Tamarack Farms Quinoa Cover Crop
Ryan Pengelly, Tamarack Farms
To demonstrate the use of cover cropping strategies
Emergence and crop establishment for both the quinoa and the pea crop were successful. Unfortunately, the quinoa sustained extreme insect (stem borer and goosefoot groundling moth) damage, resulting in poor crop development and minimal seed yield. Despite the virtual failure of the quinoa crop, the accompanying cover crops performed well, demonstrating the potential for intercropping to reduce risk to the producer within the cropping year.
Cover cropping as a part soil management is of growing interest to many Manitoba farmers. Cover crops perform a number of significant functions for the soil, including but not limited to: controlling soil erosion after harvest of the cash crop; increasing soil nutrients; and, improving water infiltration.