Cover crops can benefit your soil and ultimately your bottom line. We plant cover crops in the pasture, orchards and garden using a no-till drill. Not only do cover crops help correct nutrient deficiencies in the soil, they also make excellent forage for the livestock and mulch for the garden. Cover crops reduce soil erosion, increase water infiltration, control weeds, decrease soil compaction and increase organic matter. We like to say that soil is our main product, and the bison, hazelnuts, apples and pigs are the byproduct.

Examples of cover crops we like include Triticale, Common Vetch, Red Clover, Bayou Kale, Chicory and Austrian Field Pea.We recommend planting as many varieties as you can and see what takes. “Producers often get caught planting three or four types of high yield, domesticated grasses and legumes, but it is important to recognize that indigenous herbs, many of which are deep-rooted perennials, provide a number of attributes including medicinal properties, nutrient density, drought resistance…there is a strong case for incorporating various herbs and other plants in paddock seed mixtures,” (Eco Farming Daily). We try to plant more than just a few species and hope that our land and animalsbenefit.