Farmers have many questions following USDA’s administrative change which moves up the harvest date for cover crops on prevented plant acres to September 1. Glenda Blindert with Blindert Insurance Agency of Salem, South Dakota says farmers cannot combine any cover crop. However, they can hay or graze the crop plus silage, haylage and baleage will be treated in the same manner. She says farmers aren’t allowed to rent out acres for grazing and there is only one circumstance where they can sell the crop.
She says farmers need to wait 25 days after the last planting date to plant a cover crop. Those approved fall under NRCS guidelines and must be seeded at cover crop rates, which are less than rates for grain.
Blindert says farmers must follow those rules to get the full prevented plant indemnity payment.
NRCS will cost share cover crop seed under the EQIP program up to $5,000. Blindert warns that cover crop seed has increased in price since the announcement and some seed is very difficult to source.
