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Cropping Systems

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Optimizing Nutrient and Water Management for Organic Mixed Vegetable Production Systems

These videos feature farmers in Florida who share their practices and experiences when it comes to managing nutrients and water in organic systems. Impact of clay amendments on nutrient and water management This video showcases the impacts of clay amendments on nutrient and water management at Siembra Farm, located near Gainesville, Fla. Grazing cover crops […]

Virginia Farmer Advancing Edible Winter Pea Breeding to Expand Grain Versatility

KEEZLETOWN, Virginia – On a shelf at Tangly Woods, a 6-acre homesteading farm at the base of the Shenandoah Mountains, sits the 1982 land survey map book for Rockingham County with a description of the farm property’s soil stating, “Not suitable for agriculture.” But for the past two decades, Jason Myers-Benner and his family have […]

Can Indigenous Agricultural Methods of Puerto Rico Mitigate Erosion and Feed the Island?

UTUADO, Puerto Rico - Graduate student Joseph Anthony Navarro thinks that sustainable agroecological practices can preserve biodiversity and was awarded a $16,491 SSARE grant to research it. He asks the question, “Can Taino be an alternative to traditional intensive Agriculture?” According to Joseph, a Conuco is an elevated bed of soil, organic matter, and plant/tree residues (mulch) for easy harvesting/weed management. “My […]

Using Native Plants as a Cover Crop for Soil and Vegetable Production Benefits

SANDSTON, Virginia – Patches of partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata) dot Patrick Johnson’s permaculture farm, still holding on to their yellow summer flowers while setting pods to drop seed in the coming colder temperatures. Johnson is excited to see the native plant growing wild on his Airport Food Forest Farm; he believes the legume will make […]

Sunn Hemp Effective for Weed Control in Fall Crops, Producer Grant Research Finds

CHESTER, South Carolina – Farmers with a certified organic diversified vegetable farm in South Carolina are seeing some success with using sunn hemp as a crimped cover crop to suppress weeds in fall brassica crops. Wild Hope Farm, located in Chester, S.C., received a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) Producer Grant to explore […]

Intercropping Cowpea with Vegetables Can Increase Yields

GREENSBORO, North Carolina- Intercropping cowpea with vegetable crops can increase yields up to 50% according to a new report from the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program. Cowpea is a nitrogen-fixing legume originally domesticated in Africa. Known for its black-eyed peas that are common in southern cooking, it has a high tolerance for sandy, […]

Texas A&M Researchers Identify Ideal Cover Crop Species for Southeast Texas

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Under the right conditions, cover crops are a tool for improvement. After harvesting a crop like cotton or grain sorghum, a cover crop rotation can increase soil organic matter, recycle nutrients, prevent erosion and suppress weeds. Even though farmers and ranchers across the Southeast have seen these benefits and moved towards […]

Researchers Study How to Prevent Cover Crops from Failing to Fix Nitrogen

EDINBURG, Texas- Known for their ability to produce nitrogen, legumes actually partner with rhizobium bacteria to create or fix nitrogen through specialized organs in their roots called nodules. This unique relationship adds nitrogen back to the soil so it can be used as fertilizer by future crops. In the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, researchers […]

Cover Crops and Biodegradable Mulches for Weed Control

AUBURN, Alabama – High biomass cover crops are effective in controlling weeds in vegetable production, while contributing to higher produce yields, Auburn University researchers have found. In addition, pre-emergence herbicide applications can be eliminated from weed management programs in the presence of heavy residues from cover crop mixtures. Through a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and […]

Cover Crops and Soil Solarization Proven Effective in Controlling Soil-borne Diseases

MCMINNVILLE, Tennessee – Some cover crops, coupled with soil solarization, can control soil-borne diseases in nursery field production of woody ornamentals, according to the results of a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE)-funded Tennessee State University study. Through a $15,000 SSARE On-Farm Research Grant, Fulya Baysal-Gurel of TSU’s Otis L. Floyd Nursery Research Center, […]

How Soils Behave When We Grow Cover Crops

BELLE GLADE, Florida – Florida vegetable farmers who grow cover crops as a green manure between their cash crops anecdotally tout the health benefits, but a two-year study by University of Florida has provided the research to back it up. In a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) On-Farm Research Grant, University of Florida […]

Agroforestry an Alternative for Farmers Transitioning Away from Tobacco Production

BEREA, Kentucky – A Kentucky farmer, exploring alternatives for tobacco production, has found that elements of an agroforestry system may prove viable to increasing farm profitability and providing environmental benefits. Through a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) Producer Grant, Matthew Wilson of Rindlewood Farm studied the feasibility of incorporating sweet sorghum and pasture […]

Cover Crops Improve Soil Quality in Plaintain Production Systems

GURABO, Puerto Rico -- In humid, tropical environments where soil organic matter decomposes at a rapid rate, efforts are being made to maintain and improve soil health using cover crops, specifically in high intensive cropping systems like plantain production. In a Producer Grant project, farmer Duamed Colon-Carrion studied the potential benefits of cover crops on […]

Transforming Existing Forested Land into Silvopasture Systems

GREENVILLE, South Carolina – Livestock producers with patches of established forested land on their farm can turn to agroforestry practices as an option to increase economic stability while enhancing environmental quality. Researchers at Furman University, through a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) grant, studied the feasibility of transforming forested land on farms in […]

Cover Crops Incorporated into Rotational Grazing Improves Soil Health

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana – Over-seeding a diverse cool-season cover crop mix into a rotationally grazed warm-season grass pasture appears to improve soil health, especially when the system is managed over a longer period of time. In a limited study, funded by a Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SSARE) Graduate Student Grant, Louisiana State University […]

The Performance of Cover Crops in Minimally Tilled Forage-based Grazing Systems

In a Southern SARE-funded Graduate Student Grant (GS15-152), “Evaluation of Winter Annual Cover Crops Under Multiple Residue Management: Impacts on land management, soil water depletion, and cash crop productivity,” Texas Tech University researchers investigated five cover crops species as potential complements to a warm-season beef-stocker grazing system. The impact of the project was two-fold: Stabilize the soil surface from excessive wind erosion and desiccation; and strengthen rural communities by ensuring the persistence of profitable agriculture in the region.

Texas Farmers Learn to Build Soil Health Through No-till and Cover Crops

VERNON, Texas – It’s a hot, dry, windy summer day on the plains of North Texas, and a group of farmers are standing in the middle of a field to learn how techniques to build soil health benefit their cash crops in Texas’ harsh environmental conditions. “This is what no-till looks like in the first […]

University of Florida Researchers Expanding the Cover Crop Toolbox for Farmers

HAWTHORNE, Florida – Several new cover crop varieties that have the potential to overcome the limitations of their commercial counterparts are being targeted for use in Florida to provide farmers with a more diverse selection of plants that excel in soil health, weed suppression and pest management. A small group of farmers, Extension agents and […]