Dale R. Mutch
MSU Kellogg Biological Station

The 2008 growing season is upon us and we’ve had cooler than normal conditions this spring. Our cover crops look pretty good. Red clover looks good, but is shorter than usual. Hairy vetch is shorter than and not as dense as last year. Cereal rye is growing well and should do much better because we received one-half inch of rain this week. We planted spring wheat this year for the first time at MSU/KBS and it looks good. We also planted spring wheat on Matt Wiley’s farm in Southwest Michigan.


Hairy vetch seeded September 6, 2007.  Picture was taken on May 12, 2008.

Below is an update on the organic projects that we are involved in this year at Michigan State University’s W. K. Kellogg Biological Station (MSU/KBS).

A 30 dry bean variety trial is being conducted by Master’s (M.S.) student Jim Heilig, whose major professor is Dr. Jim Kelly, MSU Crop and Soil Sciences dry bean plant breeder. There is currently a great market for dry beans and Jim and Dr. Kelly are looking for varieties that perform well in organic production systems. They are evaluating dry beans for quality and yield and we are evaluating them for tolerance to potato leafhoppers. This is the second year for this evaluation.

Todd Martin (cover crop technician) and I are evaluating different seeding times of red clover into wheat. These red clover seeding times are at planting with the crop in the fall, frost seeding red clover in March and no-till drilling red clover in early April into standing wheat. The last treatment is seeding red clover after wheat harvest with a no-till drill. These different seeding times will be evaluated for red clover biomass production, weed control, influence on wheat yield and nitrogen contribution to corn the following season.

Through an NCR-SARE grant we will compare several weed control strategies for no-till organically grown pumpkins using the roller/crimper system. Cereal rye is being used as a cover crop and we will use rye as a mat and a weed control mechanism. The roller/crimper will be used to control the rye.


No-till seeding of red clover into rye on April 17, 2008.

At left, rototilling zones for no-till organic pumpkin
study at MSU/KBS. Picture taken on April 25, 2008.

Prices for organic corn have skyrocketed over the past three years. Several of the farmers we work with have asked us to evaluate organic nitrogen sources for growing corn. We are comparing four different organic nitrogen sources for organic corn and comparing these sources with and without a cover crop. Soil nitrogen, corn yield and stalk nitrate will be collected for this study.

As part of the NCR-SARE grant we are evaluating four different rye varieties. We want to compare several physiological characteristics of these ryes. For example, rye growth rate, maturity dates, weed suppression and how well they mat after being rolled and crimped. Having an earlier maturing rye will enhance our ability to grow crops with the roller/crimper no-till system.

We will also be studying use of a flamer to control weeds in corn again this year. Along with Drs. Renner, Sprague and Erin Taylor of MSU’s Crop and Soil Sciences Department, we will evaluate the effectiveness of flaming at four different relative humidity levels and temperatures throughout a single day. We will flame weeds at 8 a.m., noon, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and rate these treatments for weed control.

Three projects this year have been funded through the Southwest Michigan Research and Education Center (SWMREC):

1. Evaluation of organic nitrogen sources for tomatoes following a cover crop of either cereal rye or hairy vetch. Five organic nitrogen sources will be compared. Tomato yield and quality will be compared across these treatments.

2. Conducting the same no-till pumpkin study that we are doing at MSU/KBS.

3. Comparing organic potash sources for organic tomatoes. Two organic sources of potash will be compared for tomato yield and quality following a cover crop of rye or hairy vetch.

We will have three organic on-farm projects that are funded by Michigan’s Project GREEEN. Each on-farm trial will compare the no-till roller/crimper system to conventional high tillage organic soybean production. These four on-farm sites will evaluate the roller/crimper on real fields and farms. Data will be collected on weed control, soybean yield and the economics of these systems.

This summer should be an exciting one for the MSU/KBS Cover Crop Team. As the season progresses, we will update you on these projects.

Above, several rye varieties will be evaluated for
physiological characteristics. Picture taken May 5,
2008.

Rye was planted for the nitrogen study for organic
tomatoes at SWMREC. Picture taken May 1, 2008.