Time to get in Cover Crop

To say it's been a tough year for farmers, would be an understatement. The 2011 growing season has been marked by heavy rains, high winds, flooding, and extreme heat. Rob Shortell, former Rutgers grad student and now Assistant Professor at Cal Poly, got it right when he said, farming is about the details… "it's the weather, the timing, the attentiveness to details."

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And right now we've got a small window of opportunity to get in cover crops. There are only about 7 NJ fall seeding days for ideal establishment.

At RAREC, we had a perfect day on Thursday, September 22, and planted ...

High Tunnel Cover Crop Evaluation

Four cover crops will be evaluated in High Tunnels at RAREC this Fall.

Phacelia
Photo courtesy University of Delaware

Cover Crop Trials for Soil Health and Farm Profits

Four exciting cover crop field demonstrations are being conducted this season around New Jersey to improve Coastal Plain soil quality and increase long-term farm profits. Let us know if you would like to get involved and help with any of these projects, or just stay aware of their progress and results. -Jack Rabin

• Using a roller-crimper on rye cover crop followed winter squash
• Biomass accumulation of five Summer cover crops
• Forage radish as Fall cover crop
• Using a roller-crimper on processing tomatoes