During the winter of 2022-23, Sand County Foundation began working with three farmers in Wisconsin’s Sheboygan and Ozaukee counties who were interseeding cover crops early (prior to V3 corn growth stage) into their corn silage crop to maximize soil cover while minimizing yield impact. Each had some experience with adding other species to their corn silage and diversifying their rotations, but none knew exactly how it was affecting the feed quality for their dairy cows.
Sand County Foundation partnered with the farmers to process feed samples and track their management to demonstrate how adding cover crops to their corn and sorghum silage impacts feed quality.
While cover crop use in Wisconsin has slowly increased, use by dairy farmers on silage corn acreage is not often considered as an opportunity to increase silage biomass, improve livestock health, or offset costs. Nationally, as of 2021, only 20 percent of corn silage acres utilized cover crops.
Our "grower showcase" features management details on how the farms implemented changes to their silage system, adding crop diversity to their fields. It provides a summary of the preliminary feed quality results. This project encourages the farmers to share their experiences and learn from each other as they explore opportunities to support a more diversified silage system. It is an effort to initiate networking, conduct on-farm research, and support soil health improvement.
NEXT STEPS
Data collection continues in 2026 through 2028 with support of the Daybreak Fund. We will work with five farmer collaborators to process silage samples and track their management to quantify how cover crops chopped with their corn and sorghum silage impacts feed quality and nutrient use efficiency. Each farm will have a control of silage without interseeding. They will interseed a diverse cover crop mixture into their corn or sorghum silage. In a separate field, they will interseed soybean into corn silage.
Do you have more ideas on creative ways to include diversification of cropping and livestock onto your farm? Would you like to learn more? Contact Sand County Foundation’s Agricultural Systems Director, Tricia Verville, to join the discussion. tverville@sandcountyfoundation.org
To view the full report on the Healthy Soils, Healthy Cows Grower Showcase, CLICK HERE.
WITH SUPPORT FROM
