Research Results

Cover Crop Resources

The Leopold Center Ecology Initiative, in collaboration with principal investigators on related research grants, has compiled a list of resources and related web sites for producers and others who want more information about cover crops.

Cover crops are literally “crops that cover the soil” and their benefits are well documented. Cover crops can reduce soil erosion, diminish nitrogen losses, provide weed and pest suppression and increase soil organic matter.


Learning module about cover crops These lessons, "Small Grain Winter Cover Crops for Corn and Soybean," were developed for the ISU Crop Adviser Institute by Tom Kaspar and Jeremy Singer of the USDA-ARS National Soil Tilth Laboratory. It includes four lessons, a summary and quiz. Users can create a profile, or log in as "test."

Midwest Cover Crops Council This new organization is a working group of the Green Lands, Blue Waters coalition. Their new web site offers resources about cover crops that can be grown in eight Midwestern states. Farmers also are invited to share their experiences with cover crops at this web site. More


Managing Cover Crops Profitably, Handbook Series Book 9, Third Edition, 2007. This 244-page book is published by the Sustainable Agriculture Network with funding from the USDA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program of the USDA-CSREES, Beltsville, Maryland.  Print copy for sale, or PDF can be downloaded free.

Intercropping Winter Cereal Grains with Red Clover, PM 2025, 2006. Iowa State University Extension

UC SAREP Cover Crop Database, searchable for more than 40 species used for cover crops, University of California, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, Davis California.

Small Grain Cover Crops for Corn and Soybean, PM 1999. 2005. Iowa State University Extension.

Alternative Field Crops Manual for Triticale. 1989. University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension Service.

Overview of Cover Crops and Green Manures, by Preston Sullivan. 2001. Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA), University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Selecting the Best Cover Crop for Your Farm, by Marianne Sarrantonio, excerpted from Managing Cover Crops Profitably by the Sustainable Agriculture Network.

2005 Herbicide Manual for Ag Professionals, WC-92, Iowa State University Extension.

Small Grain Production for Iowa--Winter, PM 1498. 1994. Iowa State University Extension.

Small Grain Production for Iowa--Spring, PM 1497. 1994. Iowa State University Extension.

The 2005 Guide for Weed Management in Nebraska, University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension, EC02-130-D.

UC SAREP Cover Crop Resource Page, 2002. University of California, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, Davis California.

USDA-ARS news release about Leopold Center cover crop study, November 2007.

Other information on Leopold Center web site: