ONTARIO

Activities and research

Cover crops are used in a variety of systems in Ontario from the traditional red clover underseeding in wheat to late summer oats for feed and cover to specific varieties of mustard used for nematode suppression in horticultural rotations. Cover crops have the potential to fit a lot of different niches. Over the past 10 years there have been a variety of extension projects looking at cover crops, nutrient cycling and carbon sequestration. There continues to be an active research program with a number of cover crop based projects funded every year.

Selection of cover crops used in various systems in Ontario

Red clover:

Row Width Effects on Winter Wheat and Red Clover (Gives an overview of the information available on red clover)

Peas:

Potential Benefits of a Pea Cover Crop Seeded Following Winter Wheat Harvest - An overview of peas as a cover crop: on-farm research results on pea cover crops after winter wheat as a nitrogen source for subsequent crops.

Tracking Down Cover Crop Nitrogen

Oilseed Radish: Oilseed radish is popular with producers particularly where manure is applied. For a general overview of oilseed radish see here.

For on-farm research results in the area of nitrogen cycling with oilseed radish see here.

Cereal grasses:
Oats

Click here for on-farm research results on cereal cover crops and their impact on second year soybeans

Ontario state representative

Other contacts in Ontario

MCCC Report

• 2008 Ontario Report

Links

• Attributes of Cover Crops presentation by Anne Verhallen

• Cover Crops: Oilseed Radish (by Anne Verhallen, Adam Hayes and Ted Taylor)

• The Effectiveness and Extent of Root Lesion Nematode (Pratylenchus penetrans) and Root Knot Nematode (Meloidogyne hapla) Suppression in Strawberries Following Mustard cv. Cutlass, Marigold cv. Crackerjack and Canadian Forage Pearl Millet 101 Compared to Vapam (380 g/L metam sodium) and Fallow
  by Michael Celetti, Pam Fisher, Anne Verhallen and Leslie Huffman (OMAFRA)

• Managing Cover Crops for Nematode Suppression by Michael Celetti, Pam Fisher, Anne Verhallen, and Leslie Huffman (OMAFRA)

• Medics as self-regenerating cover crops in Canadian prairie grain systems by Martin H. Entz, Alden Braul, Roberta Gentile, Andrew Lake and Bill Bellotti

Please check back for more details!

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