By Carlos Pires
With favorable soil moisture conditions this year, growers across North Dakota have an excellent opportunity to establish a fall-seeded cover crop, says Victor Gomes, NDSU Extension cropping systems specialist at NDSU’s Dickinson Research Extension Center (DREC).
Cover crops provide continuous living cover and roots, armor the soil, improve soil carbon and nutrient cycling, reduce erosion and runoff, help retain snow and can suppress weeds through competition.
For the first time since 2022, North Dakota is officially not in a drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Since May 1, much of southwest North Dakota has received close to 15 inches of precipitation, with some areas receiving more than an inch in the last 30 days. Localized areas of south-central North Dakota (Logan, McIntosh, LaMoure, and Dickey Counties) have received more than 9 inches in the past month.
“This is a sharp contrast to fall 2024, when drought left soils dry and delayed germination of fall-seeded cover crops,” shares Gomes.
Source : ndsu.edu