Cover Crops 3.0

No magic yet but happy enough with it sowed 26th July and unfortunately put that date on fodder inventive form:curse:. Luckily only for that field. A few misses as I sowed oats straight off combine and it blocked spouts- another lesson learned.
At what point would you consider it suitable for zero grazing.
 

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Can I just ask a question and I would like to clarify that I am a fan of cover crops and don’t doubt they benefit the soil but has anyone ever done a cost analysis of cover crops? By that I mean basically, if it costs €70 an acre to establish a cover crop do you get €70 extra in the following cereal crop?? (Figures are only plucked from the sky!!!)
 
Rebelman said:
Can I just ask a question and I would like to clarify that I am a fan of cover crops and don’t doubt they benefit the soil but has anyone ever done a cost analysis of cover crops? By that I mean basically, if it costs €70 an acre to establish a cover crop do you get €70 extra in the following cereal crop?? (Figures are only plucked from the sky!!!)
Click to expand...
Graze with sheep to recoup establishment and seed costs. Add some N to build bulk above and below ground. 50% of the bulk will be walked into the ground returning a similar amount of organic matter as an ungrazed and unfertilised crop. The bulk which is grazed will be returned through the back end of the sheep, it will be high N and aid in the breakdown of residues
 
Rebelman said:
Can I just ask a question and I would like to clarify that I am a fan of cover crops and don’t doubt they benefit the soil but has anyone ever done a cost analysis of cover crops? By that I mean basically, if it costs €70 an acre to establish a cover crop do you get €70 extra in the following cereal crop?? (Figures are only plucked from the sky!!!)
Click to expand...
Who cares,there in fashion at the moment!
 
Introducing livestock back onto tillage farms is the biggest advantage of cover-cropping.
I don't think that intensive chemical lead tillage farming is the way to go, but I also doubt growing 2 crops every year and only getting paid for 1 is economically the best option.
 
Rebelman said:
Can I just ask a question and I would like to clarify that I am a fan of cover crops and don’t doubt they benefit the soil but has anyone ever done a cost analysis of cover crops? By that I mean basically, if it costs €70 an acre to establish a cover crop do you get €70 extra in the following cereal crop?? (Figures are only plucked from the sky!!!)
Click to expand...
I think keeping the soil in good friable condition makes it easier to get a seedbed which has long term payback . Will you have money out of it next year and the answer is probably not .
 
gone said:
Introducing livestock back onto tillage farms is the biggest advantage of cover-cropping.
I don't think that intensive chemical lead tillage farming is the way to go, but I also doubt growing 2 crops every year and only getting paid for 1 is economically the best option.
Click to expand...
Extensively grown CC Surley return money?
Turnip and forage rape seed here is £3 a kilo
2kg a acre sown as cheap as possible and a roll then have tack sheep in in the winter :undecided:sheep shitting over your field for a few weeks and the regrowth drying the soil then getting incorporated in the spring:scratchhead:
 
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