This week’s podcast, sponsored by NewLeaf Symbiotics, features Katja Koehler-Cole, Research Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska. Koehler-Cole will discuss how soil nitrates are lost in corn-soybean rotations, the role of soil microbes in the soil, what cover crops provide soil microbes, and more.

This week’s podcast, sponsored by NewLeaf Symbiotics, features Liz Ripley, Cover Crop Specialist with Iowa State University. Ripley will discuss how cover crops reduce nitrate losses from corn and soybean fields, cover crops and the 4Rs of nitrogen management, how growers determine the correct type of fertilizer to use, and more.

Farm profitability from grain production is an age-old concern of farmers. Improving yield stability is also an important management strategy to counteract weather extremes (i.e., heat waves, droughts, flooding) that stress both crop growth and farm profitability. Farmers need reliable information about the effectiveness of crop rotation and fertilizer management that involves many years of data to account for the year-to-year variability in growing conditions. Read more in this article from University of Nebraska Extension.

Researchers at the University of Manitoba (UM) have shared the results from the 2020 Prairie Cover Crop Survey which capture a snapshot of the use and grower observations of this new practice. The report suggests that cover crops are becoming established in the Prairies and can be grown in a wide range of locations and environments across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Both traditional and organic producers are increasing their use of cover crops for a variety of reasons — to control erosion, choke out weeds, improve soil health and enhance water availability. Now research by University of Georgia scientists is examining which cover crops may also provide important habitat for predatory insects that could help control disease- and damage-causing pests in cotton.

Cover crops can make major changes to the soil, including improving soil biology, increasing water infiltration, enhancing soil aggregation, and more. A special grower panel will be held during the 2021 Fall National Cover Crop Summit to discuss what covers can do when it comes to soil health.

Cover crops are widely seen as one of the most promising conservation practices, improving soil health while also removing carbon from the atmosphere. But while the number of Midwestern farmers planting cover crops has increased markedly in recent years, 2017 USDA Census data show only about 5% have adopted the conservation practice. Read more in this article from the University of Illinois.

Earlier this season, a lack of soil moisture across much of the state raised concerns about the potential for successful cover crop establishment this fall. Most areas still need more moisture to recharge the soil profile but recent rains have improved the moisture status overall. This has also improved the likelihood for successful establishment of a cereal rye cover crop this fall. Read more in this article from University of Minnesota Extension.

Farmers do not often think about how their management practices can influence the rate of photosynthesis. Photosynthesis has always been assumed to be constant, but it is not. Read more in this article from Ohio's Country Journal.

Carbon sequestration is coming up often in the farm press as we learn about another stream of farm income rising from our land-management practices. Why is adding carbon to the soil worth money to farmers, you might ask? Read more in this article from the Culpeper Star-Exponent (Culpeper, Virginia).