Cover Crops
Selection considerations for COVER /companion crops
on Pastures

Perennials that are summer dormant or very drought tolerant, long lived, and deeper-rooted, offer further advantages in access, traffic tolerance, reduced soil erosion, higher weed suppression, improved soil structure, and maintenance of both above and below ground organisms. There are special challenges to their use as most are much higher cost and slower starting, minimized by appropriate seedbed preparation and weed control.

Try the S&S Seeds General Pasture Mix and the Hay Mix.

There are a plethora of plants that with proper selection can mitigate farm specific problems such as wetness (useful in bog areas), cold, heat, extreme pH levels, compacted soil and salt. The list includes the following: San Diego Bentgrass (Agrostis pallens), Strawberry Clover (Trifolium fragiferum), Birdsfoot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus), Tall Fescue (Festuca arundinacea), Creeping Wildrye (Leymus triticoides), Meadow Barley (Hordium brachynatherum), Coast range Melic (Melica imperfecta), Nodding Stipa (Nasella cernua), Pine Bluegrass (Poa secunda), Fine Fescues (there are many specie, cultivars and ecotypes to choose from).

Other objectives may include a diversity of flower types and maturation times to enhance a cover’s insectary benefit. This can also serve an esthetic benefit by enhancing the beauty of a site. This is the objective of our INSECTA-FLORA which creates a natural insectory that attracts and supports the beneficials and provides an alternate target for crop destroyers, We have now improved this great mix with Gopher Stopper, a poisonous legume that adds N and has been reported to discourage gopher activity.

S and S Seeds
The Sharpshooter

Cover Crops Selection considerations for COVER /companion crops on Pastures

Cover Crops
Selection considerations for COVER /companion crops
on Pastures