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Interseeding red clover into winter wheat

An extension educator says there’s still time to interseed cover crops in winter wheat fields.

Paul Gross with Michigan State University Extension tells Brownfield this season warmed fields up faster than usual, but farmers can still plant red clover as things begin dry out a bit.  “With the clover, we can get anywhere from 30 to 100 pounds of nitrogen for the following crop because the clover is a legume and it produces its own nitrogen.”

He says red clover works well as a cover crop because it can grow under the shade of wheat and is typically plowed into the soil to build organic matter or harvested as a forage.  “It’s good for building soil, building soil organic matter and improving the water quality on our surface waters.”

He recommends seeding about 12 pounds of red clover per acre ahead of a spring rain.

AUDIO: Interview with Paul Gross