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  • From: deberryemail-website AT yahoo.com
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Cover Cropping Between Plastic
  • Date: Thu, 10 May 2007 07:25:12 -0700 (PDT)

We often plant oats or rye in the early spring, so they start growing in our fields.  Then we till rows for the plastic, leaving the standing oats or rye between the rows.  A big plus with this system is the tall oats keep the wind from pummeling our young plants when we plant them.   When the plants are well established (and perhaps in danger of being shaded out by the taller oats/rye), we mow or roll down the oats, so a layer of organic matter helps with erosion through the rest of the season.  Also makes a nice place to walk during harvest.   Might be an option for you next year. 
 
Cheryl DeBerry
www.DeBerryFarm.com
 


 
----- Original Message ----
From: no one <xkarmafarmerx AT yahoo.com>
To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2007 10:00:03 AM
Subject: [Market-farming] Cover Cropping Between Plastic

Does anyone have experience (or know of writing about) cover cropping between rows of plastic mulch?  I am hoping to do such on a variety of crops this year - tomatoes, squash, melons, sweet potatoes, eggplant and peppers.  I am hoping to use covers to hold our soil together (1 plastic field is running down a hill), and he get a jump start on improving soil in our first year.  I was thinking of doing straight rye on some stuff to help keep down weeds - I've seen this done on rows of garlic fairly sucessfully.  For vining stuff I need something low growing, but am not sure clover is a good answer because we won't be keeping those fields out of production for long enough for it to do much good.  I was thinking oats and peas possibly - if we kept it mowed until things spread out, but it might still out-compete the vines after that.  For tomatoes and peppers I was thinking of using a pea, oat, buckwheat blend, but was wondering if we'd have issues with the buckwheat going to seed and being a problem.  Thanks for any suggestions..
.John DiZazzo
Roundabout Farm /
Compassionate Roots
Keswick, VA


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