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North Iowa farmer waiting to “plant green”

A north Iowa farmer wants more cover crop growth before “planting green.”

“I’ll plant my corn or soybeans into a living mulch if you will, of green cover crops.”

Josh Nelson of Belmond strip-tills his corn.

“So that doesn’t quite interfere as much with the germination or the planting. Beans don’t seem to mind too much having that thick understory or that thick cover of rye out there.”

For corn, he plans to terminate the cover crop about three days after planting but says he might wait up to a month after soybean planting to terminate the cover.

Nelson tells Brownfield he uses cover crops to improve soil health and control weeds.