Sandra Wayman & Kristen Loria
Sustainable Cropping Systems Lab, Cornell University
We work to increase cropping system sustainability through ecological intensification. Our research aims to answer applied agricultural questions that will directly benefit farmers. Themes relate to applied agroecology, climate change, and organic production.
Organic spring wheat typically involves tillage for terminating winter annual weeds and preparing the seedbed. However, both fall and spring tillage occur in tight work windows that can adversely affect timely planting date and wheat performance. In this project we are shifting tillage and labor to late summer by establishing a winter-killing cover crop, and then drilling the spring wheat directly into the residue. At our Cornell research farm in Aurora, NY and the Hudson Valley Farm Hub we planted six cover crop varieties, one mixture, and a bare soil control. We are assessing cover crop biomass, spring wheat emergence, soil nitrogen, and wheat yield. Collaborating farmers are interested in this study because of the potential ease of planting spring wheat into winter-killed cover crops and because of potential nitrogen benefits from the cover crop.
