Cover Crop Series: Bayou Rape Kale Hybrid
Bayou Rape Kale Hybrid is a hybrid brassica. As a brassica, it is generally considered to be a cool-season plant but can be used in warmer weather if adequate rainfall is timely. Without sufficient rainfall, it will not be productive. Biomass production in the summer will be low. There may be other better options for a brassica in the summer. Seeding rate was 8 pounds per acre.
The plots were drill planted in 7.5 inch rows in a clean-tilled and culti-packed seedbed on May 16, 2017 at the Noble Research Institute Headquarters Farm in Ardmore, Oklahoma on a Weatherford fine sandy loam. Planting depth was shallow, about 0.5 inch, in a dry seedbed and 2.33 inches of rain fell over the next three days. There was no fertilizer, insecticide, or herbicide applied to the crops and pigweed pressure in the field was very heavy. Rainfall was below average after establishment.
The Noble Research Institute is testing dozens of cover crop species with potential to help build soil health in the Southern Great Plains. This series features the cover crops we've grown on our Headquarters Farm in southern Oklahoma. These videos explore our results on establishment and growth, ground cover potential, and weed control for each crop.
