American Agriculturist Logo

The trial looks to evaluate planting green, roller crimping and cover crop grazing.

June 5, 2020

2 Min Read
Harvest of cover crop
ROLLER TRIAL: If you farm in northern New Jersey and want to participate in a roller crimper trial, North Jersey RC&D is offering incentives for you to do just that.Will Rogers

North Jersey Resource Conservation and Development is inviting farmers in northern New Jersey to participate in an innovative cover crop on-farm trial.

RC&D is seeking 25 farmers with previous cover crop experience to commit to trying an advanced cover crop management practice during the spring of 2021 and 2022. Applications are open to farmers in Warren, Hunterdon, Sussex, Somerset and Morris counties.

Research will be conducted on a wide diversity of farms, from small vegetable to large grain operations under both organic and conventional management. 

Through this project, North Jersey RC&D will give out over $560,000 in incentive payments to northern New Jersey farmers as compensation for adopting and evaluating novel soil health practices.

Participating farmers will try one of the following spring cover crop management practices on a portion of their land for two years:

  • planting into green cover crop prior to herbicide burn-down applications

  • roller-crimping cover crops

  • grazing cover crop with livestock

Throughout the study, farmers will keep records of their planting and termination activity, and they will record the cover crop management effects on cash crops. Meanwhile, North Jersey RC&D staff will collect soil samples to assess how the various strategies affect soil health. 

Incentives available

Participating farmers will receive up to $25,000 each in financial incentives. This includes a $1,000 annual stipend for time and labor in recording economic impacts and agronomic practices. Farmers will also receive annual per-acre payments — $35 to $300 — for every acre enrolled in the study. 

Additionally, farmers will receive an equipment budget to purchase needed equipment and supplies, including high-end planter attachments, roller crimpers, or fence and waterer supplies. 

This project is funded by the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service CIG On-Farm Conservation Innovation Trial, a new component of the 2018 Farm Bill. It is one of only 16 soil health demonstration proposals selected for funding nationwide.

Join webinar on June 10

Have more questions? North Jersey RC&D staff are holding a short webinar June 10 from 8-9 p.m. We will briefly discuss the opportunity and answer any questions you may have about the program. 

Register for the webinar online

Source: North Jersey RC&D, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

Subscribe to receive top agriculture news
Be informed daily with these free e-newsletters

You May Also Like