A crop grown to protect and enrich the soil or to control weeds.
A vigorous fast-growing plant that covers the soil surface and improves the soil.
Cover crops are plant that are primarily planted to prevent erosion, control weeds and improve soil quality while the garden is otherwise dormant. A cover crop is usually ploughed or tilled in before the next food crop is planted and the cover crop is used as a soil amendment and is synonymous with a green manure crop. By contrast it is a living mulch when used for weed control. From the landscape designer's perspective, the choice between various cover crops could be influenced by aesthetics, since the cover crop is taking the place of garden plants in between growing seasons. As such, it could be selected with an eye to its aesthetics, in addition to practical considerations. When plants are chosen to cover the ground based mainly on aesthetic considerations, they are no longer considered cover crops. Instead, such plants are classified as groundcovers. While most cover crops are planted with an eye to till them into the soil later, groundcovers are not tilled into the soil. Also Known As: green manure crops, living mulches
A temporary vegetative cover which provides protection for the soil and the establishment of plants, particularly those which are slow to establish.
A close-growing crop grown primarily to improve and protect the soil between periods of regular crop production, or a crop grown between trees and vines in orchards and vineyards.
a small grain (oats, barley, or wheat) planted in a field or area. When the crop grows, the weeds will not be so thick. Usually, the cover crop is cultivated later in the future.
A crop planted to protect the soil by reducing or stopping erosion.
A crop generally recognized by agricultural experts as agronomically sound for the area for erosion control or other purposes related to conservation or soil improvement. A cover crop may be considered to be a second crop.
crop planted to prevent soil erosion and provide green manure
a crop grown, not for harvest, but to protect the soil from wind and water erosion, control weeds or improve soil conditions
a crop of close-growing grasses, legumes, or small grains grown primarily for seasonal protection and soil improvement
a crop planted during the normal fallow season
a crop planted in a field before or after the main designated crop that is the real moneymaker
a crop planted in a garden to protect the soil from erosion and to improve the soil by adding organic matter
a crop that is not harvested
a crop that one grows to build the soil, protect the soil from erosion and increase the soils' nutrition for the next season
a planting of (typically) grass and/or forage legumes on a field between production seasons
a temporary planting of a fast-growing crop, usually sown in the fall and tilled under in the spring, which protects the soil from wind and water erosion and adds organic matter
A species such as wheat, oats, or annual rye that will kill many weeds while preventing erosion.
A crop grown primarily to protect soil against wind water erosion, add organic matter and nitrogen, catch and recycle nutrients, improve soil structure, and provide weed control.
A close-growing crop, whose main purpose is to protect and improve the soil and use excess nutrients or soil moisture during the absence of the regular crop, or in the no vegetated areas of orchards and vineyards.
Cover crops will often include leguminous plants like clover and vetch, but they might also be grains like rye or oats. Cover crops are often planted as a green manure, but they also serve to prevent erosion, control weeds, and conserve water in the soil (from losses due to evaporation).
A close growing crop, such as a grass or legume, grown primarily to protect and improve soil between periods of regular crops, or in orchards and vineyards.
A close-growing crop, planted primarily as a rotation between regularly planted crops, or between trees and vines in orchards and vineyards, to protect soil from erosion and improve it between periods of regular crops.
A crop which is planted in the absence of the normal crop to control weeds and add humus to the soil when it is plowed in prior to regular planting.
A crop planted outside of the normal growing season specifically for soil cover rather than for harvest. These crops are planted to reduce soil erosion and may help reduce leaching of nutrients to the groundwater.
A crop that provides temporary protection for delicate seedlings and/or provides a canopy for seasonal soil protection and improvement between normal crop production periods.
Broadly defined, a cover crop is any annual, biennial, or perennial plant grown as a monoculture (one crop type grown together) or polyculture (multiple crop types grown together), to improve any number of conditions associated with sustainable agriculture. Cover crops are fundamental, sustainable tools used to manage soil fertility, soil quality, water, weeds (unwanted plants that limit crop production potential), pests (unwanted animals, usually insects, that limit crop production potential), diseases, and diversity and wildlife, in agroecosystems (Lu et al. 2000). Agroecosystems are ecological systems managed by humans across a range of intensities to produce food, feed, or fiber.