Demonstrating innovative techniques for the integration of Cover Crops and manure to improve soil health in cool climates

 There is a growing interest in the use of Cover Crops for soil health, but in northern climates adoption is still low due to the short growing season. Research has shown that by seeding Cover Crops while the cash crop is still growing, a practice called interseeding or overseeding, farmers can get successful and consistent cover crop stands. Another practice that frequently occurs in the fall is liquid manure application. While manure has also been shown to improve soil health, a negative drawback is that when applied early in the fall, there is the potential for significant losses of nutrients. If the manure is incorporated into a growing cover crop, however, the nutrients can be taken up and held in the plant until the following spring. Our goals are to develop best management practices for injecting manure into Cover Crops and then evaluate the impacts of these practices (alone or together) on soil health and nutrient cycling.