2022 was the third season of the Citizen Science cover crop project. This report details findings from the effort. In 2020, 2021, and 2022, farmers shared cover crop data from 99 farm fields across Wisconsin. Project information is compliled to gain a long-term, regional understanding of the successes and challenges of adopting cover crops into diverse cropping systems, to improve decision support tools like SnapPlus, and guide practical cover crop recommendations for Wisconsin’s diverse climatic, soil, and cropping systems.

Project highlights:

• Fifty-eight farmers participated across 28 Wisconsin counties; more than 40% reported at least 7 years of experience planting cover crops
• Participants reported planting 22 different cover crop species, with cereal rye the most common, followed by radish, crimson clover, oats, and red clover
• Fifty-five percent of farmers planted multispecies mixes (3 species or more)
• Eighty-six percent of farmers drilled their cover crop; wheat was the most common previous cash crop followed by corn silage
• Despite drier than normal growing conditions in 2022, cover crop biomass production following winter wheat was comparable to previous years
• Sixty-four percent of participants were interested in expanding their farm’s cover cropped acres; the most cited barrier to adoption was lack of remaining growing season after crop harvest
• Personal experience, agronomists, and producer-led networks were identified as the most important sources of cover cropping information

To participate in the program, directions can be found at https://cias.wisc.edu/uncategorized/building-knowledge-about-wisconsins-cover-crops/

To view the full report, go to https://ipcm.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2023/07/2023-Soil-Health-Collaborative-Report.pdf