Warm Season SoilBuilder Mixes
Planting date: Primarily after wheat harvest (May through
early August) for growth through the warm season into the
winter. Mixes can be designed to self-terminate in winter or
have longer growth into the following spring.
Cropping rotation: Corn, soybeans or other crop of your
choice (alternative mix*)
SoilBuilder Warm-Season Mix options can include the
following: summer annual forage sorghum and milo, spring
oats, annual ryegrass, turnip, radish, forage rapeseed, flax,
other oil seeds, soybeans, forage and field peas, hairy vetch,
clover, alfalfa
Grasses: 10% Brassica: 25% Other: 15% Legume: 50%
Seeding rate range:
• 15 lbs per acre low density for ground cover
• 30 lbs for a late summer to winter grazing resource
Benefits of SoilBuilder Warm-Season Mix:
• Legumes maximize nitrogen fixation ahead of the following
spring’s corn planting—50-100 pounds per acre on average
• When combined with grasses and brassicas, this mix is
outstanding at holding soil in place
• Brassicas break up compaction and create channels that
corn roots can easily follow
• Performs well through fall, keeping soil active and fed for a
longer period of time
• Soil firms up more quickly after spring rains because it is
able to hold more water in the soil profile, allowing corn
planting to get underway sooner than on bare ground
• Saves fuel and chemical costs, compared to ecofallow,
while reducing compaction and helping to rebuild the moisture
profile over winter and into spring
Forage option: Some growers seed up to 1.5 times the
regular planting rate and allow livestock to graze the cover
crop in the fall. The SoilBuilder Warm-Season Mix provides
excellent nutrition for livestock with solid protein and total
digestible nutrient figures. Grazing does, however, reduce
some of the soil benefits the cover crop provides. Grazing is
an option with all Arrow Seed SoilBuilder mixes.
*An alternative SoilBuilder mix is also available for a soybean
rotation. This mix includes a summer annual forage, oats,
turnips and diakon radish that invigorate the soil while reducing
erosion. Contact your Arrow Seed dealer for details on this mix
option.
