The Rural Voice, 1985-11, Page 26Old practice revitalized
Bob Forrest, crop researcher at Centralia College, has been conducting trials for
several years to evaluate the use of forage legumes as plowdown crops.
by Michelle Timko
Legume crops such as alfalfa,
sweet clover, and red clover were
once planted as green -manure crops
to improve soil fertility and increase
the yields of subsequent crops. These
legumes have a natural ability to fix
nitrogen and improve soil structure
because of their long fibrous roots.
As cheaper inorganic forms of
nitrogen appeared and large-scale
mechanization led to monoculture
(the planting of one crop again and
24 THE Rl .NAL VOICE
again), the use of legumes as fertilizer
disappeared.
In recent years, the reduction of in-
put costs and concern about erosion
have revitalized the use of forages.
Today, less than half of the original
organic matter remains in intensively
cropped soils in Eastern Canada. If
perennial forages are to be a part of
soil conservation they must fit into
the present cropping system.
Bob Forrest, crop researcher at
Centralia College, has been conduc-
ting trials for several years to evaluate
the use of forage legumes as
plowdown crops.
In cash cropping, a plowdown
makes use of the remainder of the
growing season by providing a cover
crop until fall cultivation. If a legume
is used for this purpose, nitrogen is
also fixed in the soil.
Forrest believes that by