Clover into corn

[homegrownbucks]

I ran across some info on broadcasting Crimson or red clover into corn and decided to try it this year, we had some success but it was spotty, we broadcast when corn was a foot tall or so, rain didn't come right away so that could be a factor. Anyway here is a pic, corn looks bad on the edges as well, where the pic was taken. Seems like a decent cover crop strategy and adds a little forage and N

 

[kabic]

I have been wanting to try this

 

[yoderjac]

Most of the N will be available next year. I have also seen another strategy where clover is used to suppress weeds in non-RR corn. You start with an established perennial clover field. A sprayer is attached to a no-till drill with small foot print nozzles pointed at each row. The gly is used to suppress the clover in a narrow strip of each row. The corn is drilled, germinates and gets started and then the clover fills in. This gives you the same complementary legume/grasss (C:N) mix. The idea is that the blanket of clover (which is kept mowed until the corn is planted) keeps weeds out so non-rr corn can be used.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[j-bird]

As I understand it the N from the clover will not be available until it dies over the winter and thus available next spring. I have always been concerned about doing this to young corn as corn HATES competition and even the clover is going to be fighting for soil moisture and some nutrients as well. I tend to wait until the corn has grown enough that I can identify the areas that won't produce and then find ways to make that areas useful (I cut down a small area in a plot this year and planted it to brassica because it was not going to produce grain) or I wait until the fall and walk the rows as most of the grain production is done and as the corn starts to dry more sun becomes available (cereal grains work well in this case, some broadcast brassica as well). I would think as the corn grows and consumes the sunlight the clover will struggle - only in areas where the corn doesn't do well would I expect to see the clover have a chance.......is this what you have seen?

 

[homegrownbucks]

I don't have enough experience to say, found some research that seems to indicate it can do ok in any part of the field and doesn't affect yield.

http://ipcm.wisc.edu/blog/2015/08/interseeding-cover-crops-into-v5-corn/