areas between the strips with undisturbed crop residue. Strip tillage can reduce soil erosion and soil compaction, as well as machinery, fuel, and labor costs. Combined with winter cover crops, strip tillage...
Crimson clover may be used as a cover crop, green manure, pasture, or hay. It often is used as a winter annual cover crop in annual rotations. It has been used successfully in reduced-tillage farming systems, and in orchards and vineyards where it can be managed to reseed itself.
Subclovers are used for forage and hay and have been used successfully in Oregon as fall-planted and relay interplanted cover crops in annual rotations. They are capable of accumulating substantial amounts of N, a portion of which is available to the following crop. Rapid growth suppresses weeds in spring.
Fava bean is used as a winter or spring cover crop, green manure, silage, forage, hay, and vegetable. It is capable of producing large amounts of dry matter and accumulating large quantities of nitrogen (N), part of which is available to subsequent crops.
Organic vegetable growers rely on legume cover crops as an economical source of plant-available N. This research evaluated N contributions to summer vegetable crops by cover crops (CC) residues by monitoring soil nitrate (NO3-N) concentrations during the summer crop growing season. Replicated field plots were established with three CC mixes:...
The objectives of this study are to determine:
· How vine vigor and fruit composition vary in different alleyway management regimes: solid vegetative cover vs. every other alleyway of vegetative cover removed
· What differences are observed in different alleyway management regimes within a vineyard
· What differences are observed...
Competition between ‘Pinot noir’ grapevines and alleyway cover crops
was evaluated in two commercial vineyards in western Oregon. Seven
cover crop treatments including a clean-cultivated control were applied
in the fall of 2003 and their impact on vines was monitored in 2004
and 2005. Competition with grapevines was assessed by...
Three different cover crop treatments were compared for their effects on vine growth, leaf gas exchange, yield parameters and fruit composition. The treatments were: resident plants, an insectary plant mixture and a grass cover. At veraison (August 2 1), photosynthesis rate was lowest for the vines with the grass cover...
Nitrogen availability in agricultural soils from fertilizer, plant residue inputs, and soil organic matter has important implications beyond crop yield. Legume winter cover crops and one fourth the recommended N rate on sweet corn resulted in yields equivalent to those at the recommended rate in the Willamette Valley of western...
Field and greenhouse experiments were conducted in 1996 and 1997 to evaluate the effects of integrating conservation tillage and cover cropping on broccoli production as well as agroecological parameters. A field experiment was conducted during 1996-97 at the Oregon State University Horticulture Research farm near Corvallis, OR. The specific objectives...
Sudangrass and sorghum sudangrass crosses are used as warm season cover crops, forage, and silage. When used as a cover crop, their fibrous roots and organic matter contributions improve soil structure; and their rapid, dense growth suppresses weeds.
Published July 1987. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
This project is evaluating interseeding of crop crops to improve cover crop establishment after late harvested crops such as sweet corn and processing squash. In Project 1 at the OSU Vegetable Research Farm, a cover crop of oat and crimson clover produced the most cover crop biomass when interseeded at...
Legume cover crops can serve as important sources of nitrogen (N) in sustainable agriculture and can be economically beneficial when fertilizer inputs are reduced without a yield reduction. Synchronizing N mineralization from organic materials with the needs of the subsequent crop is a challenge for organic growers.
Predicting plant available...
Although legumes have been widely studied for their nitrogen-fixing ability, it is uncertain to what extent legume cover crops achieve their nitrogen-fixing potential under the climatic conditions encountered in western Oregon. Furthermore, it is unknown what factors control the proportions of legume cover crop N that are either sequestered into...
This publication assists western Oregon farmers and agricultural professionals in determining the nitrogen fertilizer replacement value of winter cover crops. Includes information on plant-available nitrogen (PAN) basics; a site-specific, step-by-step method to estimate PAN; Willamette Valley case studies; and appendices summarizing Willamette Valley cover crop research that supports these PAN...
The experiment was conducted to compare multiple pest (weed, soil arthropod and diseases) suppression by cereal cover crops in 'Selva' and 'Totem' strawberry. In addition, perlite was used to compare improvement of soil and root aeration which might modify strawberry black root rot complex. Small-seeded summer annual weeds were suppressed...
Revised June 1951. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Published August 1937. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog
Traditionally, M. chitwoodi is controlled with
chemical nematicides, many of which risk
suspension for use on potatoes due to health and
environmental concerns. It is essential to develop
and refine alternative strategies for controlling
Columbia root-knot nematode now, so that
productive and profitable potato acreage will not
be lost if...
Published April 1968. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the OSU Extension Catalog: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog