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Cover Crop Mixtures, Biodiversity, and Agriculture, Crops & Soils Magazine, Nov-Dec. 2021

Blog Posts by Topic

Columbia Basin Agriculture

Potato Cropping Systems to Manage Soilborne Disease February 7, 2023
The Fallout of October Rains in the Desert November 1, 2016
Questioning the Value of Soil Health for the Irrigated Arid West August 21, 2014
Cold + Dry = Winterkill : 2013-14 Winter in Review June 18, 2014
The Sustainability of the Columbia Basin’s Irrigation System June 2, 2014

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Cover crops and cover crop mixtures

What’s so Good about Biodiversity in Crop Production? October 10, 2023
Water Use Limitations of Cover Crops in Dryland Cropping April 4, 2023
Buckwheat and Phosphorus September 13, 2021
Crop Diversity is Not the Cause July 19, 2021
Why Ecological Biodiversity Research Results Seldom Apply to Agriculture February 4, 2021
Contrary Science; Cover Crop Mixtures, Monocultures, and Mechanisms August 18, 2020
2018 Cover Crop Monoculture vs Mixture Update December 18, 2018
Cover crop monocultures continue to best mixtures; 2017 Update December 12, 2017
Cover crop best bet is monoculture, not mix December 21, 2016
Defending the Proper Use of Monoculture September 27, 2016
Monoculture vs. Polyculture Part II: “Straight up” beats “cocktails” for cover crop ecosystem services June 11, 2015
Monoculture vs. Polyculture Part I: “Straight up” beats “cocktails” for cover crop productivity June 8, 2015
How about GM cover crops? January 28, 2014
Mixing the Perfect Cover Crop Cocktail April 17, 2013

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Crop diversity and biodiversity

What’s so Good about Biodiversity in Crop Production? October 10, 2023
Crop Diversity is Not the Cause July 19, 2021
Biodiversity, Healthy Soils, and their Combination in Regenerative Agriculture can Reduce but not Replace Fertilizer March 15, 2021
Why Ecological Biodiversity Research Results Seldom Apply to Agriculture February 4, 2021
Contrary Science; Cover Crop Mixtures, Monocultures, and Mechanisms August 18, 2020
Crop rotation: In praise of deliberate, sequenced disruption of natural systems December 1, 2016
Defending the Proper Use of Monoculture September 27, 2016
Monoculture vs. Polyculture Part II: “Straight up” beats “cocktails” for cover crop ecosystem services June 11, 2015
Monoculture vs. Polyculture Part I: “Straight up” beats “cocktails” for cover crop productivity June 8, 2015
Ecological Theories, Meta-Analysis, and the Benefits of Monocultures May 26, 2015

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Crop rotation

Water Use Limitations of Cover Crops in Dryland Cropping April 4, 2023
Potato Cropping Systems to Manage Soilborne Disease February 7, 2023
Fine-Tuning with Soil Health; Soilborne Disease? October 5, 2022
Yield Benefits of Crop Rotation: Crop Diversity or Active Crop Time? April 15, 2021
Crop rotation: In praise of deliberate, sequenced disruption of natural systems December 1, 2016
Defending the Proper Use of Monoculture September 27, 2016
Change your crop, change your soil August 9, 2013

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Ecology, Agroecology, and Agriculture

What’s so Good about Biodiversity in Crop Production? October 10, 2023
Bet-Hedging with Cover Crop Mixtures September 28, 2021
Crop Diversity is Not the Cause July 19, 2021
Yield Benefits of Crop Rotation: Crop Diversity or Active Crop Time? April 15, 2021
Why Ecological Biodiversity Research Results Seldom Apply to Agriculture February 4, 2021
Soils under corn and tallgrass prairie; research to challenge our assumptions October 2, 2018
Crop rotation: In praise of deliberate, sequenced disruption of natural systems December 1, 2016
Ecological Theories, Meta-Analysis, and the Benefits of Monocultures May 26, 2015
Can We Save Nature by Improving Agriculture? September 16, 2014
Ecosystems are Not Smart, We Are – Applications on the Farm March 5, 2014
Don’t Mimic Nature on the Farm, Improve it March 3, 2014

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Feeding the world

Meeting Food Demand through Agronomic Engineering and Incremental Transformation August 9, 2023
The New Urban Indoor Industrial Agriculture… but Why? November 16, 2016
The Essentials of Sustaining Agricultural Production July 16, 2015
Space Farming is Science FICTION March 27, 2015
Agriculture Requires Fertilizer Inputs, and That’s Good October 16, 2014
Don’t Mimic Nature on the Farm, Improve it March 3, 2014
Forego a Hamburger, Feed a Person September 5, 2013

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Fertilizer, nutrients, nitrogen

Fine-tuning with Soil Health; Nutrients August 17, 2022
Why Hasn’t Biological Nitrogen Fixation Fixed Nitrogen Scarcity in the World? May 5, 2022
Always Follow the Nitrogen December 7, 2021
Why the World Stays Green November 16, 2021
Buckwheat and Phosphorus September 13, 2021
Biodiversity, Healthy Soils, and their Combination in Regenerative Agriculture can Reduce but not Replace Fertilizer March 15, 2021
How does regenerative agriculture reduce nutrient inputs? February 4, 2020
Communication intercept reveals 21st century cities were alien food project October 30, 2016
The Benefits of Combining Organic and Synthetic Nitrogen Sources June 26, 2016
Agriculture Requires Fertilizer Inputs, and That’s Good October 16, 2014
Organic Farming Reliant on Synthetic Nitrogen October 9, 2012

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Green manures

Big Biomass and More Often; A Green Manure Frequency Hypothesis October 25, 2018
Without big biomass, green manures are a step backwards October 9, 2018
Green Manures, The Other GM crops March 13, 2018

Manure and compost

A Problem with Soil Inoculants November 22, 2022
There is not enough manure (or compost) to sustain agriculture October 18, 2017
Can manure sustain soils? September 19, 2017
Can Manure Supply Nitrogen and Phosphorus to Agriculture? September 7, 2017
Study Shows Soil-Building Benefits of Manure and Crop Rotation, so why didn’t they say so? June 27, 2013

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No-till, strip-till and related

Concentrate Organic Matter at Surface to Improve Soils April 30, 2014
Cover the Soil for Quick Benefits October 16, 2013
No-till Does Not Reverse Soil Degradation? March 14, 2013

Organic farming

The Benefits of Combining Organic and Synthetic Nitrogen Sources June 26, 2016
Organic Farming Provides Ecosystem Service and Solves Weed Problems April 14, 2016
Study Shows Soil-Building Benefits of Manure and Crop Rotation, so why didn’t they say so? June 27, 2013
Hamstrung by Ideology December 20, 2012
Organic Farming Reliant on Synthetic Nitrogen October 9, 2012

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Pesticides

Comparing effects of herbicides, fertilizers, and tillage on the soil December 8, 2016
Hamstrung by Ideology December 20, 2012

Philosophy of agriculture

The Benefits of a Reductionist Approach July 25, 2023
Soil (health) evaluation begins by asking “What’s the problem with my soil?” July 9, 2019
Crop rotation: In praise of deliberate, sequenced disruption of natural systems December 1, 2016
Stepping, rather than jumping, towards sustainability September 25, 2012

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Regenerative agriculture

Don’t Overthink Your Soil Biology November 1, 2022
Yield Benefits of Crop Rotation: Crop Diversity or Active Crop Time? April 15, 2021
Biodiversity, Healthy Soils, and their Combination in Regenerative Agriculture can Reduce but not Replace Fertilizer March 15, 2021
MAXIMIZE and minimize; Two Principles for Managing Soil Health June 18, 2020
How does regenerative agriculture reduce nutrient inputs? February 4, 2020
Regenerative Agriculture: Solid Principles, Extraordinary Claims April 4, 2018

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Soil health

What’s so Good about Biodiversity in Crop Production? October 10, 2023
Potato Cropping Systems to Manage Soilborne Disease February 7, 2023
A Problem with Soil Inoculants November 22, 2022
Don’t Overthink Your Soil Biology November 1, 2022
Fine-Tuning with Soil Health; Soilborne Disease? October 5, 2022
Fine-Tuning with Soil Health; Water August 23,2022
Fine-tuning with Soil Health; Nutrients. August 17, 2022
Do soil health indicators indicate soil health? April 13, 2022
Biodiversity, Healthy Soils, and their Combination in Regenerative Agriculture can Reduce but not Replace Fertilizer March 15, 2021
MAXIMIZE and minimize; Two Principles for Managing Soil Health June 18, 2020
Just-In-Time Soil Health April 1, 2020
Soil (health) evaluation begins by asking “What’s the problem with my soil?” July 9, 2019
Soil biology and soil organic matter; What do recent discoveries mean for soil management? June 10, 2019
Soils under corn and tallgrass prairie; research to challenge our assumptions October 2, 2018
Regenerative Agriculture: Solid Principles, Extraordinary Claims April 4, 2018
Comparing effects of herbicides, fertilizers, and tillage on the soil December 8, 2016
The Benefits of Combining Organic and Synthetic Nitrogen Sources June 26, 2016
Questioning the Value of Soil Health for the Irrigated Arid West August 21, 2014
Concentrate Organic Matter at Surface to Improve Soils April 30, 2014
Cover the Soil for Quick Benefits October 16, 2013
Change your crop, change your soil August 9, 2013
Are You Micromanaging Your Soil? May 21, 2013
No-till Does Not Reverse Soil Degradation? March 14, 2013
Hamstrung by Ideology December 20, 2012
How to kill your soil November 1, 2012

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Sustainability of agriculture

There is not enough manure (or compost) to sustain agriculture October 18, 2017
Can manure sustain soils? September 19, 2017
Can Manure Supply Nitrogen and Phosphorus to Agriculture? September 7, 2017
The New Urban Indoor Industrial Agriculture… but Why? November 16, 2016
The Essentials of Sustaining Agricultural Production July 16, 2015
Space Farming is Science FICTION March 27, 2015
Agriculture Requires Fertilizer Inputs, and That’s Good October 16, 2014
Can We Save Nature by Improving Agriculture? September 16, 2014
The Sustainability of the Columbia Basin’s Irrigation System June 2, 2014
Organic Farming Reliant on Synthetic Nitrogen October 9, 2012
Stepping, rather than jumping, towards sustainability September 25, 2012

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Other

Sagebrush Shrub-steppe or Cheatgrass Prairie? September 5, 2023
Cryptic Species, Agriculture, and Confirmation Bias May 31, 2018
The New Urban Indoor Industrial Agriculture… but Why? November 16, 2016
Communication intercept reveals 21st century cities were alien food project October 30, 2016
Defending the Proper Use of Monoculture September 27, 2016
We are the 98%. Thanks to farmers and ranchers, from the rest of us November 25, 2015

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Email: andrew.mcguire@wsu.edu

Phone: 509-754-2011, Ext. 4323

Office address:
1525 E Wheeler Rd,
Moses Lake WA 98837

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