Kevin Elmy believes cover crops could give seed growers a practical new way to add value for customers—without losing sight of the fundamentals of producing clean, high-quality seed.
Speaking to seed growers at the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association annual meeting in Whitehorse last week, the Cover Crops Canada founder argued that improving soil biology through carefully designed cover crop systems doesn’t just benefit farmers. It can also produce more vigorous seed, create new markets for seed growers and strengthen customer loyalty.
“Everything starts with the soil,” Elmy said, outlining five principles he believes underpin successful regenerative farming: keep living plants growing for as much of the season as possible, increase plant diversity, reduce tillage, reduce reliance on synthetic inputs and incorporate livestock where practical.
For seed growers, however, those principles have to be balanced against the realities of pedigree production.
Building soil without sacrificing seed quality
Unlike grain producers, seed growers face stricter requirements around varietal purity, volunteer control and crop rotation. Elmy acknowledged those concerns, saying cover crops must solve problems—not create new ones.
“The number one thing that we need to do is have goals,” he said.
Rather than recommending blanket cover crop mixes, Elmy encouraged growers to select species based on function and compatibility with seed production.
On his own Saskatchewan farm, he routinely underseeded Italian ryegrass and subterranean clover beneath spring triticale, using species that typically winter-kill or fail to produce viable seed under Prairie conditions. That allowed him to increase plant diversity and maintain living roots without creating contamination risks.
He also removed canola from his rotation entirely, replacing it with a full-season cover crop harvested for forage.
As his cover crop blends expanded from two species to as many as eight, Elmy said he consistently observed better soil aggregation, lower fertilizer requirements and fewer disease problems.
Why the microbiome matters
Much of Elmy’s presentation focused on the invisible biology surrounding every seed.
Each seed carries its own microbial community, or microbiome, which he argued is shaped by crop rotation, soil management and plant diversity.
That microbiome doesn’t disappear after harvest.
Instead, microorganisms left behind in root channels become available to subsequent crops, allowing plants to access beneficial microbes established by previous species. Over time, Elmy said, this creates healthier plants and more vigorous seed.
“The seed that you’re producing is going to have a stronger microbiome,” he said. “The seed that you sell to your customers is going to have more vigour, it’s going to have more punch, it’s going to have more resilience.”
He suggested that seed quality may become an increasingly important competitive advantage.
“If they see yours jump out of the ground and have more seedling tolerance, more drought tolerance, more flood tolerance—whatever they’re going to attribute it to—they’re going to want that again.”
Choosing the right cover crop species
While enthusiastic about cover crops, Elmy repeatedly cautioned against using species that create future management headaches.
He recommended avoiding large proportions of brassicas because they can compete with cash crops, create disease bridges for canola and tie up nutrients. Instead, he encouraged growers to build mixes around legumes and flowering broadleaf species such as phacelia, plantain and chicory, while keeping brassicas below about five per cent of a blend.
Species selection also depends on seed production concerns.
Hard-seeded crops like hairy vetch can persist for years after establishment, while annual ryegrass and buckwheat can quickly become contamination risks if allowed to set seed. Conversely, several species commonly imported into Western Canada fail to produce viable seed under Prairie conditions, making them attractive options for cover crop use without compromising pedigree production.
New market opportunities for seed growers
Beyond on-farm benefits, Elmy sees cover crops creating entirely new business opportunities.
Demand is growing for locally produced cover crop seed, particularly cereals, legumes, sunflowers and forage species suited to Canadian conditions. Producing those crops locally could lower seed costs for farmers while diversifying revenue streams for seed growers.
He also pointed to emerging species—including teff grass, open-pollinated sunflowers and additional winter cereals—as crops worth evaluating for future markets.
“There’s opportunity to get into this market, produce seed for this soil health movement,” he said.
Drones could expand adoption
One technology Elmy expects to accelerate cover crop adoption is drone seeding.
Small-seeded species such as clovers, grasses, chicory and plantain are well suited to aerial application, allowing growers to establish cover crops before harvest without making additional field passes.
He believes drone application will become increasingly common as equipment improves and adoption spreads.
“It’s exactly where it’s going,” he said. “It’s going to be an opportunity as a business venture to go out and do it.”
For Elmy, the message to seed growers is straightforward: cover crops aren’t simply another product category. Properly integrated into seed production systems, they have the potential to improve soil health, enhance seed performance and open new markets—all while helping growers produce a better product for their customers.
