It's raining ideas on how to combat the drought in the Dakotas.

One of the top ideas: Plant cover crops after harvesting wheat.

"With wheat harvest ahead of schedule and hay supplies cut short by increased demand and fewer production acres, double cropping with cover crops might be the answer for many livestock producers," says Justin Fruechte, forage and cover crop specialist for Millborn Seeds, Brookings, S.D., a company that sells cover crop seed.

For grazing, plant a mixture of brassica species -- turnips; radishes; dwarf essex rape and new hybrids such as Hunter or Winfred, which were specifically developed for late-season grazing.

Make hay out of cover crops planted after wheat harvest.

For haying, plant an early-maturing millet. "If planted in July, a crop of German or Japanese Millet can be hayed by September," he says.

For haying and grazing, try Japanese millet. Once it's hayed in September, it will regrow giving cattle fresh forage into the fall.

For more information on cover crops, contact Fruechte at 888-498-7333 or [email protected].

Source: Millborn Seed