Improved soil health, reduced erosion and increased soil organic matter are the main benefits for farmers in the United States who use cover crops. These are some of the main findings in the fourth annual Cover Crop Survey of more than 2,000 farmers across 48 U.S. states.
The survey was carried out by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Agency (SARE) and the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC). The 2015-16 survey shows that plantings of cover crops are rising steadily and projected plantings are expected to continue the trend.
While a majority of farmers saw no loss in profit, about one-third found a profit increase from using cover crops, while only 5.7% had a reduction in profit. Asked whether cover crops reduced yield variability during extreme weather events, two-thirds of the respondents agreed.
Farmers also reported modest yield gains in both corn (1.9%) and soybeans (2.8%) following the use of cover crops, and indicated that the popular practice of planting a cereal rye cover crop before soybeans had a positive effect on both yield and broadleaf weed control for a majority of respondents.