All posts in Cover Crops
Getting the Biologically Integrated Orchard Systems (BIOS) demonstration project off the ground!
The BIOS project is underway! CAFF’s Ecological Farming team has been busy the past several weeks setting up the Biologically Integrated Orchards Systems (BIOS) project at six demonstration sites located in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. We are excited
Biologically Integrated Orchard Systems (BIOS) for Almonds guide
The Biologically Integrated Orchard Systems (BIOS) project was a collaboration between CAFF, farmers, pest control and crop advisors, and the UC Cooperative Extension in the 1990s and early 2000s. BIOS emphasized a systems approach to orchard management and pest control
CAFF’s Cover Crop Decision Guides
We’re excited to share two new resources for growers: our Cover Crop Decision Guide for Perennial Systems and Cover Crop Decision Guide for Annual Systems created in collaboration with the Freshwater Trust. These practical guides are designed to walk
Covercrops for California Agriculture
For many agricultural soils, cover crops offer the only means of supplying the organic matter needed to keep the soil in a high state of productivity. Learn how to select an grow the cover crop that is right for your
Technical Assistance for the Healthy Soils Program
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE HEALTHY SOILS PROGRAM Are you interested in implementing cover crops, compost, hedgerows and other Healthy Soils practices on you farm? The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is offering 3 year grants to farmers to
Cover Crops for Walnut Orchards
Walnut orchards present unique challenges to the successful use of cover crops. These include short time between harvest and leaf fall for establishing the cover crop…
Managing Cover Crops Profitably
SARE’s publication is available free for download and is a comprehensive and practical resource with recommended species by U.S. region, a section on management in conservation tillage systems, soil fertility, and pest suppression.
Grazing Cover Crops
How to manage livestock with adaptive grazing on cover cropped land, from the Wallace Center. The use of cover crops in row crop farming is becoming increasingly popular. According to a February 2013 bulletin from USDA-NRCS, the four keys to
Cover Cropping in Vineyards
The use of cover crops can yield substantial benefits or be the source of unforeseen problems or drawbacks. The choice of which species to sow, as well as the decision whether or not to plant a cover crop, is based
Building Soils for Better Crops
Building Soils for Better Crops is a one-of-a-kind, practical guide to ecological soil management, now expanded and in full color. It provides step-by-step information on soil-improving practices as well as in-depth background—from what soil is to the importance of organic matter.
Cover Crop Economics
When it comes to making the big decisions about managing a farm, whether it’s to grow a new crop, buy an expensive piece of equipment or upgrade infrastructure, farmers are business people first. If the idea doesn’t work out on paper, either by
Cover Crops Database
Cover crops can be broadly defined as any non-cash crop grown in addition to the primary cash crop. They have the potential to increase soil organic matter (SOM), protect the soil from erosion, improve soil structure and water infiltration, increase