Planting Date, Fertilization, and Termination Method of a Rye Cover Crop Preceding Peanut.

Timing of cover crop planting is dependent on preceding crop harvest. Fertilization is often considered unnecessary for a cover, but can be beneficial if it provides an advantage. Rolling the cover can provide some advantages, but could interfere with peanut pegging if the mat is too thick. Using a factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design, rye was planted in mid-October, mid-November, and mid-December each year, and either included or excluded 34 kg N ha-1 30 days after each planting date, then each of these scenarios was either terminated by spraying glyphosate with residue left standing, or sprayed with glyphosate and rolled to create a mat over the soil surface. Each treatment combination was strip-tilled and planted to peanut to determine cover crop management effect on yield and grade (total sound mature kernels [TSMK]). Trials took place in the 2013, 2014, and 2015 summer crop seasons. Biomass accumulation of the rye was affected by planting date each year, and by fertilization in two of three years. There was no effect of cover crop management on yield of peanut. There was an improvement in TSMK for peanut when peanut was planted in October compared to November in 2015, and when peanut was planted after a rolled cover crop in 2013, otherwise no differences were observed. Based on these results, there were no major cover crop management concerns from excessive biomass accumulation that would be considered consistently detrimental to a subsequent peanut crop, although more research is needed with robust biomass systems.