Innovative Cover Crop
Innovative Cover Crop
Sustainable Farming Practices at Alstede Farms (CHESTER, NJ August 21, 2019) – Alstede Farms, a forerunner in sustainable agriculture with over 600 acres of preserved farmland in Morris County, New Jersey, announces pioneering cover crop in the Strawberry fields. Alstede Farms knows that soil fertility is a major component in sustainable farming, essential to healthy… Read More »
Sustainable Farming Practices at Alstede Farms
(CHESTER, NJ August 21, 2019) – Alstede Farms, a forerunner in sustainable agriculture with over 600 acres of preserved farmland in Morris County, New Jersey, announces pioneering cover crop in the Strawberry fields.
Alstede Farms knows that soil fertility is a major component in sustainable farming, essential to healthy plant yields and the growing of nutrient rich foods. Alstede Farms is pioneering an innovative technique of using oats as a fall cover crop for its strawberry fields in between raised beds with plastic mulch and trickle irrigation in order to protect the soil and prevent erosion while building organic matter and naturally deterring pests.
Oats provide weed suppression and promote soil conservation by reallocating nutrients and holding soil in place during extreme rain events. Growing oats also provides a mellow mulch to the field further benefiting the strawberry crop and the fertility of the soil. Oat roots have naturally occurring compounds that discourage pests, making them the perfect natural ground cover. Alstede Farms is working on this technique in cooperation with the USDA, the Natural Resources and Conservation Service, and the Rutgers Cooperative Extension.
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