Cover crops expand forage options, but require management of potential nutritional and medical issues, according to Travis Meteer, University of Illinois Extension commercial agriculture beef educator. Find out more in this article from Farm Week Now.

The 2019 growing season has been challenging to say the least, especially when it came to planting and harvesting forages for winter feeding. The wet conditions didn’t allow for entry into fields on time or even for planting crops in some fields. But there are fall-forage options available to plant to extend winter and early-spring feed supply.

Cover crops protect soil and water quality and often provide a valuable source of livestock feed. However, not much research has been done regarding the value and viability of using cover crops for forage. A new study supported by the Iowa Nutrient Research Center and Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture evaluated the use of cover crops to get a better understanding of its forage yield and quality, cattle performance, and soil health. Find out more in this article by Michaela King with Hay & Forage Grower.

A large quantity of forage will likely be harvested from prevented plant acres this year, given the 2019 changes to USDA RMA’s prevented planting rules. This article from University of Minnesota Extension outlines factors to consider for successfully selecting the best forage cover crops to use on prevent plant acres.

After a few weeks of talking about cover crop options on prevented planting acres that could not be hayed or grazed until Nov. 1, the date changed to Sept. 1. With this new date in mind, we can now talk about mixes that produce high quality material for haying or grazing. Read more in this article from AgWeek.

While cover crops offer flexibility in cropping systems and a great source of livestock feed, they could pose a risk of nitrate toxicity, according to Janna Block, livestock systems specialist at North Dakota State University’s Hettinger Research Extension Center.

Many farmers will soon be considering whether to plant cover crops on prevent plant acres. If prevent planting payments are received through crop insurance, there are species selection and forage use requirements associated with cover crops.

Farmers who planted cover crops on prevented plant acres will be permitted to hay, graze or chop those fields earlier than November this year, the USDA announced.