1. Brassica Cover Crop Variety Trial Rose Lake Plant Materials Center Bath, MI August 13-Nov. 11, 2010

2. Disclaimers  This was a one year study.  The weather was unusually favorable.  Sample sizes were not large (the sample quadrat was 2 ft ².  Variability and LSDs tended to be high.  When data are presented, even if only some of the selections are covered the statistics were run on all 20 selections.

3. About the Site…  100 miles from Lakes Erie, Michigan, and Huron  About 30” of precipitation spaced evenly over the year  Moderate to well draining black sand

4. Rose Lake Plots Photo by Rose Lake NRCS PMC

5. Brassica Selections  Radishes:  Groundhog  Defender  Tillage Radish  Daikon VNS Lot# LMR6 4  Daikon Midwood  Daikon Nema Common  Driller  Experimental Radishes:  GS‐733, IR‐14, NZS, MBS, LITH, COL  Forage Turnips:  Pasja  Appin  Mustards:  Pacific Gold  Ida Gold  Accent  Brown  Rapeseed:  Dwarf Essex

6. Planting  Planting: Aug. 13, 2010  Seeding rates:  Radishes 10 lb/A  Mustards 8 lb/A  Turnip 2 lb/A  Rapeseed 5 lb/A

7. % Cover (Oct. 12) *Using ANOVA, there were no statistically significant differences in % soil cover.

8. % Cover Tillage Radish ‘Defender’

9. Biomass (tons/A) (Oct. 12) abcd

10. OSR ‘Groundhog’ OSR Daikon Nema Common OSR Driller

11. Tillage Radish OSR ‘Defender’

12. Biomass (tons/A) (Oct. 12) abc bcd cd abcd abc

13. Tillage Radish OSR ‘Defender’

14. Nitrogen Accumulation (lbs/A)

15. N (lbs/A)

16. Flowering Brassica Cover Crop% of Plots in Flower (out of 4) on Oct. 12, 2010 OSR Groundhog 0 OSR Defender 0 OSR Daikon Nema Common 100 OSR Driller 0 Tillage Radish 0

17. Flowering Of these five radish selections, OSR Daikon Nema Common was the earliest to flower. No selection of the total 20 set seed.

18. Winter Kill As of Nov. 10, 2010, the Brassicas had yet to die off (though some were showing cold stress symptoms). By that date there was at least one hard frost and several lighter frosts. OSR Daikon Nema Common Photo by J. Durling, Rose Lake NRCS PMC.

19. Photo by J. Durling, Rose Lake NRCS PMC

20. November 10, 2010 Pollinators! In November! On a mustard.