There is an increasing interest regarding the potential for cover crops and soybean cyst nematode to interact in the field. Particularly with the possibility that cover crops could decrease soybean cyst nematoden numbers.

Much of a wheat crop’s yield potential is determined by the time wheat emerges in the fall, so Michigan State University Extension suggests growers take time to evaluate their young wheat.

Crop residue, or stover, includes leaf and stalk tissues of field crops that have traditionally been returned to the soil as an important source of organic matter and plant nutrients. Since the Dust Bowl of the1930s, crop residue cover left at the soil surface by minimizing tillage has also been recognized as a key erosion control tool. Yet, current trends in field crop production systems are encouraging some producers to harvest more stover for use as bedding, forage and even bioenergy feedstock.

In most years, corn silage harvest starts in late August and early September for most producers. The reduction of growing degree day units and early frost will mean immature corn silage will be harvested in many locations leading to differences in silage quality compared to years with normal growth and development.

An exotic invasive shrub, introduced in the 1800s as a garden plant, is being studied to demonstrate how its presence has a cascading damaging effect on natural flora and fauna, no-till agriculture and public health. Ohio State University entomologists are collaborating with Michigan State University and Iowa State University in a three-year research project to determine the distribution of buckthorn throughout Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and Iowa.