Cover crop choice

[normandyfarmer]

Phacelia will reseed if drilled (very) early. If it's fully developed it will freeze easy or can be killed with a pass of roll.
@Simon Chiles if your volunteers are small they might not freeze.

 

[martian]

What is phacelia and can it be grazed if in a mix.

To answer the grazing bit...yes you can. We planted it in a mix with Pedders No 1 and the cattle eat it down to the ground and look very well on it. Not very scientific I know, but will weigh beasts when they eventually come in (or get near yards) and see how they compare to those yarded all winter.

 

[Simon Chiles]

Phacelia will reseed if drilled (very) early. If it's fully developed it will freeze easy or can be killed with a pass of roll.
@Simon Chiles if your volunteers are small they might not freeze.

It's about .3m tall and has had a few light frosts so far, which hasn't seemed to slow it up yet!

 

[Cutlerstom]

Re visiting this thread again.....who is cover cropping between say a spring barley crop and a winter cereal? I have rape in the rotation, so mustard is out, but what grows really quickly - I anticipate at best a 7 week window from combine to drilling cash crop. Are spring oats an option? @Clive you have done some summer cover crops haven't you?

 

[Clive]

Re visiting this thread again.....who is cover cropping between say a spring barley crop and a winter cereal? I have rape in the rotation, so mustard is out, but what grows really quickly - I anticipate at best a 7 week window from combine to drilling cash crop. Are spring oats an option? @Clive you have done some summer cover crops haven't you?

I don't like last oats in cover crops and certainly wouldn't follow them with a cereal (bad allopathy and acidic breakdown)

If you can get it in fast I would suggest sunflower, and radish, linseed maybe some beans - you will be amazed how fast stuff grows at that time of year !!

 

[Cutlerstom]

Thanks Clive

 

[dontknowanything]

Spring barley and a winter cereal?

I would have said that's a waste of money and time.

 

[Cutlerstom]

Why do you say that?

Spring barley and a winter cereal?

I would have said that's a waste of money and time.

 

[dontknowanything]

Why do you say that?

Not enough time.

Mid August for 6 weeks... Very marginal

 

[Richard III]

Not enough time.

Mid August for 6 weeks... Very marginal

It probably is marginal, but after seeing what a cover has done here between rape and wheat, it could be worth it in some years. I'm now a big fan of sowing into the green in the autumn, I reckon so long as reasonably good ground cover was achieved it would pay.

 

[6910]

I don't like last oats in cover crops and certainly wouldn't follow them with a cereal (bad allopathy and acidic breakdown)

If you can get it in fast I would suggest sunflower, and radish, linseed maybe some beans - you will be amazed how fast stuff grows at that time of year !!

Would it be better to leave beans out considering there's rape in the rotation

 

[dontknowanything]

It probably is marginal, but after seeing what a cover has done here between rape and wheat, it could be worth it in some years. I'm now a big fan of sowing into the green in the autumn, I reckon so long as reasonably good ground cover was achieved it would pay.

What's the difference in harvest between osr and s barley, three weeks?

 

[Clive]

Would it be better to leave beans out considering there's rape in the rotation

Why ? Rape is a brassica and beans a legume ?

No clash there that I can see ?

 

[dontknowanything]

Why ? Rape is a brassica and beans a legume ?

No clash there that I can see ?

Sclerotinia isn't it?

 

[Feldspar]

Sclerotinia isn't it?

There are two separate strains of sclerotinia. Rape gets the same as either winter or spring beans, but not both. I can't remember off the top of my head which one it is.

 

[dontknowanything]

There are two separate strains of sclerotinia. Rape gets the same as either winter or spring beans, but not both. I can't remember off the top of my head which one it is.

Spring.

 

[Clive]

Sclerotinia isn't it?

really wouldn't put me off growing beans and osr in the same rotation (as many do)

mustard in a OSR rotation is not so wise but i wouldn't loose sleep over beans in my cover crops at all

 

[Pedders]

Re visiting this thread again.....who is cover cropping between say a spring barley crop and a winter cereal? I have rape in the rotation, so mustard is out, but what grows really quickly - I anticipate at best a 7 week window from combine to drilling cash crop. Are spring oats an option? @Clive you have done some summer cover crops haven't you?

...would suggest a mix of sunflower buckwheat linseed and peas as being the most cost effective and quick growing if you're insisting you don't want brassicas ..but I'm not convinced that 7 weeks of a brassica in a mix would cause any club root problems

 

[Clive]

Not enough time.

Mid August for 6 weeks... Very marginal

depends on weather really and harvest dates - this year we had early OSR harvest and then some moisture to get things going, CC growth was worthwhile pre wheat - @Tom Sewell had some good results as well IIRC

It's why I would say keep seed spend down below £25/ha ie its a gamble but an affordable one, I will probably just use home saved linseed, beans, millet. pea and lupin pre autumn covers for this reason as cost will be negligible

 

[dontknowanything]

depends on weather really and harvest dates - this year we had early OSR harvest and then some moisture to get things going, CC growth was worthwhile pre wheat - @Tom Sewell had some good results as well IIRC

It's why I would say keep seed spend down below £25/ha ie its a gamble but an affordable one, I will probably just use home saved linseed, beans, millet. pea and lupin pre autumn covers for this reason as cost will be negligible

Yes, like I said a few posts ago, after OSR fine, but three weeks later than that with spring barley? Not for me.