This article was written by Anna Cates, Extension soil health specialist, and Angie Peltier, crops Extension educator.
Cover crops are a key practice to improve soil health by building soil structure and adding organic matter outside the summer growing season. But there’s a real risk to cash crop productivity that must be managed when using cover crops. In the recent dry years in Minnesota, cover crops have caused a lot of crop stress and yield loss in cash crops. Why has this happened? How can we avoid this in the future?
What were the cover crop issues in 2022 and 2023?