Abstract
Cover crop-based, organic rotational no-till (CCORNT) corn and soybean production is becoming a viable strategy for reducing tillage in organic annual grain systems in the mid-Atlantic, United States. This strategy relies on mechanical termination of cover crops with a roller-crimper and no-till planting corn and soybean into cover crop mulches. Here, we report on recent research that focuses on integrated approaches for crop, nutrient and pest management in CCORNT systems that consider system and regional constraints for adoption in the mid-Atlantic. Our research suggests that no-till planting soybean into roller-crimped cereal rye can produce consistent yields. However, constraints to fertility management have produced less consistent no-till corn yields. Our research shows that grass-legume mixtures can improve N-release synchrony with corn demand and also improve weed suppression. Integration of high-residue inter-row cultivation improves weed control consistency and may reduce reliance on optimizing cover crop biomass accumulation for weed suppression. System-specific strategies are needed to address volunteer cover crops in later rotational phases, which result from incomplete cover crop termination with the roller crimper. The paucity of adequate machinery for optimizing establishment of cash crops into thick residue mulch remains a major constraint on CCORNT adoption. Similarly, breeding efforts are needed to improve cover crop germplasm and develop regionally-adapted varieties.
Highlights
Demand for organic grains continues to increase in the United States in response to growing consumer preference for organic feed and food-grade agricultural products [1]
Simulation models indicate that a rotational no-till approach has the potential to increase C sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase energy efficiency via reduced diesel fuel and labor needs in comparison to current tillage-based organic annual grain systems that rely on primary tillage before both cover and cash crops [13]
In the last five years, significant progress has been made in improving the viability of these cropping systems in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S For soybeans, CCORNT production holds particular promise that improved planter technology has increased crop performance and competiveness against weeds and high-residue cultivators are commercially available to manage perennial and annual weeds not controlled by the mulch
Summary
Demand for organic grains continues to increase in the United States in response to growing consumer preference for organic feed (required for meat and milk production) and food-grade agricultural products (e.g., soymilk and tofu) [1]. CCORNT systems offer a viable alternative to tillage-based production and are being adopted by an increasing number of organic farmers [13,14] In these systems, winter annual cover crops are mechanically terminated in the spring using a roller-crimper, and the cash crop is no-till planted into the cover crop mulch. Simulation models indicate that a rotational no-till approach has the potential to increase C sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase energy efficiency via reduced diesel fuel and labor needs in comparison to current tillage-based organic annual grain systems that rely on primary tillage before both cover and cash crops [13]. In the mid-Atlantic, CCORNT corn and soybean research has primarily focused on developing general principles for optimizing cover crop performance and management, devising multi-tactic weed management strategies and improving cash crop planter configurations [13,14]. We identify major constraints and research priorities needed to further improve the potential of CCORNT in the mid-Atlantic U.S
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