"Total Failure" Actually a Cover Crop Success Story

The video below was shot on November 14 by Dan Perkins of the Jasper County SWCD. It's a field of cereal rye and radish that was seeded with a high clearance seeder into seed corn.

At first there was very little growth in this field. However, as you will see, now there is plenty. Basically, the goal of this grower is to hang on to nitrogen so that it can be made available to the next crop.

The Power of Cover Crops

What the root pit shows is soil building taking place at 22 inches deep, along with cereal rye roots down as far as 36 inches. As a result of roots and root channels that deep into the soil profile, the next crop can penetrate deeper by using the path of least resistance.