An overview of Organic grain production research at hte University of Missouri.

1. ORGANIC GRAIN CROP
RESEARCH AT THE
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI
Researchers: Tim Reinbott, Robert Kremer, Newell Kitchen, Debi Kelly, Ray
Massey, Kerry Clark, Amanda Wolfgeher, Dara Boardman, Steven Easterby

2. COVER CROP BEFORE HARVEST

3. PLOWING UNDER COVER CROPS

4. THE EVILS OF TILLING
 Loss of Organic Matter
 Soil structure
 Soil microbial biomass
 Release of CO2
 Soil Erosion
 Why Till?
 Weed Control

5. TILLED IN A CORN/SOYBEAN/WHEAT
LONG TERM NO-TILL ROTATION
TILLED VS NO-TILL-WE HAVE LOST NEARLY 1 FT
OF TOP SOIL

6. SOIL EROSION-EVEN WITH NO-TILLAGE

7. SANDY LOAM SOIL

8. TYPICAL SOIL PUDDELING AFTER A RAIN OF AN
ERODED SOIL-LOSS OF SOIL STRUCTURE

9. HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE SOIL
QUALITY?

10. A THICK MULCH TO NO-TILL INTO

11. MORE TO COVER CROPS THAN JUST NITROGEN

12. From Steve Groff
No Cover Crop
Cover Crop

13. COVER CROPS REDUCE WATER RUNOFF OR
INCREASE WATER INFILTRATION

14. SOIL PHYSICAL PROPERTIES FOLLOWING 3
YEARS OF COVER CROPS
 Treatment Water-Aggregate Stability Pentrometer Bulk
 % Increase over control % increase
Mg/m3
 Corn/Soybean
1.32
 Corn/rye/soybean/rye 9 19 1.24
 Corn/rye/soybean/hairy vetch 13 8 1.23
 Corn/rye/soybean/Hv+rye 17 16 1.23
 From Villamil, et al 2006

15. CAN COVER CROPS AND NO-TILL
DECREASE GREENHOUSE GASES?

16. The Culprits: Greenhouse Gases
United States
Greenhouse Gas Emissions, 2010
Carbon Dioxide (C02) is
the most prevalent
greenhouse gas.
But other gases have a greater
potential to warm the climate.
• Methane (CH4): 20 x more
effective at warming the
atmosphere than CO2.
Image created by EPA • Nitrous oxide (N2O): 300 x
more effective.

17. CO2 LEVELS OVER TIME

18. CO2 EMISSIONS AND CARBON STORAGE
 Agriculture 25% of CO2 Sources
 Tillage, N Production,
 Cover Crops Decrease CO2 Release from
Increased C Storage
 However, With Tillage Much of the Benefit is
Lost
 Cover Crops with Tillage Less C Storage than
No-Tillage without Cover Crops

19. GREENHOUSE GASES IN AGRICULTURE
U.S. Nitrous Oxide Emissions
Agriculture is the main source of
nitrous oxide in the U.S., due in large
part to nitrogen-based fertilizers, but
residue breakdown also contributes
Image created by EPA

20. NITROUS OXIDE-N20 CONTRIBUTED BY
AGRICULTURE
 Anerobic Conditions
 wet
 Nitrogen Fertilization
 1.5% of all N is lost as
N20
 Animal
Manures/Compost
 N from Cover Crops?

21. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED
IN 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011

22. WHAT ARE WE DOING?

23.  Bradford Research Center, 5 miles east of
Columbia, MO (Boone County)
 Organic Farmer Cooperators:
 David Gray, Montgomery County, MO
 Warren Wilson, Audrain County, MO
 Terry Littrell, Audrain County, MO
 James Maberry, Livingston County, MO

24.  USDA-NIFA OREI
 Grant Greenhouse gas emissions from organic production using
tillage with and without cover crop and no-till with cover crop
 How to plant corn into a cover crop (timing and way of
destroying cover crop)
 Summer cover crops to follow wheat
 CERES TRUST Grant
 Transition strategies for going from conventional to
organic grain crop production
 Organic Vegetable Production and Soil Health

25. CORN/SOYBEAN/WHEAT ROTATION

26. Treatments of the study are:
 4 Compost rates in subplots,
based on crop P needs
 Plots are: No-till with
cover crop, Tilled with
cover crop, Tilled
without cover crop
Photos taken June 22, 2012, DOP May 21

27. COMPOST APPLICATON BASED UPON P
 Compost:3-2-2
 Wheat P Recommendation-80 lb P205/acre
 Corn P Recommendation- 120 lb P205/acre
 Soybean P Recomendaton-90 lb P205/acre
 Wheat P Treatments: 0, 40, 80, and 120 lb
P205/acre
 Wheat Compost Application Rates:
 0, 1333, 2666, and 4000 lb Compost/acre

28. 2012 Wheat Yield
60
50
Bushels/acre
40
30
20
10
0
0 lbs/acre 2105 lbs/acre 4210 lbs/acre 6315 lbs/acre
Compost Rate
2105 lbs compost contains 40 lbs P and 59 lbs
N
4210 lbs compost contains 80 lbs P and 117 lbs
N
6315 lbs compost contains 120 lbs P and 176

29. COVER CROP YIELD
6704 lb/acre 6989 lb/acre

30. ROLLING/CRIMPING THE COVER CROP

31. Soil moisture in cover crop and no cover crop plants
on May 16, 2012 (one day before corn planted, 15
days after last rain)
Treatment Depth (inches) Soil Moisture (%)
Rye cover crop 0 to 2 17
2 to 6 19
6 to 10 19
No cover crop 0 to 2 12
2 to 6 16
6 to 10 25
Field capacity is approximately 34% and the wilting point is
approximately 18 % soil moisture.
Conclusion- cover crops conserved moisture in seed zone
but depleted deeper soil moisture.

32. ORGANIC PRODUCTION-COLLECTING CO2 AND
N2O SAMPLES

33. SOIL MOISTURE RETENTION BY COVER CROPS IN CORN
DAR= days after
rain (irrigation)

34. SOIL MOISTURE RETENTION BY COVER CROPS IN
SOYBEAN
DAR= days
after rain
(irrigation)

35. SOYBEANS ON JULY 16…
All look about the same
Till, no cover crop Till, with cover crop No-till, with cover crop
Weed control
1 cultivation in tilled
soybeans and corn, 2 minor
hoeings in all plots. Weeds
are being held back well by This alley area has had no
cover crop and drought. weed control other than
rolled cover crop

36. CORN NOT THE SAME STORY
JUNE 22, 2012
No-till with cover Tilled, no Tilled, with
crop cover crop cover crop

37. JULY 16, 2012
Tilled, no cover crop Tilled, with cover crop

38. 2012 Soybean Yield
50
45
40
35
Bushels/acre
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
no-till tilled + cc tilled no cc
Tillage Type

39. 2012 Soybean Yield
43.0
42.0
41.0
40.0
Bushels/acre
39.0
38.0
37.0
36.0
35.0
34.0
33.0
0 lbs P/ac 45 lbs P/ac 90 lbs P/ac 135 lbs P/ac
Compost Rate

40. 2012 Corn Yield
80.0
70.0
60.0
50.0
Bushels/acre
40.0
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0
no-till tilled + cc tilled no cc
Tillage Type

41. 2012 Corn Yield
90
80
70
Bushels/acre
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 lbs N/ac 90 lbs N/ac 180 lbs N/ac 270 lbs N/ac
Compost rate

42. MEASURE SOIL QUALITY-ACTIVE CARBON

43. PLANTING CORN INTO A COVER CROP
(RYE+HAIRY VETCH) IN A NO-TILL FIELD
How should cover crop be destroyed?
Rolling or Chopping
When should corn be planted?
Before or after cover crop destruction
Planted into standing cover crop
Destroyed and planted same day
Planted 1 week after destruction
Planted 2 weeks after destruction

44. DESICCATION OF THE COVER CROP
ROLLER CRIMPER

45. FLAIL MOWING

46. PLANTING INTO A STANDING CROP

47. DAY OF DESICCATION 5 DAYS LATER
Flailed Rolled Rolled Flailed
TO ROLL OR FLAIL CHOP

48. PLANT PERPENDICULAR TO THE WAY IT SEED TO SOIL CONTACT CAN BE A
WAS ROLLED CHALLENGE
WHAT IF THE COVER CROP IS STILL ALIVE?

49. Corn germination when planted into rye cover crop
100
90
80
Plant count per 10 feet
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
chop roll chop roll chop roll chop roll
before cc destroyed same day cc 1 week after cc 2 weeks after cc
destroyed destroyed destroyed

50. SUMMER COVER CROPS TO FOLLOW WHEAT
Why let your field build up its weed bank
like these plots with no cover crop planted?

51. Get weed reduction and improved soil organic
matter with summer cover crops like
buckwheat and sorghum-sudangrass. These
plots had no herbicide and are all no-till

52. Follow wheat with a legume summer cover crop, such as
cowpea, which will fix nitrogen. If followed up with a
winter cover crop, that nitrogen will continue to be
available for your crop the following summer.
Cowpea Weedy plot with
no cover crop

53. Sorghum sudangrass is very effective at controlling
weeds and contains chemicals that can persist in the soil
and continue to control weeds in the following season.
Best to follow with soybeans.
Sorghum Weedy plot with
sudangrass no cover crop

54. Sunn hemp and sesbania are two other nitrogen fixing summer
cover crops. Seed costs are a little higher than for other
summer cover crops. If government programs continue to
encourage cover crop usage, the market for cover crop seed will
increase and prices may lower. Local production of cover crop
seed should also be considered.
Sunn
hemp
sesbania

55. Summer Cover Crop Yields
25000
20000
Pounds/acre of dry matter produced
15000
10000
5000
0
Crop Species

56. Percentage of weed cover
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
buckwheat cowpeas fallow sesbania ss sunn hemp turnip winter
radish

57. CERES FOUNDATION
 Transitioning to
Organic
 Weed Control number
one problem
 Soil Quality Build up
 Strategies

58. STRATEGIES FOR TRANSITIONING
 Cash Crop All Three
Years?
 Weed Control
Strategies
 Tillage vs No-Tillage

59. TREATMENTS
 Always use a
polyculture cover crop-
legumes, grasses, and
brassicas
 Treatment 1: always
use a crop that is
mowed or incorporated
into the soil-no cash
crop-includes sorghum
x sudangrass (SXS)

60. TREATMENTS
 Treatment 2-cover  Treatments 5 and 6-
crops first year (SXS): same as treatments 3
cash crops 2nd (grain and 4 except tilled
sorghum) and 3rd
years.  Treatment 7: tilled
sorghum x sudan first
 Treatments 3 and 4: year followed by
no-till-soybean/grain wheat/soybean/corn
sorghum or
soybean/corn rotation

61. WHY SORGHUM?
 Allelopathic
 Chemicals released
from roots that inhibit
weed germination
 No GMO’s
 Sorghum Bicolor is also
shattercane!

62. 2012 Ceres Trust Study
Weed Soybean
Stand dry Crop dry grain
Crop count/10 matter matter yield
Transitional system 2012 crop Height (in) feet (lbs/acre) (lbs/acre) (bu/acre)
No-till w/ summer sorghum-
cover crop sudangrass 65 78 2591 4879
Conventional till soybean 34 51 1662 2589 44.7
No-till soybean 20 40 1849 684 5.9

63. ORGANIC VEGETABLE PRODUCTION

64. ORGANIC VEGETABLE PRODUCTION-SOIL
HEALTH

65. QUESTIONS?