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Follansbee, Wv

I am looking to speak with anyone who has grown a cover crop ahead of their plants and tilled it in as the plants needed the space. We can exchange information either here or via e-mail. Thanks.

1/10/2006 7:56:53 AM

Ontario, Canada.

Monty, I did the buckwheat thing last year. I mostly used it as mulch in between the vines.

1/10/2006 6:10:16 PM

maine USA

Kahuna, did you just cut it rotatill and then mulch around the plants with the cuttings.

1/11/2006 12:27:46 AM

Western NY

I did the buckwheat thing too. no tilling. i just pulled up the stalks, and threw them under the leaf canopy.

1/11/2006 8:23:29 AM

Follansbee, Wv

My intent is not to use it as a mulch, but to cut it as needed for plant space and till it in. The crop I plan to use is an innoculated Big N alfalfa. By planting in a series of bands, two weeks apart, I should be able to prevent the alfalfa from going to seed. I was wondering if anyone has tried this method, and what pros and cons they may have discovered.
The theory looks good on paper. Growing a nitrogen fixing crop ahead of the plants and tilling it in should provide season long feeding of not only nitrogen, but the micros in the decaying plant material as well.

1/11/2006 2:58:51 PM

Ontario, Canada.

My 709 McCallum patch was tilled in early at blossom time and it produced two crops due the warm temperatures here last year. It ended up growing an 850 pounder that split wide open the day of the GVGO patch tour. The second crop was hand pulled and mulched. The two other patches had only one crop and were both hand pulled like Andy's. I stayed away from the Legume crop to try and limit the supply of nitrogen. I always have at least one or two plants that won't set fruit, so the extra N scared me away.

1/11/2006 6:03:43 PM