Effectively integrating a cereal rye cover crop into corn is not for the faint of heart.
Cereal rye can deliver tremendous benefits for a corn production system but there are challenges. Many growers wrestle with how to get uniform establishment in the fall; determining the best nitrogen and tillage plans; and finding that sweet spot for timing termination before corn planting.
On this of The Sharp Edge, Maizex Seeds agronomist Greg Stewart visits with farmer and agronomist Tony Balkwill, who operates NithField Advanced Agronomy near Drumbo, Ont.
Balkwill has developed a system to try to deal with these challenges. He plants twin-row rye with potash in the fall in a strip at 30-inch centres. Potash and rye seed run out of separate tanks, but they can be mixed together, says Balkwill. Key to establishing the rye is to plant into some kind of tillage - in this case strip tillage. This allows for a reduced planting rate and produces uniform rye emergence and stand establishment.
#farming #striptillage #agriculture #corn
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