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Cover Crop Program Establishes Criteria to Address Low Germination in Seed Stock

Bluestem Farm (Chestertown) Farm Manager Evan Miles (photo by Edwin Remsberg)

Bluestem Farm (Chestertown)
Farm Manager Evan Miles (photo by Edwin Remsberg)

ANNAPOLIS, MD – The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) will allow farmers to plant small grain seed stock with a germination rate that is less than the 80 percent required by the Cover Crop Program as long as an adequate cover crop stand is established. Since weather conditions this spring have impacted seed quality, MDA is allowing farmers to continue to use farm grown seed for the Cover Crop Program as long as the crop achieves nutrient benefits for Maryland waterways and the Chesapeake Bay.

“This program adjustment addresses economic impacts to the farm community and the possibility of a decline in cover crop acreage planted that could result from problems with seed quality and the availability of alternative seed sources,” said Maryland Agriculture Secretary Buddy Hance.

MDA’s Cover Crop Program typically allows farmers to use seed they may have saved; however, all seed used is required to meet Maryland Seed Law and Regulatory Standards and have a minimum germination rate of 80 percent. In addition, certain planting methods must be used to plant the seed to ensure a good stand. The newly announced seed option would relax only the germination standard and the minimum seeding rate. All other seed quality criteria must be met. MDA will require farmers to achieve specific stand coverage at the time of fall certification. Soil conservation districts, which administer the program for MDA, will be checking fields that are planted with substandard seed to assure stand establishment meets density requirements. Farmers should consult with their local University of Maryland Extension (UME) staff for information on recommended seeding rates necessary to achieve the required stand.

Cover crops are cereal grains and winter annual brassicas (plants in the cabbage family) that are planted in the fall to take up nutrients that remain in the soil following the harvest of summer crops including corn, soybeans, sorghum, tobacco or vegetables. Barley, canola, rapeseed, kale, rye, ryegrass, forage radish, spring oats, triticale and wheat planted in the fall of 2013 are eligible.

Earlier this year, Governor Martin O’Malley announced that Maryland farmers planted over 415,000 acres of cover crops on their farms during the 2012-2013 planting season to control soil erosion, reduce nutrient runoff and protect water quality in streams, rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay. The 2012 cover crop exceeded Maryland’s 2013 Bay Milestone cleanup commitment by 17 percent. Collectively, the 415,000 acres of cover crops planted prevented an estimated 2.49 million pounds of nitrogen and 83,000 pounds of phosphorus from potentially impacting the Bay and its tributaries.

Maryland’s Cover Crop Program is administered by MDA and the state’s 24 soil conservation districts through the Maryland Agricultural Water Quality Cost-Share (MACS) Program. It is funded by the 2010 Chesapeake Bay Trust Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund. Applicants must be in good standing with MACS to participate and must be in compliance with the Nutrient Management Program.

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Contact Information

If you have any questions, need additional information or would like to arrange an interview, please contact:
Jessica Hackett
Director of Communications
Telephone: 410-841-5888

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