Farmers Continue to Reap Big Benefits from Cover Crops

Farmers and agriculture advocates have for years been extolling the benefits of cover crops – crops grown specifically with the intention of enriching the soil. Not only have producers seen the health and biodiversity of their soil increase, erosion decrease, and improvements in crop production thanks to the use of cover crops, their experiences are also supported by data and research.

 

The US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) – one of the most significant drivers of research on conservation practices like cover crops – recently released the results of its 2016 – 2017 Cover Crop Survey, which show that farmers who used cover crops reap significant benefits related to yields and soil quality. The survey assessed the benefits, challenges, and growth of cover crops, as well as demand for cover crop seed across the United States. For the fifth year in a row, the SARE survey found that farmers who planted cover crops saw a yield boost in the corn and soybeans that followed the cover crop. The survey also revealed a general sense of enthusiasm and support for the conservation practice. One new element was also introduced into this year’s survey – analysis of the impact of cover crops on wheat yields.

 

Of the 2,012 farmers surveyed for the SARE report, 88 percent were active users of cover crops. Those farmers reported that after using cover crops (as compared to similar fields where cover crops were not used):

 

Corn yields increased an average of 2.3 bushels per acre, or 1.3 percent

Soybean yields increased 2.1 bushels per acre, or 3.8 percent

Wheat yields increased 1.9 bushels per acre, or 2.8 percent

For an overview of all the study’s findings, please review SARE’s summary analysis.

 

The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) has long been an outspoken advocate for cover crop adoption. The Coalition helped to develop SARE over 30 years ago, and we are proud that the program has funded over 800 cover crop-related research and education projects to date. We are also strong proponents of USDA conservation programs, such as the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), which help farmers across the country adopt and actively manage cover crops on their operations.

 

In fiscal year (FY) 2016, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provided more than $90 million in EQIP funding for cover cropping. This is nearly double the amount of funding provided through EQIP for cover cropping in FY 2015. This funding provided support for nearly 2 million acres of cover crops across the country, another near doubling since FY 2015. Additionally in FY 2016, CSP contracts included more than 1 million acres of cover cropping conservation activities – including legume cover crops for a nitrogen source, cover crop mixes, high residue cover crops, resource conserving crop rotations, and more.

 

NSAC has long urged USDA to ambitiously increase and promote cover crop adoption as a part of CSP, given their enormous benefits for carbon sequestration, soil health, and water management.

 

NSAC is also actively working to ensure that cover crops qualify as an accepted practice (known as a “good farming practice”) within the federal crop insurance program. Despite the clear risk-mitigating benefits of conservation activities including cover crops, crop insurance rules and guidelines discourage their adoption. For example, if cover crops are not terminated according to given guidelines (which are not always in line with the best growing practices or timing for that particular farm) the producer could be at risk of losing their crop insurance coverage.

 

Providing federal support for cutting edge research like that produced by SARE is critical to the long-term health and sustainability of American agriculture. We applaud SARE for continuing to prioritize research on crucial conservation practices such as cover crops, and will continue to work with our partners in Congress to ensure the program has the support it needs to continue doing this kind of valuable work long into the future.

 

Additional highlights excerpted from the SARE report are below. For the full report, click here.

 

 

 

Following the use of cover crops, farmers reported increased yields of corn, soybeans and wheat, and improvement in the control of herbicide-resistant weeds, according to a nationwide survey. In addition, the survey of 2,012 farmers showed acreage planted in cover crops has nearly doubled over the past five years.

 

This marks the fifth consecutive year in which the survey reported yield increases in corn and soybeans following cover crops (find previous surveys at www.sare.org/covercropsurvey). It is the first year the survey team was able to calculate the impact of cover crops on wheat yields. The poll was conducted by the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) with help from Purdue University and funding support from SARE and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA).