Farmers usually plant cover crops after harvesting their main crop. This prevents erosion of the soil and nutrient leaching. The roots of these crops also stabilize the structure of the soil. It had been assumed that a mixture of different cover crops would result in particularly intensive rooting.
In agriculture, crops are usually differentiated into main crops and cover crops. The first category includes crops with which farms mainly earn their money such as cereals, potato or maize. Once these crops have been harvested, it is time for the cover crops: They are sown to maintain or improve the quality of the soil. Cover crops suppress weeds, prevent nitrate leaching and reduce erosion by rain and wind.
The reasoning behind this idea is that if roots from several species sown at the same time are competing, the result will be so-called niche differentiation. This means the roots of some cover crops will mainly penetrate upper layers of soil, while others will seek out lower layers of soil. The researchers tested cover crops of oil radish, winter rye and crimson clover in their study. The plants were either sown as single or mixed cover crops. The scientists then investigated how the roots had penetrated the soil at different depths in late Fall.
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Agriculture study delivers unexpected results: Cover crops and rootsFarmers usually plant so-called cover crops after harvesting their main crop in the Fall. This prevents erosion of the soil and nutrient leaching. The roots of these crops also stabilize the structure of the soil. It had been assumed up to now that a mixture of different cover crops would result in particularly intensive rooting. However, a recent study found only limited evidence that this is the case. Instead, mixed cover crops grow thinner roots than when just one single type of cover crop is planted. This result was unexpected. It documents how little is currently understood about the interactions between plant roots.
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