by Ken Root
Agronomist suggests planting a cover crop for your benefit.
In Central Iowa, agronomists are testing corn and finding there is a sizable amount of nitrogen that has not been used.
John Grandin is Senior Field Sales Agronomist for Growmark. His region is central Iowa. Grandin says growers should check their herbicide usage and the compatibility of the cover crop with the herbicide along with restrictions on use of any cover that may be harmful to livestock due to herbicide carryover.
He recommends a grass cover (cereal rye, wheat or triticale) rather than radishes, but says farmers need to plan now and plant at harvest with the intention of growing it as a crop. “It needs good seed to soil contact,” he says. Grandin also has some experience on timing: “Plant as soon as possible after harvest and grow it as a crop” Also, he recommends against planting oats in soybeans because a late harvest could be complicated by fast growing oats shooting up into the beans and making it tough for the combine John Grandin Full Interview.
