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Funded Project |
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Funding Program:
IPM Enhancement Grants |
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Project Title:
Understanding tradeoffs for cover crop deployment in organic sweet potato |
Project Directors (PDs):
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Lead State: NC Lead Organization: North Carolina State University |
| Undesignated Funding: $29,990 |
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Start Date: Mar-01-2019 End Date: Feb-28-2020 |
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Pests Involved: wireworm complex & common weeds |
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Site/Commodity: sweet potato |
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Area of Emphasis: insect & weed management, cover crops, fertility |
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Summary:
In this project, we will use a systems-based approach to assess the tradeoffs of winter annual cover crop use in organic sweet potato production. Using an interdisciplinary approach, we will measure the benefits of crimped winter annual cover crops for integrated pest management (weeds/insects) and sustainable soil fertility. In the autumn, transplant beds will be formed and rye / rye+vetch cover crops planted. In the spring, cover crops will be terminated using a roller-crimper modified for beds. Sweet potato slips will be planted into cover crop residue with a no-till transplanter. We will amend fertility in each treatment using a fertility ramp. We will monitor the abundance of wireworms and weed density throughout the season in each treatment. At harvest, we will evaluate root damage and marketable yields. These measurements will help growers make educated decisions that minimize risk for yield loss (weeds/pests) and input dependence (fertilizer inputs). Documenting the tradeoffs between current yield-limiting factors and cover crop benefits will be an important step toward a more comprehensive understanding of how cover crops can be integrated into high value organic sweet potato production systems.
Objectives: The goal of this seed grant is to collect preliminary data on the efficacy of rolled and crimped cover crop treatments to suppress weeds and contribute to available nutrient resources. We will also document the prevalence of below-ground pest damage on marketable sweet potato roots from each cover crop treatment. The project objectives are to: 1. Compare the weed suppressive activity of rye or rye+vetch cover crops when applied to sweet potato hills formed in the autumn to typical organic production practices used for sweet potato. 2. Assess the damage of wireworm larvae to sweet potato in the presence of different cover crop combinations and a wireworm susceptible and resistant varieties. 3. Measure the yield response of organic sweet potato grown on different cover crops when supplemented with a range of nitrogen rates. |
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