No-Till Farmer
Get full access NOW to the most comprehensive, powerful and easy-to-use online resource for no-tillage practices. Just one good idea will pay for your subscription hundreds of times over.
Advertise Follow Us
6 Tips for Flying On Cover Crops Successfully
A pilot explains how a no-tiller’s choice in applicator, cover crop species, rate and timing play important roles in achieving a strong, uniform stand.
Pictured Above: HIRING THE BEST PILOT. Damon Reabe recommends no-tillers ask their aerial applicator if they do dry pattern testing, if they’ve handled the species of cover crops they want seeded and if they can ensure the seed will be flown on uniformly to help them determine the best pilot for the job.
One of the biggest concerns and complaints no-tillers have about flying on cover crops is that it doesn’t result in a good stand.
It’s an issue Damon Reabe is very familiar with. A pilot and owner of the aerial application companies Dairyland Aviation and Reabe Spraying Service in Waupun, Wis., Reabe understands the challenges in achieving good seed-to-soil contact from an airplane. But in the last 6 years of studying stand failures, he’s come to identify the key factors that can greatly increase the odds of a uniform stand.
At the 2018 National No-Tillage Conference, Reabe explained why your cover crop species, location, seeding rate and timing all play an important role in the success of your aerial-seeded cover crops, and how to troubleshoot failures.
1 Hire the Right Applicator
Online Extra
Click here to learn more about Damon Reabe’s aerial seeding equipment setups. And click here to hear his podcast about flying on cover crops successfully.
At the conference, Reabe showed the audience a photo of spring barley that had been flown into a field of sweet…
Premium content is for our Digital-only and Premium subscribers. A Print-only subscription doesn't qualify. Please purchase/upgrade a subscription with the Digital product to get access to all No-Till Farmer content and archives online. Learn more about the different versions and what is included.
Top Articles
- Ponds, Panels, Pollinators: No-Till Innovator Takes Conservation to Next Level
- No-Till Highlights: Dec. 19, 2024
- The Farm Income Outlook and Boosting Carbon Revenue Opportunities [Webinar]
- A Terrific National No-Tillage Conference Program — Offering Many, Many Profit-Building Reasons on Why You Need to Attend
- Study Finds Soybean Yields Resilient Following Late Rye Termination
Current Issue
Multiple Sprayer Tips Pay Off
Re-Examining the Benefits of Narrow Rows When No-Tilling
No-Till Investment Pays Off for Montana Farmer
Must Read Free Eguides
Download these helpful knowledge building tools
- How No-Till Improves Your Land Value
- 5 Pillars for No-Till Farming Effectively, Efficiently
- Making the Precision Basics Even Better with Implement Guidance
- Focusing on Smarter, Sustainable Fertilizing Strategies
Videos
Ponds, Panels, Pollinators: No-Till Innovator Takes Conservation to Next Level
On this edition of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by CultivAce, No-Till Farmer’s Conservation Ag Operator Fellow, Ray McCormick, showcases how he’s taking conservation ag to the next level in Vincennes, Ind., with ponds, solar panels, duck hunting and more.
Top Directory Listings
Needham Ag Technologies, LLC
Needham Ag understands the role of technology in making better use of limited resources within a specific environment by drawing on a wealth of global experience to overcome the challenges facing today's farmers, manufacturers and dealers.
Titan International, Inc
Titan offers a full line of wheels, tires and undercarriage products for a wide variety of off-the-road equipment.
The Andersons PureGrade
The Andersons grows enduring relationships through extraordinary service, a deep knowledge of the market, and a knack for finding new ways to add value as we have done for nearly 70 years.