Durana Clover As a Living Mulch in Corn.

Living mulch row-crop systems have the capacity to supply N to the crop via nitrogen fixation and provide protection from erosion.   Thus, they have potential to extend the land area on which crops can be grown.  ‘Durana’ white clover was tested in a living mulch system for corn production.  Clover was established in the fall of 2011 and four establishment systems tested to determine best methods to establish corn into the clover.  Conventional tillage was used as a establishment control.  Three weed/clover suppression treatments were assigned as a factorial over the establishment treatments.  Pure stands of clover were established in a second study and soil nitrates were measured weekly following herbicide-induced clover suppression  or kill.  Corn was also established using a banded application of tank-mixed glyphosphate and dicamba to kill strips of clover, and an N replacement study conducted to estimate corn N uptake and clover N release over time.   Conventional till (no clover), strip till, and banded herbicide planting methods had greater population densities of corn than the other establishment treatments.  The strip till and banded herbicide treatments had fewer weeds than conventional till.  Three sources of N release from clover were measured (herbicide, suppression, and senescence).  Nitrogen release from the clover exceeded demand by the corn until 63 days after planting after which N demand by the corn exceeded that supplied by the clover.  Corn yield and leaf chlorophyll measurements indicated that clover supplies 100 kg/ha N to the corn.