Finding cover crop seed made easy

Christina Curell<curellc@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension -

Sourcing cover crop seed can be challenging. This fact sheet is your No. 1 resource.

Farms have been using cover crops in their management strategies for decades. Objectives for using them are numerous. Traditionally we think of cover crops as erosion preventers and sedimentation trappers. Cover crops however can be used for many other reasons such as, pest control, soil builder, nutrient mining, pesticides, etc. Different cover crop species will have varying efficacy on these strategies. In Michigan there has been one challenge that farmers have faced regardless of why they want to use cover crops: seed sourcing.

The fact sheet “Cover Crop Seed Dealers in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio” can help you locate cover crop seed dealers. The MSU Extension Cover Crops Team verified that all dealers listed sell cover crop seed. This document is fluid and updates will be made to it as more cover crop seed dealers request to be added. We know that there are many more dealers than we are aware of that sell the seed. Please contact your seed dealer to see if he has the cover crop that you would like to use or has the ability to source the seed.

The seed source fact sheet can also be found on the Midwest Cover Crop Council website. To be added to the Cover Crop Seed Dealers list please contact Christina Curell. If you would like information on what cover crop would be best suited for your operation contact Christina Curell, Paul Gross or Florian Chirra.

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

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