Cover Crops

ADAS has the largest group of crop physiologists in the UK The ADAS crop physiology team focuses on improving performance and sustainability of cropping systems for food, feed and biofuel production.

Today’s farmers keenly understand their roles as custodians of our farmed environment. Agriculture is a vital industry in East Anglia, but in the driest region in the UK water supplies are precious and needs safeguarding.  Anglian Water is working closely with farmers to ensure that we maintain healthy water quality as well as healthy crops and a healthy rural economy.

Project objectives To quantify the impact of contrasting cover crop mixes and destruction techniques on over winter nitrate leaching, soil nitrogen supply (and hence crop nitrogen fertiliser requirements) and performance of the following cash crop. In particular to determine the: effect of cover crop species mix on the quantity and timing of nitrogen returned to the soil effect of cover crop destruction method e.g. glyphosate & min till/direct drill vs mechanical destruction & min till/direct drill To determine the timing of nitrogen release from cover crops and potential legacy (year 2) effects on nitrate leaching and crop performance

Results from an Innovative Farmers Field Lab with University of Lincoln and Anglian Water showed benefits from drilling rather than broadcasting to establish a catch crop.   

A half-day workshop will share new findings about the management of ground cover to improve soil quality and improve nutrient retention, and discuss how to incorporate these findings into arable rotations.

Despite the many benefits of growing maize, conventional growing practices can lead to negative environmental impacts, particularly in terms of soil erosion and runoff.   A group of farmers in the SW have set up a field lab to demonstrate that by changing the way maize is grown, you can reduce these negative impacts without reducing yield.  These changes include a move to strip tilling rather than conventional ploughing, and trialing different cover crops, both seasonal and perennial,  to enhance soil health and reduce inputs.

FABulous Farmers is a European project supporting farmers in the transition to more agroecological practices on their farms. Soil Association are delivering activity in 3 UK pilot regions – South West England, West Midlands and Wales, with the National Trust leading activity in the East England. The project aims to reduce reliance on external inputs, like chemical fertilisers and pesticides, by encouraging the use of methods and interventions that increase the farm’s Functional AgroBiodiversity (FAB). These are targeted measures of biodiversity in and around the field to improve pollination, pest management, soil and water quality on the farmland.

This field lab's objective is to investigate the potential of living mulches, creating a permanent clover understory to suppress weeds, cycle nutrients, protect and enhance soil health, as a means to achieving organic and low-input no-till systems - that can be more sustainable than those systems they seek to replace.

This Field Lab explores the impact of grazing sheep on over-winter cover crops on soil properties, crop performance and the management of livestock within an arable rotation.

Dyson Farming are trialling a range of cover crop species together with Anglian Water and Boston Seeds. Cover crops benefit soils by protecting them from excess water, ice and wind and also maintain nitrogen levels and other nutrients to benefit the next crop.

A joint AFCP and NIAB event exploring what research is needed by farmers and stakeholders.  Hear from researchers looking at cover crops for soil structure and health; fungus and plant nutrient exchange; alleviating subsoil compaction; and more.

Will Dickinson - Cross Farm.

Cover crop establishment is affected by several factors, including species, soil type, weather and the rotation. Time of sowing, seed rates and establishment methods all need to be considered.

Concerns over the increasing cost and environmental impact of high inorganic nitrogen (N) inputs have led to a reappraisal of the role of legumes, particularly clover, in maintaining soil fertility in improved grasslands.

Find out about the different types of cover crops, their potential benefits, and how to grow and evaluate them.

COVER CROPS USE ACROSS EUROPE

Cover crops are usually planted within arable rotations between cash crops. They provide a multitude of benefits including building soil fertility, improving soil health and enhancing above and below ground biodiversity.  They provide a multitude of benefits including building soil fertility, improving soil health and enhancing above and below ground biodiversity.  

Vining peas are vulnerable to poor soil conditions and soil borne pathogens. Cover crops can be used to improve soil structure and health.

The ADAS soils and nutrients team will share and discuss results from our recent cover crop research with Affinity Water, Anglian Water, and Portsmouth Water.

A farmer-led guide to cover cropping in the UK

A well-managed cover crop can conserve and protect the soil, boost productivity, capture nitrogen and phosphorus leftover from a main crop or from fall applied manure, and if harvested in the spring, provide additional forage for dairy cattle and other livestock.

Exploring how cover crops can be incorporated into rotations 

On many arable farms, modern agricultural production has seen the continual removal of residues and intensive tillage of the soil.

There is no shortage of information available on cover crops. However, successfully integrating cover crops into arable rotations, while understanding and navigating the positive and negative impacts can be difficult.

Wireworms are the larval stage of click beetles.

Every farm and field is different, with a wide interplay of different factors impacting on optimum soil management between them.

Technical Guide

 Sheep and arable farmers lack insight into each other’s work and viewpoint on cover crop.

Join us for a morning tour and chat with Nuffield Scholar Toby, as we explore the benefits of cover cropping for climate-friendly farming.

A practical guide to soil and system improvement

Good cover crop destruction will help to pave the way for successful spring cover crop establishment.

Cover crops and green manures have multiple positive effects on the soil health. But like all methods, this best practice has also some disadvantages.

Cover crops should be viewed as a long-term investment in improved soil health and farm management.