



A lot of biomass-2-3
tons/acre
Winter Hardy
High Nitrogen Fixation100 plus lbs/acre
Wide window of
planting
August-mid October
 March
 Hard Seed, late
maturing





Large Biomass
High N fixation-80120 lbs/acre
Plant fall or early
spring
Not as winter hardy

Seedling Disease
problems




Plant AugustSeptember
Early spring maturity
Not as much biomass
as Hairy Vetch or Peas
Can reseed
themselves

Following Wheat

Summer Annual
Legumes
 Sunn Hemp
 Sesbania
 Cowpea
Cowpea
Sesbania
Sunn Hemp
Nodules-Symbiotic Relationship Between the Plant and the Bacteria.
Atmospheric Nitrogen is Fixed by the Bacteria For Use by the Plant.


Each Species of
Legume has a
Different Species of
Bacteria
You must match them
together.




Very Short Growing
season-60 days
Some Weed ControlAllelopathy
Inexpensive Seedmuch like wheat or
rye
Attract Beneficials?






Inexpensive Seed
Rye is very winter
hardy
Spring Oats is not
winter hardy
Rye tremendous dry
matter
Suppress weeds
Good to mix legumes






Plant in Fall
Overwinter-most of
the time
Deep Roots-5-6 ft
Scavenge Nitrogen
Dense matt controls
weeds
Can become a weed!

Late Summer Planted

Sequester Nitrogen

Loosen Soil

Weed Control?








Hairy Vetch-$2.0/lb or $40-50/acre
Austrian Winter Pea-$0.73/lb or $29-44/acre
Crimson Clover-$1.2/lb or $24/acre
Radish-$4 lb or $32/acre
Cereal Rye-$0.23 or $14-21/acre
Annual Rye-$0.80 or $16/acre
Sunn Hemp-$2.5/lb or $50-75/acre
Sesbania-$2.4/lb or $48/acre





Hairy Vetch-$40@ 100 lb N/acre=$0.40/lb
Austrian Winter Pea-$29@80 lb N/acre=0.36
Crimson Clover-$24@75 lb N/acre=0.32
Sunn Hemp-$50@120 lb N/acre=0.42
Sesbania-$48@120 lb N/acre=0.40

Weed Control



Smothering or
Allelopathy
Soil Health
-soil microbes
If no-till: soil
conservation
Cereal Rye and Hairy Vetch
Overseeded into Corn on September
6th 2011
Oats and Hairy Vetch Overseeded
Into Corn on September 6th 2011
Crimson Clover overseeded into
Corn on September 6th 2011
Crimson Clover drilled into soybean
Residue on October 12
Time
Early (May 4)
Hairy Vetch
lbs/acre
1,400
%N
3.82
Middle (May 15)
4,300
4.43
190
Late (May 31)
6,600
4.15
274
N lbs/acre
55
*Estimated based on 50 percent availability of vetch N. Data courtesy
of Robert Gallagher.

Loss of Organic
Matter

Release of CO2

Soil Erosion

Why Till?

Weed Control


What has happened
over the past 200
years?
Lost a foot of topsoil


This is what separates
us (Missouri) from
Central Iowa, Illinois,
Wisconsin, Indiana, etc
In these areas climatic
conditions favor the
accumulation of
Organic Matter

Slower breakdown,
long history of deep
rooted native perennial
plants

Nutrient Cycling




Water Dynamics



Nutrient Holding
Capacity
Pool of Nutrients
Food for soil organisms
Improves water
infiltration
Improves water holding
capacity
Structure


Reduces crusting,
compaction, erosion
Encourages root
development




Bacteria-100
million-1 Billion!
Fungal FilamentsSeveral Yards
Protoza-Several
Thousand
Nematodes-10-20

Weed Control



Smothering or
Allelopathy
Soil Health
-soil microbes
If no-till: soil
conservation



Soybean/Wheat/Corn
Rotation
Soybean/Wheat
Wheat
Sunn Hemp, Sesbania, or
Cowpea/ fb. rye
 Buckwheat fb. hairy
vetch, or other winter
legume
or a mix of legumes and
grasses


Corn
Overseed radish, rye, or
legume or wait until after
harvest
