Abstract

Interseeding is a strategy to plant cover crops directly into a growing crop of corn silage providing for earlier planting to hopefully maximize the conservation and ecological benefits of the cover crop. Farmers are interested in selecting cover crop species for specific value-added benefits. As an example, farmers are interested in using cover crops as a high-quality forage. This strategy can increase the direct benefit to the farmer. However, there are several challenges limiting farmer adoption and success with interseeding cover crops. Interseeding when corn is between the V2 to V6 growth stage is preferable because after corn has reached the V6 stage, most seeding equipment is not tall enough, increasing the risk of damaging the corn crop. This requires owning or having access to specialized cover crop interseeding equipment. Another challenge is that typical row spacings and plant populations create shade that limits cover crop establishment and growth. The solar corridor system is an alternative cropping system that is designed to increase the availability of sunlight to all rows, which can improve crop growth and nutrient cycling in the soil. Increasing the row width of corn silage may improve interseeded cover crop growth, but it is still important to maintain cash crop yields.

The ability to establish a perennial forage crop into the growing corn crop might provide additional value to the farm. The University of Vermont Extension Northwest Crops and Soils Program (NWCS) has conducted three years of research trials incorporating solar corridors into corn silage crop systems, comparing corn yield and cover crop biomass in different row spacings, and found that typical 30” row spacing produces significantly higher corn yields compared to 60” row spacing. Inversely, cover crop biomass significantly increases when interseeded into 60” rows compared to 30” rows. There is increasing interest from producers to incorporate alternative cropping systems, but these practices need to be fine-tuned in order to maintain crop productivity and increase interseeded cover crop success. Increasing corn row widths to 36” or 40” may minimize the yield loss while still allowing for successful cover crop establishment. In 2023, UVM Extension NWCS conducted a field experiment and an on-farm research trial at three locations to study the effect that corn row width has on silage yields and interseeded forage establishment.

Publication Date

3-2024

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