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Organic winter pea field in Freedom, WI. June 2018.
COVER CROP LEGUMES & BRASSICAS LEGUME COVER CROPS
Hairy Vetch*
Winter annual, viney cover crop legume with purple blossoms and compound leaves. Exceptional biomass; can be a heavy N-fixer (up to 100+ lbs. N/acre at flowering). Improves soil structure, scavenges P, and competes well against early season weeds. Can winterkill if planted past recommended dates. • Best fall-planted legume for nitrogen fixation • Companion seed with oats, winter rye or another nurse crop to increase chances of winter survival • Produces hard seed; control plant before seed set • Very viney: can clog equipment • Do not seed into small grains if harvesting for marketable grain: seed is hard to separate from small grains Organic: $2.30/lb $115/50 lb bag Conventional: $1.80/lb $90/50 lb bag
Sainfoin*
• Non-bloating legume that has attractive flowers for pollinators • Highly drought tolerant, excellent choice in a rangeland mix or as a stand-alone replacement for alfalfa • Deep-rooting system breaks up soil compaction and increases water infiltration • Performs best on well drained or sandy soils • Will not perform well on wet soils: prone to root/crown rot diseases. Best on dry rangeland • May contain high amounts of hard seed Organic: $2.20/lb $110/50 lb bag Conventional: $2.20/lb $110/50 lb bag
Subterranean Clover* Spring Peas*
• Low profile shade tolerant annual clover • Tolerant of wet conditions • Incredible weed suppression ability and can be grazed unlike hairy vetch • Will winter kill in the upper Midwest, winter hardy in zone 7A and south • Fixes large amount of nitrogen and can be interseeded into corn at last cultivation or flown on
Conventional: $3.80/lb $209/55 lb bag
Purple Bounty Hairy Vetch • Winter hardy, early maturing hairy vetch from USDA • Selected for high nitrogen fixation potential and increased biomass • Flowers two weeks earlier than VNS hairy vetch making it ideal for Upper Midwest rotations
Organic: $ASK
Conventional: $2.40/lb $120/50 lb bag
Chickling Vetch*
• Viney, spring-seeded cover crop legume used for plowdown and N production • Frost and drought tolerant, high moisture efficiency • 8-10 weeks of growth produces 80-100lbs N/acre • Can be cut for forage, but do not feed seed to livestock • Do not broadcast seed
Conventional: $58/50 lb bag
Common Vetch*
• Viney legume with pea-like flowers, compound leaves • Good growth for cover cropping if seeded early in the fall, excellent candidate for aerial application • Will winterkill in the Upper Midwest
Conventional: $1.20/lb $60/50 lb bag
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COVER CROPS
• Good legume option for early spring or fall cover cropping • Excellent forage quality for grazing or cut forage in the fall or spring; best companion seeded with a small grain for optimum tonnage • Peas need to be drilled or planted, not broadcast
Organic: $26/50 lb bag
Conventional: $19/50 lb bag
Icicle Winter Peas
• Strong winter hardiness – potential for overwintering in the Upper-Midwest • Excellent root system and high biomass production in the spring • Small seed with good viability; lowers seeding costs • White flower; more digestible and sweeter tasting to livestock compared to Austrian Winter peas • Can also be used as spring forage pea in cover crop mixes or forage blends
Conventional: $ASK
Austrian Winter Peas*
• Viney, fall-seeded, winter annual legume excellent for use as cover crop or forage crop • Can produce up to 1-2 tons dry matter/acre and fix 90-150 lbs. N/acre • High quality forage with a protein content of 14% to 20% • Not reliably winter hardy in MN/WI/ SD, plant early in the season with a nurse crop to ensure best chance of survival
Organic: $ASK
Conventional: $28/50 lb bag