Cover crop
From Tiny Farm Wiki
It is safe to say that any patch of bare earth that you find in the world is most likely created by man. That being said bare soil is not as "alive" as soil with actively growing plants. The concept of cover cropping embraces the theory that soil, and all the organism in it are happiest when they have something growing in them. Cover cropping builds organic matter, traps nutrients like nitrogen that would otherwise leech away, prevents wind and water erosion, and in some cases adds nutrients to the soil.
Contents |
[edit] Cover Crop Categories:
[edit] Claybusters / Organic Matter Builders
This category of cover crop includes plants such as oats and rye. They are generally annual or perennial crops that excel at sending down extensive root systems in the vertical dimension. This characteristic allows them penetrate deeper and to a greater degree than other crops, while at the same time delivering organic matter (by their eventual decay) to greater depths. These plants excel at breaking up clay and improving the tilth of the soil. They are also very good at soaking up existing nutrients and retaining them for use later by other plants as they decay. They are also great for preventing both wind and water erosion.
[edit] Nitrogen Fixers
This category of cover crop includes plants such as clover and alfalfa (legumes). They have the unique ability to host organisms on their root nodules which can fix nitrogen making this nutrient available to themselves, and other plants once they decay.
[edit] Weed Suppressors
Weed suppressors are a type of cover crop that have two characteristics; they germinate fast, and grow quickly to canopy stage (the stage where all the ground around them is shaded.) Crops in this category include buckwheat. It is important to not allow weed suppressors to mature and go to seed as they quickly move from the cover crop category to the weed category if this is allowed to happen.
[edit] Resources
Managing Cover Crops Profitably, 3rd Edition - http://www.sare.org/publications/covercrops/covercrops.pdf
