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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social

@cornellcovercrops.bsky.social
270 followers 196 following 297 posts

Cover-crop commentary from Thomas Björkman, Cornell University Horticulture. covercrop.org Also @cropscover at X

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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
There are no gaps in this undervine cover crop of Coprinellus disseminatus. No gaps is a good thing in a #covercrop. But does an inky cap have the right properties for the vineyard?
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
Remembering the bad old days... Now we look to cover crops to do some of the weed management. These weed recommendations from 1957 are a reminder of how much safer the chemical part is these days, but still worth reducing.
Dangerous 1957 weed management. "Vapam, aerocyanamid, methyl bromide etc."
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Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Burning trees for energy is not carbon-neutral! - Burning trees emits more CO2 per unit energy than fossil fuels - Harvesting trees for energy releases carbon that would otherwise have remained stored in the forest - It often takes decades for CO2 from burning to be re-absorbed by new tree growth
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Sisters of Loretto/Loretto Community @lorettocommunity.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Are you interested in learning how to establish cover cropping on your own land? Join us from 9 am - noon Saturday, May 2, for a field day that will explore all things cover crops! Register here: www.lorettocommunity.org/event/cover-... #covercropping #farm #event #MarionCounty #Kentucky
A poster that says cover crop field day. Join Cody Rakes, Loretto Motherhouse Farm Director and Dr. Erin Haramoto, University of Kentucky, for an in depth look at cover crops. Saturday, May 2, 9 am - noon. Old Tobacco Barn Loretto Motherhouse 515 Nerinx Rd. Nerinx, KY 40049. Registration required. Topics include: establishment, variety selection, seed sourcing, termination, cost share programs available. FREE locally sourced lunch sponsored by IHG seed solutions LLC.
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The Gr0ve @thegr0vedotcom.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Cover crops: 25-50% reduction in purchased fertiliser costs within 5 years. Nitrogen-fixing species replace $40-80/acre of synthetic inputs. 20M hectares in the US now. That number is up 50% since 2017. Farmers adopting this are not making an environmental statement.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
The National Cover Crop Survey is live: missouri.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_... A wide range of farmer experienvce with #covercrops will help target future research and outreach to the most important needs.
missouri.qualtrics.com
SARE/CTIC/ASTA Cover Crop Survey
Take the 2025-26 SARE/CTIC/ASTA Cover Crop Survey!
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Urea price just jumped 50%, and field corn is at only $4.30. Under what conditions will it pay to plant an N-fixing #covercrop instead this spring? Is that idea too radical?
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
When testing living mulch as a #covercrop system, the default expectation has to be that the cover crop will compete too much with the main crop and that pest pressure will be higher. If the new system is an exception, the burden of proof is high if one is to be taken seriously.
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Iowa Learning Farms @ialearningfarms.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
Virtual Field Day: Cover Crop and Manure Timing to Maximize Water Quality and Corn Yield Iowa Learning Farms (ILF), in partnership with the Iowa Nutrient Research Center, will host a virtual field day on Thursday, Mar. 12, at 1 p.m. CT. The event, which is available at no cost, will feature a live…
iowalearningfarms.wordpress.com
Virtual Field Day: Cover Crop and Manure Timing to Maximize Water Quality and Corn Yield
Iowa Learning Farms (ILF), in partnership with the Iowa Nutrient Research Center, will host a virtual field day on Thursday, Mar. 12, at 1 p.m. CT. The event, which is available at no cost, will feature a live discussion with Dan Andersen, associate professor and extension agriculture engineering specialist at Iowa State University, Raj Raman, Morrill Professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering and Philip Rockson, agricultural and biosystems engineering graduate research assistant at ISU.
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Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Biofuels are another driver. Corn, soy, canola, and sugarcane all are being increasingly used to power vehicles instead of people. This is a shockingly inefficient use of land; EVs can go *300x* farther powered by a hectare of solar panels vs a hectare of crops! 10/
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Agricology @agricology.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
📖New Resource - Cover Crops Guide🌱 The UK’s first accessible, independent, farmer-led and scientifically supported farmers’ guide on #CoverCropping from AHDB is now available via Agricology's resources page. ➡️ agricology.co.uk/resource/cov... Founded by @angusgowthorpe.bsky.social
Cover crop
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
How do you breed tomatoes with both the disease resistance organic production requires and the superior flavor organic consumers expect? Three experienced breeders will describe their approach in this eOrganic webinar on March 24 eorganic.org/node/36450 Jim Myers, Julie Dawson and Jared Zystro
eorganic.org
Challenges in Breeding Tomatoes for Both Flavor and Disease Resistance | eOrganic
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Two keys to #covercrop success are #faststart and #nogaps. This grower met the first by using a planter for seeding when other methods had failed. But the covercrop does not suppress weeds in the wide gaps between rows. That managent goal is met with herbicides. www.farmprogress.com/cover-crops/...
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
The Cornell AgriTech Summer Scholars program is back! It is a paid research undergraduate research internship at one of the worlds premier horticulture institutions. We are now accepting applications for a new cohort of excellent undergraduates for summer 2026. cals.cornell.edu/cornell-agri...
cals.cornell.edu
Summer Scholars
WelcomeCornell AgriTech in Geneva, New York offers a Summer Research Scholars Program where undergraduate students participate in exciting projects in agricultural research, food and beverage entrepre...
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Impressive work by Oleksandr Zhuikov et al on improving sustainability of production despite the Khakovka field site being on the front line of a hot war. doi.org/10.15421/012... They achieved better NUE, WUE and climate resilience by leveraging biological processes in the soil.
doi.org
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
New Research: Keller et al PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... Subsoil compaction worsens when intervals between compaction events are shorter than soil structure recovery times #Covercrops can reduce recovery times when managed for that goal. Roots make holes and can make soil column support weight.
pnas.org
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
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...
link.springer.com
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...
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
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...
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Kirk Amundson @kirkamundson.bsky.social · 04/10/2025
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...
careers.massachusetts.edu
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...
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American Society for Horticultural Science @ashs-hort.bsky.social · 27/09/2025
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! ow.ly/i2HY50VcRvo
ASHS Member Benefits
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
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?
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
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
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Yakov Kuzyakov @ykuzyakov.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
💥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
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
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..."
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
"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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
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...
lancasterfarming.com
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 31/08/2025
This looks a lot like a #covercrop story!
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
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
cogr.edu
Statement by COGR President Matt Owens on the Executive Order “Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking” | Council on Governmental Relations
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/08/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 01/08/2025
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.
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Christopher Dick @chrisdick.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
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...
bpp.oregonstate.edu
Open Positions
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 14/07/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/07/2025
Cover crops do important things, including building soil organic matter. But the potential contribution to carbon sequestration is negligible.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
#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
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 05/07/2025
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.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 28/06/2025
Filling open ground in late June and July with a buckwheat cover crop pays off. Buckwheat on the left, "bare ground" on the right. Lambsquarters grows well on vegetable farms! A good buckwheat stand results in zero weed seed rain. #killontime for no buckwheat seed rain either.
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Iowa Learning Farms @ialearningfarms.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
Cover Crop Performance with Weather Variability Please join us for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar at noon CDT, Wednesday, June 18, featuring Grace Emperatriz Pacheco Jiron, former M.S. student and Vesh R. Thapa, postdoctoral research associate, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University…
iowalearningfarms.wordpress.com
Cover Crop Performance with Weather Variability
Please join us for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar at noon CDT, Wednesday, June 18, featuring Grace Emperatriz Pacheco Jiron, former M.S. student and Vesh R. Thapa, postdoctoral research associate, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The speakers are involved with the Cover Crop Initiative, a project led by Andrea Basche, associate professor, is a multi-year collaboration between the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and the Nebraska Natural Resources Conservation Service.
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
This paper shows why cover-crop users need to Kill on Time. Buckwheat cover crops must be terminated at flowering (35 days). Letting the stand go nearly to seed-harvest causes undesirable effects, and loses the distinctinctive benefits of a buckwheat over crop. www.mdpi.com/3360178
mdpi.com
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Richard Waite @waiterich.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
Is burning food and feed crops good for water quality, wildlife habitat, or addressing inequalities in rural communities? No. But is it at least good for the climate? Also no. 🧪
insideclimatenews.org
Biofuels Policy, a Mainstay of American Agriculture, Has Been a Failure for the Climate, a New Report Claims - Inside Climate News
A longtime critic of U.S. biofuels says an expansion of biofuels policy under President Donald Trump would lead to more greenhouse gas emissions and fewer food crops.
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New York Soil Health @newyorksoilhealth.bsky.social · 12/06/2025
June is in full swing, and so is the growing season. Check out upcoming field days, helpful resources on cover crops, #soilhealth characterization, and biochar, plus learn about veteran scholarships. Get all the details in our latest newsletter mailchi.mp/5b6349af4cb7...
New York Soil Health team members Debbie Aller and Michael Glos at the NY Soil Health Trailer, a mobile laboratory equipped with an interactive simulator showcasing the impact of rainfall on different soil types.
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Etienne Bucher 🌾🧬🇪🇺 @plantepigenetics.ch · 13/06/2025
Agroscope is a nice place to work in 🇨🇭, with real impact on agriculture. Nice promo video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8ue... And... we have an open post-doc position 😉
youtube.com
Agroscope Image Film
YouTube video by agroscopevideo
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American Society for Horticultural Science @ashs-hort.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
HortScience, HortTechnology, and JASHS now accept graphical abstracts. Sarah White and Germán Sandoya will share examples and tips for creating a graphical abstract at #ASHS2025. July 29- 2:45 pm and July 31- 12 pm in New Orleans. journals.ashs.org/page/authors... #plantscience #horticulture
Why Graphical Abstracts? two pictures of peaches, top: peaches rotting, bottom: healthy peach on tree breanch
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 10/06/2025
House FY26 approps has this to say about #covercrops at USDA ARS. "The Committee continues to recognize the importance of research and outreach related to cover crops and soil health and provides no less than the fiscal year 2025 level for these purposes." Thanks for the endorsement of that work!
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cornellcovercrops.bsky.social @cornellcovercrops.bsky.social · 31/05/2025
This is an amazing book to read. Humbold's fame was so great, even in the US, that for the 1869 centennial of his birth, the celebration in the provincial town of Syracuse NY included a parade fo 15,000 participants!
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