Cover crop biomass production across establishment methods in mid‐Atlantic corn

Abstract

AbstractDrill‐interseeding, broadcast‐interseeding, and post‐harvest drilling for establishment of overwintering cover crops after no‐till corn (Zea mays L.) each present distinct challenges and benefits. Experiments were conducted at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville, MD) across three growing seasons (2013–2014, 2014–2015, 2015–2016) to evaluate the relative performance of these three establishment methods across four cover crop treatments: (a) cereal rye (Secale cereale L.), (b) annual ryegrass [Lolium perenne L. ssp. multiflorum (Lam.) Husnot], (c) a legume mixture including red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum L.), and hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth), and (d) a grass–legume mixture including annual ryegrass, red clover, crimson clover, and hairy vetch. Both fall and spring biomass showed a significant three‐way interaction effect among cover crop, establishment method, and year. Cereal rye had the greatest biomass with late post‐harvest drilling but produced less fall and spring biomass than other cover crops in the drill‐interseeded treatments in two of the three growing seasons. The drill‐interseeded legume mixture produced less spring biomass than annual ryegrass and the grass–legume mixture when established at a later corn growth stage. Our results highlight potential pitfalls of each establishment method and cover crop, depending on annual variability in weather and management.