October is Planting Season

As leaves start to change and jackets emerge from their summer hibernation, most minds go to the fun fall activities like Halloween, pumpkin chai lattes and preparing the garden for winter.  Farmers are no different, blending all fall fun with the busy season of harvesting the crops they so diligently cared for this season (while sipping their apple crisp macchiato with extra cream).  But what is next for the ground that is left?

Most of us watch with wonder as the large tractors roll over the ground, churning the soil, creating a black blanket of dirt so it’s “ready” for winter slumber and spring warm-up.  But many have adapted to a much more responsible method of putting the ground to bed for the winter – planting small grains.

Rather than churning the soil, environmentally minded agricultural enthusiasts who farm corn and soybeans in our area will instead lightly incorporate cereal rye and other small grains that will emerge prior to winter, and then green up again in the spring.  Others have added winter camelina, an excellent source of vegetable oil, to their rotation of short season crops like peas, wheat or corn silage. 

For those that wonder why farmers would choose to park their plow in favor of their planter, the reasons are plentiful!

  • Soil and water health:  Adding a cover crop or camelina reduces wind erosion of soil significantly.  Since much of the debris left over from the primary crop is left on the field, nothing is exposed to blow away.  Also, after these plants begin to emerge in late fall or early spring, the root structure and above ground growth holds soil in place, even protecting against the erosion caused by runoff of snow melt.  This keeps the rivers and streams clean!

  • Carbon sequestration:  After a farmer exposes the once covered soil to air, it oxidizes, releasing vast amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (about 1-2 tons per acre).  Not tilling the soil acts like paint on a car, keeping what is underneath from oxidizing.  Adding cover crops to this practice adds carbon and other soil-healthy nutrients back into the soil.

  • Weed suppression:  Cover crops come up early and can have complex, deep root systems.  This adds a source of competition to the weeds that farmers and gardeners fight against. Since the weed seeds don’t see sunlight because of this competition, they don’t fully germinate, meaning that farmers can use less herbicide and gardeners have an easier time preparing their soil in the spring.

So, what can we do to get our gardens ready for winter? Leave the soil alone, cover it when you can and plant a rye, winter wheat or other cover-crop that will add some living root to your soil early in the spring season.  Also, keep a watchful eye on what is happening in the rural areas of our watershed.  Farmers who are doing their best to take care of the environment will be rolling throughout our community with their planters, not plows. So raise your cup of pumpkin spice cappuccino to them as you safely pass!

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