Dear
Jeff,
I am interested in no-till organic farming with corn, soybeans,
wheat for the transition period. It concerns me to have to
wait on the rye to mature to plant and the amount of moisture
it can pull from the ground and the consequences of dry weather
to follow after the cash crop is planted. Is there an earlier
maturing rye for rolling? (Please respond quickly, as I am
ready to order the seed.) What is the rye rate of planting
for soybeans to follow and the rye-hairy vetch-oats rate for
corn to follow? Do you use straight blades instead of wavy
coulters in front of the planter row units and small wheels
on each side to hold the mat down and slice through it? Have
you found the foam marker to suffice as a marker for planting
in the tall cover crop? I have a GPS system also. The roller
is the only thing I need to give this idea a good try. I have
the bulk fertilizer storage and containment system, front
3 point hitch and no-till drill and am ready to order the
roller for next spring. 160 acres has been set aside for the
three year rotation to test this no-till organic concept.
There are so many reasons to go this way, it behooves me to
search this out and give it an honest try. Is there a phone
number I can call for quick information for in-season help?
Vaughn Jackson
Ohio
Dear Vaughn,
You have asked a bunch of good questions here, so I’ll
break them down and try to answer them one at a time.
Q# 1. It concerns me to have to wait on the rye to
mature to plant and the amount of moisture it can pull from
the ground and the consequences of dry weather to follow after
the cash crop is planted. Is there an earlier maturing rye
for rolling? This is a good point to consider in
this system. We all have seen where rye can pull moisture
out of the soil. I have not experienced any negative impact
in soybeans but certainly have if I try to follow corn into
the rye. I don’t know of any specific rye that will
mature earlier. I have noticed that rye planted earlier in
the fall rather than late will tend to mature sooner in the
spring. It is often the case with small grains that the earlier
maturing varieties have shorter straw lengths. Here is where
you’ll need to balance out the amount of biomass (the
straw) versus the early maturing traits. It’s the biomass
that suppresses the weeds. If your rye is expected to be a
short-strawed type I’d bump the seeding rate up to 3.5
to 4 Bu/A to compensate.
Q# 2. What is the rye rate of planting for soybeans
to follow and the rye-hairy vetch-oats rate for corn to follow?
I normally plant my rye cover crop at 2 to 2.5 Bu/A. I’ve
also been planting vetch as a straight stand without any small
grain at about 28 lb/A. If I were to mix in oats or rye I’d
reduce the rate down to 20lbs of vetch and about 1.5 Bu of
the rye or oats.
Q# 3. Do you use straight blades instead of wavy
coulters in front of the planter row units and small wheels
on each side to hold the mat down and slice through it?
I use blades that have a slight wave to them, about 1 inch.
I don’t have the small wheel system on my planter to
prevent “hair pinning” but I haven’t had
that problem with the planter I use. The potential for this
condition to happen is certainly there and some folks have
experienced that problem. There is a small planter manufacturer
in Pennsylvania who is working on a wheel system for planters,
Pequea Planter. They might have more information on how their
system is working out.
Q# 4. Have you found the foam marker to suffice as
a marker for planting in the tall cover crop? I have
a GPS system also. I use conventional row markers on my planter.
I would think foam markers might help, especially on wider
planters. A GPS system isn’t needed but if you have
one and you already are set up to use it, why not.
Q# 5. Is there a phone number I can call for quick
information for in-season help? You can call me anytime
at 610-683-1420.
Jeff
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