Grazing cool-season cover crops in North Florida

Authors: SANTOS, ERICK - University Of Florida; DUBEUX, JOSE - University Of Florida; GARCIA, CARLOS - University Of Florida; DANTAS, LUANA - University Of Florida; VAN CLEEF, FLAVIA - University Of Florida; Jaramillo, David

Submitted to: Florida Cattleman and Livestock Journal
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/2/2021
Publication Date: 1/2/2022
Citation: Santos, E., Dubeux, J., Garcia, C., Dantas, L., Van Cleef, F., Jaramillo, D.M. 2022. Grazing cool-season cover crops in North Florida. Florida Cattleman and Livestock Journal. v.86, n.4, p. 34-38.

Interpretive Summary: Cover crops are any crop grown to provide soil cover. The benefits provided by cover crops are innumerous, ranging from pest and erosion control to biological nitrogen fixation and improvement in soil organic matter. However, in this article, we will discuss the potential to graze cool-season cover crops in the north Florida panhandle. A common practice used in Florida is to plant cool-season grasses during the off-season of summer annual crops (e.g., cotton and peanut) to protect soil from erosion. Grazing these forages can add value to the production system via improvement of land utilization and increasing overall system resilience to market fluctuations and severe weather phenomenon. Advantages of grazing cover crops may include improvement of land utilization, increasd profit, improvements in nutrient cycling, and increased system resilience. The drawbacks of adopting cover crop grazing systems may also come down to a producer’s skillset, inadequate infrastructure, and land-use agreements. Overall, grazing cover crops has the potential to increase land use efficiency throughout the year without negatively impacting row crop production. There are opportunities worth exploring in north Florida, however, barriers such as infrastructure and land use agreements need to be overcome in order to broadly adopt this management practice.

Technical Abstract: Cover crops are any crop grown to provide soil cover. The benefits provided by cover crops are innumerous, ranging from pest and erosion control to biological nitrogen fixation and improvement in soil organic matter. However, in this article, we will discuss the potential to graze cool-season cover crops in the north Florida panhandle. A common practice used in Florida is to plant cool-season grasses during the off-season of summer annual crops (e.g., cotton and peanut) to protect soil from erosion. Grazing these forages can add value to the production system via improvement of land utilization and increasing overall system resilience to market fluctuations and severe weather phenomenon. Advantages of grazing cover crops may include improvement of land utilization, increased profit, improvements in nutrient cycling, and increased system resilience. The drawbacks of adopting cover crop grazing systems may also come down to a producer’s skillset, inadequate infrastructure, and land-use agreements. Overall, grazing cover crops has the potential to increase land use efficiency throughout the year without negatively impacting row crop production. There are opportunities worth exploring in north Florida, however, barriers such as infrastructure and land use agreements need to be overcome in order to broadly adopt this management practice.