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@cornellcovercrops.bsky.social
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Cover-crop commentary from Thomas Björkman, Cornell University Horticulture. covercrop.org Also @cropscover at X
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Jeff Liebert & colleagues looked at adoption of #covercrops among NY and CA vegetable farmers. 13% of cover crop users thought it used a lot of labor, but 26% of non users thought so. Can extension about low-labor approaches increase adoption?

link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Not as hard as it seems? Labor challenges and opportunities for agroecological practices in the United States - Agriculture and Human Values
Agroecology has been promoted as an alternative to industrial agriculture for many reasons, including the social and environmental benefits associated with agroecological practices. Yet, agroecologica...
link.springer.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:12 PM
This research adds important understanding of the nitrogen cycle to reduce nitrate leaching. Root growth and plant decomposition influence risk. We know the functional models, but need to fill in parameter values for many production systems. Especially to get max value from #covercrops.
brettvhaafc.bsky.social Brett van Heyningen @brettvhaafc.bsky.social · 26d
Sandy soils on PEI means farming practices can directly impact water. 🌱💧 #AgLivingLab Research from Dr. Yefang Jiang shows swapping red clover for soybeans in crop rotations can cut nitrogen in groundwater by 17%, in estuaries by 8%, and sea lettuce biomass by 24%.

Learn more: ow.ly/RJIT50XgtLe
October 23, 2025 at 9:42 AM
New research shows that, unfortunately, Palmer amaranth is not sensitive to rye allelopathy. Competition remains the mode of action for this useful #covercrop for managing this bad weed. Read it in Weed Science -
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
October 10, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Reposted
kirkamundson.bsky.social
UMass Amherst Biology is recruiting a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the area of Plant Physiology. Deadline Nov 1. Please spread the word and apply!

careers.massachusetts.edu/mob/en-us/jo...
Assistant Professor - Plant Physiology
The Department of Biology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor position in the area of Plant Physiology. The successful can...
careers.massachusetts.edu
October 4, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Reposted
ashs-hort.bsky.social
ASHS is committed to promoting and encouraging national and international interest in scientific research and education in all branches of horticulture and plant science.

Join ASHS today! https://ow.ly/i2HY50VcRvo
ASHS Member Benefits
September 27, 2025 at 12:01 PM
At 1:12 "Dedicating land to biofuels is actually worse for the climate than burning fossil fuels." He goes on...supplying 25% of aviation energy with soybased "sustainable aviation fuel" requires clearing an area about the size of India.

Do physiologists and agronomists know how crazy this is?
waiterich.bsky.social Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · Sep 24
Should we power airplanes with food crops?

Check out our new video, part of @worldresources.bsky.social’s Stories to Watch 2025 series, where I break down how crop-based biofuels are on the front line of the discussion about alternative aviation fuels and what gets to count as “sustainable.”
The Debate Over Alternative Aviation Fuels: WRI's Stories to Watch 2025
YouTube video by World Resources Institute
youtu.be
September 26, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Roller-crimped rye is good cover-crop management for soybeans, but it severely inhibits other crops. Be wary trying it with vegetables or sunflowers. Here is an example of what to expect.
youtu.be/ge2xFuwgATs
youtu.be
September 18, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Reposted
ykuzyakov.bsky.social
💥NEW in NATURE GEOSCIENCE💥
Soil carbon sequestration by long-term #nitrogen & #phosphorus fertilization
doi.org/10.1038/s415...

rdcu.be/eFzmh

Increase of C #sequestration by N and P #fertilization
in the world-longest 180-year fertilization experiment in Rothamsted

#soil #agriculture #CO2
September 11, 2025 at 8:28 AM
I like that most of the recommended management actions are already standard practice on many farms. Therefore increased adoption is possible in the near term--with the right incentives.
waiterich.bsky.social Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · Sep 10
Check out our team’s new paper about reducing nitrogen losses in US row-crop agriculture, by @mikebadzmierowski.bsky.social.

Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its overuse reduces air and water quality and emits potent GHGs. This paper examines solutions.

www.wri.org/research/red...
Reducing Nitrogen Losses in US Row-Crop Agriculture: Challenges, Solutions, and Policy Pathways Mike Badzmierowski Executive Summary Highlights • Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its excessive use leads to significant air- and water-borne environmental losses. Nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas (GHG) 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide and the current leading contributor to ozone depletion, is released particularly from over-applied nitrogen. The costs of agricultural nitrogen pollution in the United States likely surpass US$200 billion, primarily due to its impact on air and water quality. • The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggests that half of US agricultural GHG emissions are nitrous oxide (EPA 2024). New measurements suggest EPA models underestimate emissions, particularly as rising temperatures may increase emission rates. • Uniform application rates are inefficient due to variability within fields. Reduced nitrogen rate applications through precision nitrogen manage-ment, leveraging on-farm trials, and improved irrigation are effective strategies for reducing nitrogen losses and fertilizer waste, thereby enhancing farmer profitability. Nitrification inhibitors are likely to be site- and time-dependent regarding their nitrogen loss potential. • Implementing a "National Nitrogen Initiative" could help improve fertilizer use and boost farmer profitability. With just 24 percent of cropland contributing 63 percent of the nation's nitrogen surplus (Roy et al. 2021), the focus should start in "hotspot regions."
September 10, 2025 at 8:57 PM
Finding beneficial management is a high research priority!

"Cover crops’ effects on nitrous oxide [is] unclear, with variances ranging from increases to decreases in emissions. Research is needed to determine the conditions under which cover crop varieties lead to different direction..."
waiterich.bsky.social Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · Sep 10
Check out our team’s new paper about reducing nitrogen losses in US row-crop agriculture, by @mikebadzmierowski.bsky.social.

Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its overuse reduces air and water quality and emits potent GHGs. This paper examines solutions.

www.wri.org/research/red...
Reducing Nitrogen Losses in US Row-Crop Agriculture: Challenges, Solutions, and Policy Pathways Mike Badzmierowski Executive Summary Highlights • Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its excessive use leads to significant air- and water-borne environmental losses. Nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas (GHG) 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide and the current leading contributor to ozone depletion, is released particularly from over-applied nitrogen. The costs of agricultural nitrogen pollution in the United States likely surpass US$200 billion, primarily due to its impact on air and water quality. • The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggests that half of US agricultural GHG emissions are nitrous oxide (EPA 2024). New measurements suggest EPA models underestimate emissions, particularly as rising temperatures may increase emission rates. • Uniform application rates are inefficient due to variability within fields. Reduced nitrogen rate applications through precision nitrogen manage-ment, leveraging on-farm trials, and improved irrigation are effective strategies for reducing nitrogen losses and fertilizer waste, thereby enhancing farmer profitability. Nitrification inhibitors are likely to be site- and time-dependent regarding their nitrogen loss potential. • Implementing a "National Nitrogen Initiative" could help improve fertilizer use and boost farmer profitability. With just 24 percent of cropland contributing 63 percent of the nation's nitrogen surplus (Roy et al. 2021), the focus should start in "hotspot regions."
September 10, 2025 at 8:55 PM
"A global meta-analysis found that cover crops reduce
nitrate leaching from croplands by an average of 69 percent,
with the greatest benefits observed on increasingly sandier soils and from non-leguminous cover crops ."
In the US Northeast, this requires planting *now* so the roots reach the N.
waiterich.bsky.social Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · Sep 10
Check out our team’s new paper about reducing nitrogen losses in US row-crop agriculture, by @mikebadzmierowski.bsky.social.

Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its overuse reduces air and water quality and emits potent GHGs. This paper examines solutions.

www.wri.org/research/red...
Reducing Nitrogen Losses in US Row-Crop Agriculture: Challenges, Solutions, and Policy Pathways Mike Badzmierowski Executive Summary Highlights • Nitrogen is essential for crop production, but its excessive use leads to significant air- and water-borne environmental losses. Nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas (GHG) 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide and the current leading contributor to ozone depletion, is released particularly from over-applied nitrogen. The costs of agricultural nitrogen pollution in the United States likely surpass US$200 billion, primarily due to its impact on air and water quality. • The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggests that half of US agricultural GHG emissions are nitrous oxide (EPA 2024). New measurements suggest EPA models underestimate emissions, particularly as rising temperatures may increase emission rates. • Uniform application rates are inefficient due to variability within fields. Reduced nitrogen rate applications through precision nitrogen manage-ment, leveraging on-farm trials, and improved irrigation are effective strategies for reducing nitrogen losses and fertilizer waste, thereby enhancing farmer profitability. Nitrification inhibitors are likely to be site- and time-dependent regarding their nitrogen loss potential. • Implementing a "National Nitrogen Initiative" could help improve fertilizer use and boost farmer profitability. With just 24 percent of cropland contributing 63 percent of the nation's nitrogen surplus (Roy et al. 2021), the focus should start in "hotspot regions."
September 10, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Here is a nice story on the company at the heart of the Northeast US buckwheat world. It is not just a #covercrop!
www.lancasterfarming.com/farming-news...
New Interest in Buckwheat Allows for Old Mill Growth in Penn Yan
Birkett Mills in Penn Yan, New York, has been processing buckwheat and wheat into flour since 1797.
www.lancasterfarming.com
September 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM
This looks a lot like a #covercrop story!
drpauldorfman.bsky.social Dr Paul Dorfman @drpauldorfman.bsky.social · Aug 29
Um ...
"In France, the vineyards are 3% of the agricultural area, and they are using 20% of the chemicals. In vineyards, for the soil there is a lot of treatments, so there’s a lot of compaction, and there is a lot of pesticides used."
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘It’s like Sleeping Beauty; we have to wake them’: winemakers urged to help save earthworms
Transforming bare and compacted soil in vineyards can boost numbers of important invertebrate, say advocates
www.theguardian.com
August 31, 2025 at 8:58 PM
A wet spring put many prevented-planting acres into buckwheat in Yates County. When do you #killontime? Terminate #covercrop now and collect insurance or wait till harvest and collect $620 a ton from the mill in town? A triticale winter cover can follow either option.
Strips of different crop on a sloping field in a bucolic rolling landscape. Some of the strips are white with buckwheat flowers, indicating that it is time to terminate the cover crop.
August 27, 2025 at 12:49 AM
A buckwheat #covercrop is great for soil aggregation. Those fine roots reach the whole soil volume and secrete mucopolysaccharides. This plant is but five weeks old and ready for termination. These will decompose fast. A great value in a short time.
August 18, 2025 at 12:00 AM
www.cogr.edu/statement-co...

The Executive Order 'Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking' would be more accurately entitled ‘Politicizing Oversight of Federal Grantmaking.’
It sidelines scientific merit in federal research grant decisions by putting political appointees and partisans in charge
Statement by COGR President Matt Owens on the Executive Order “Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking” | Council on Governmental Relations
https://www.cogr.edu/statement-cogr-president-matt-owens-executive-order-“improving-oversight-federal-grantmaking”
August 13, 2025 at 12:32 PM
We find that #covercrops of tillage radish and some forage turnips perforate hard soil layers well in the fall when the layers are pliable. Strong gravitropism is an essential trait for this management goal.
August 10, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Cornell #soilhealth field day today in Seneca Falls. #NRCS' soil pit shows that zone tillage provides deep rooting even with a challenging clay subsoil. #covercrops maintain percolation pores and channels in the non-crop season.
Soil scientists in a pit dug two feet deep in a soybean field. The glossy sides of the pit reveal how clayey the subsoil is.
August 7, 2025 at 3:05 PM
I saw a lot of interesting cover-crop work at #ashs2025 American Society for Horticultural Science in New Orleans. Thanks to all the presenters!
Three plant science conferences this week! The others are #plantbio2025 in Milwaukee and #botany2025 in Palm Springs.
August 1, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Reposted
chrisdick.bsky.social
Herbarium director position opening at Oregon State University ‪@osu-herbarium.bsky.social‬ Great opportunity for herbarium- and field-trained botanists at any rank. bpp.oregonstate.edu/bpp/about/op...
Open Positions
bpp.oregonstate.edu
July 9, 2025 at 2:53 PM
A new report from @USDA_ERS on cover crop adoption ers.usda.gov/publications... shows that cover crop adoption is increasing in regions where there is enough water.
Table 6. % of farms using both conservation and #covercrops
Table showing adoption around 20% where rainfall is high and 10% where rainfall is low.
July 17, 2025 at 8:22 PM
More automation is a required for future vegetable production. But the performance requirement to enter the market at all is so high that it takes a big R&D budget to get anywhere in the ballpark.
sarahtaber.bsky.social Sarah Taber @sarahtaber.bsky.social · Jul 13
This helps explain why it's so hard to automate farm labor!

It's not that it's too hard to make a robot pick crops.

It's that humans are really, REALLY good at it. It's hard to make a robot that's BETTER at it than people.
July 14, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Cover crops do important things, including building soil organic matter. But the potential contribution to carbon sequestration is negligible.
waiterich.bsky.social Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · Jul 1
Some people think that if we just farm differently, we can suck lots of carbon back into soils - but it's the original conversion from natural ecosystems to agriculture that leads to the large carbon loss - @mikegrunwald.bsky.social
July 10, 2025 at 4:09 PM
#killontime. For buckwheat, “on time” is 35 days after planting. Maximum weed suppression, most complete kill, rapid decomposition. That has been the adamant research-based recommendation from Cornell since 2010. Covercrop.org
July 9, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Certain cover crops improve infiltration and internal drainage. This cornfield, despite drain tile and 2% slope, suffered from poor drainage this wet spring. No KHB4J.
The right cover crop would return more value than corn, especially if the next crop is grapes.
July 5, 2025 at 12:32 AM