Iowa Cover Crops Conference February 17-18, 2015 West Des Moines, IA

1. COVER CROPS
Rick Juchems

2.  Farming in Butler & Bremer Counties since 1979
 470 acres of corn and soybean
 Finish 5,000 hogs annually
 Butler County SWCD
 Cedar Valley and Iowa League RC&D
 North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research
and Education (SARE) Administrative Council
 Butler County Farm Service Agency Board
Me & my farm

3.  470 cover crop acres
 Started cover crops in 2003
 Other conservation practices:
 Grass waterways
 Buffers along creeks
 Terraces
 CRP windbreaks
 No-tillage
 Terrace on rental acres
 Custom farm 80 acres with CRP
waterways being installed
 Shallow wetland area
Conservation on my farm

4. What are Cover Crops?
Cereal Rye Research Strips at Juchems’ Farm
PFI

5.  Reduces wind & water erosion
 Keeps soil and nutrients out of
the streams, lakes, rivers and
structural conservation practices
 Builds soil health: increases
organic matter levels and water
infiltration and storage capacity
 Fixes N and can reduce fertilizer
rates and costs
Cover Crop Benefits on My Farm
NRCS
Steve Berger
ISU

6. Additional Potential
Cover Crop Benefits
NRCS
 Can suppress weeds by
providing competition,
shading & allelopathic
characteristics
 Encourage beneficial biological
activity/microbial life in soil,
discourage disease
 Encourage beneficial insects,
prey on pests
 Reduce need/cost for
herbicides & pesticides

7.  Provides opportunity
for producers with
livestock to graze or
hay
 Provides winter food
and cover for birds &
other wildlife
 Opportunities for
Iowa businesses
Additional Potential
Cover Crop Benefits
PF
plantcovercrops.com

8.  Before Soybeans:
Winter Cereal Rye – 56 lbs/ac
(1 bu/ac)
 Before Corn:
Oats –38 lbs/ac (1 bu/ac)
Radishes – 3 lbs/ac
Cover Crops Used &
Fall 2014 Seeding Rates

9.  Aerial applied when
beans showed first tinge
of yellow and corn was
almost at black layer in
September
 Drill during harvest
Cover Crop Application
PFI

10.  Non overwintering cover crops:
 Oats & radishes were killed with a good frost
 Overwintering cover crops:
 Glyphosate Herbicide for cereal rye
 Tillage
Cover Crop Termination

44.  Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP)
 Flat rate per acre
 Payment varies by cover crop species used
 Can get it on the same acres every year for a maximum
of three consecutive years
 Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)
 5 year contract, annual payments
 Payment for existing conservation system plus payment
for enhancements to existing conservation system
 Continuous cover crops and cover crop mixtures CSP
cover crop enhancement options
 State Cost Share-varies by county
 Sometimes watershed project specific funding
available
Cover Crop Assistance