Cover Crops
Wheat
Wheat is an often overlooked as a cash crop for growers in North Missouri. Wheat got a bad reputation back in 2015 when many of the popular varieties were infected with Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) otherwise known as scab, which produced mycotoxins in the grain causing severe dockage or making the grain unmarketable. Since 2015 there has been great progress in breeding scab resistance and tolerance into high yielding wheat genetics and a willingness among growers to use fungicides and other intensive management practices to push wheat yields to very profitable levels.
Wheat can be thought of as “A cover crop you can sell!” By planting an early soybean variety such as APEX 3131s you can insure timely planting of wheat which (like a rye cover crop) gives your ground winter cover and erosion protection in addition to breaking some weed and pest cycles common to a corn and soybean rotation.
After wheat harvest in late June you still have time for double crop soybeans, a forage crop or multi species cover crops that can fix or scavenge Nitrogen for your next corn crop.
Resor Seeds represents and recommends soft red winter wheat varieties from the brands above based on their long term performance in University trials in North Missouri and West Central Illinois. Check with us in August for our variety recommendations based on your field’s soil type, yield goal and how intensively you wish to manage your wheat crop.