b'COVER CROP CORNER8 INNOVATORS MOVING COVER CROPS FORWARDCOVER CROPPING AND intercropping can be traced back to the start of time. Only in recent history did the practice of monocul-tures really take hold. The Three Sisterscorn, beans, and squashhave been a mainstay in North American history. They are a combina-tion of grass, legume and broadleafthe Kevin Elmy cornerstone of plant synergies. People using Elmy is founder of Coverthat cropping system did not know why it Crops Canada. His bookworked, they just knew it worked. As agri-Cover Cropping in Westernculture became more industrialized, it led to Canada is availablemonoculture cropping. through Friesen Press,Now, science is catching up to cover crop Amazon, and digitallyleaders and is starting to understand how through Apple Books,cover cropping is helping to improve our Kindle, and Google Play.soils. Heres a quick overview of people who For more info on Coverhave made a difference in the cover cropping Crops Canada visitworld.covercrops.ca One of the first modern day innovators was Albert Howard. He was a botanist inThe Three Sisterscorn, beans, and squashhave England in the early 1900s and is regardedbeen a mainstay in North American farming history. to be the father of modern organic princi-ples. He became so frustrated with EnglishClayton Robins ranches near Rivers, Man., producers using synthetic inputs and growingwhere his experience through the Nuffield monocultures that he moved to India whereScholarship, Agriculture and Agri-Food he practised what he preached and provedCanada, and his own ranch has helped him that his system works. do incredible things. By using different plant Yvonne Lawley has been researchinggroups, he can match the requirements of his cover crop use since her PhD where she wascattle while improving his soil quality while working with tillage radish. Now with theminimizing the environmental impact.University of Manitoba, she is studying dif- Jay Fuhrer from Bismarck, N.D., has been ferent cover cropping systems over differentthe face of education of soil health topics for areas of use, creating a great knowledge baseyears. He is one of the few people who can for Canadian producers. take complicated soil health information and Kris Nichols of Olds, Alta., loves what sheeffectively boil it down so his audience can does and the fungi she studies. Shes a worldfully understand it.leader in soil health knowledge and applica- A list of cover crop innovators would not tion. Part of her research shows how coverbe complete without mentioning Gabe Brown cropping helps build the soils and lovesfrom Bismarck, N.D. Most cover crop confer-to discuss with producers how the systemences have Brown speaking, spreading the works and looks for options for producers toword that the use of cover crops is not just try to help build their soils.theory, but can be done at scale.Paul and Erin Kernaleguen from BirchInnovation in cover crops is the resurrec-Hills, Sask., run a dairy operation usingtion of old ideas. We now have the advantage regenerative principles and use a cover crop- of science and can direct our energies with based diet for the cows. It shows how truemore focus to achieve our goals. At the end the words of Howard really are: the healthof the day, we just must remember a quote of the soil, plant, animal, and man is one andfrom Fuhrerplants fix dirt. One of my indivisible.favourite sayings! 36GERMINATION.CANOVEMBER 2022'