Webinar Series Unlocks Potential of Perennial Groundcovers in Corn and Corn/Soybean Production Systems

A five-week lunch-and-learn webinar series starting in January 2025 will explore the innovative use of perennial groundcovers in corn and corn/soybean production systems as a cover crop. This series, sponsored by Iowa State University and RegenPCG, will be held on consecutive Tuesdays (Jan. 14, 21, 28 and Feb. 4 and 11, 2025) from 12-1 p.m. CST.

Register for the webinar series and stay tuned for the video series release.

This webinar series will focus on providing information on what perennial groundcover agriculture is, the potential benefits it offers, insight into how to effectively manage these systems, and work that is being undertaken to make them more robust for widespread adoption and implementation. The presentations are tailored for farmers, crop advisors, technical service providers, government agencies (NRCS/DNR) and other agricultural scientists eager to understand the possibilities and challenges of integrating perennial groundcovers into their row crop agriculture.

Jan. 14, 2025 – Perennial Ground Cover Integration into Corn and Soybean Production: System Basics and Potential Benefits; all speakers are from Iowa State University.
• Raj Raman – A visionary overview of the potential and scalability of perennial groundcovers in corn and soybean production systems
• Ken Moore and Roger Hintz – An operational guide to implementing a perennial groundcover in corn and soybean production systems
• Philip Rockson – A comparative analysis of time and labor demands across conventional, cereal rye and perennial ground cover in corn and soybean production systems
• Cyndi Bartel – Comparisons of costs for conventional, cover cropping and perennial groundcover in corn and soybean production systems
Jan. 21, 2025 – Perennial Ground Cover Suppression and Weed Management within Corn and Soybean Production Systems
• Amina Moro, Iowa State University – Crop Zone Requirements
• Sara Lira and Brent Wilson, Corteva Agriscience – Techniques for maintaining a crop growth zone in corn and soybean production systems
• Erin Haramoto, University of Kentucky – Chemical weed control options for perennial groundcover systems. Experiences and options
 Jan. 28, 2025 – Selecting Perennial Groundcovers for Corn and Soybean Production Systems and Their Ideal Characteristics
• Shuizhang Fei, Iowa State University – Choices for perennial groundcover in corn and soybean production systems
• Patrick Galland, Iowa State University – Research of unsuppressed production systems with perennial ground cover in corn production
• Brandon Schlautman, The Land Institute, and Philip Rockson, Iowa State University – Experiences from partnering farms using perennial ground cover in corn and soy production systems

Feb. 4, 2025 – Corn Hybrid Performance within Perennial Groundcover Systems
• Raj Raman, Iowa State University – Types of perennial groundcover production systems and how this influences brittleness
• Thomas Lubberstedt and Memis Bilgici, Iowa State University – Should we breed corn for use in perennial groundcover production systems?
• Sara Lira, Corteva Agriscience – Evaluating hybrid performance in well suppressed perennial groundcover systems

Feb. 11, 2025 – Quantifying and Valorizing Ecosystem Service Benefits for Perennial Groundcover in Corn and Soybean Production; all speakers are from Iowa State University
• Marshall McDaniel– Soil moisture results and water competition for nitrogen in perennial groundcover systems
• Oluwatuyi Olowoyeye – Research on grass cover and erosion control
• Philip Rockson – Findings on nitrogen leaching reduction
• Cyndi Bartel – Federal farm bill programs and valorizing ecosystem services
For more information about the series, please contact Daniel Andersen at dsa@iastate.edu or 515-294-4210. For registration inquiries, please contact Melissa McEnany at mmcenany@iastate.edu or 515-294-9075.

An opportunity to learn about Perennial Ground Cover over your own lunch

Enjoy a few quiet moments over lunch while learning.  Why not?

Sep. 28, 2022 12 pm RegenPGC Co-Project Director D. Raj Raman will discuss the challenges and benefits of cover cropping systems that employ perennial groundcover.

Perennial Ground Cover in corn
A strip of perennial ground cover between rows of corn (Ken Moore)

Ames, Iowa – The Iowa Learning Farms (ILF) conservation webinar taking place Sep. 28 at noon CDT will feature D. Raj Raman, Morrill Professor, Iowa State University Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering and project director at Regenerating America’s Working Landscapes to Enhance Natural Resources and Public Goods through Perennial Groundcover (RegenPGC). Raman’s research includes technoeconomic modeling of bioprocessing systems, and he has been collaborating since 2017 with Ken Moore, the Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor in Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University, on a transdisciplinary project focused on perennial groundcover. Participants in Iowa Learning Farms Conservation Webinars are encouraged to ask questions of the presenters. People from all backgrounds and areas of interest are encouraged to join.

In the webinar, “Developing Large-Scale, Reliable Perennial Groundcover Systems – Challenges & Approaches from RegenPGC,” Raman will highlight the current state of research, practical applications of cover crops and how perennial groundcover (PGC) could become a lower barrier-to-entry approach to cover cropping which could accelerate adoption. He will also discuss technical and non-technical challenges to realizing broad utilization of PGC. In addition, Raman will provide insights into the multiple critical ecosystem services cover crops contribute to the overall health and productivity of cropland.

D.Raj RAMAN
Prof. D. Raj Raman

“Cover crops have been a talking point in agriculture for years, but adoption rates are low, and our research is pointing to different ways to take advantage of the known conservation benefits through practices that may have stronger appeal for farmers,” said Raman. “We understand and appreciate both the promise and challenges of making PGC adoption a viable approach throughout the upper Midwest, and are eager to draw attention to the potential of perennial groundcover farming systems that could become widely deployed as a conservation practice.”

Webinar Access Instructions

To participate in the live webinar, shortly before noon CDT Sep. 28:

Or, join from a dial-in phone line: 

  • Dial: +1 312 626 6799 or +1 646 876 9923
  • Meeting ID: 364 284 172

The webinar will also be recorded and archived on the ILF website, where it can be watched at any time. Archived webinars are available at: https://www.iowalearningfarms.org/page/webinars.

A Certified Crop Adviser board-approved continuing education unit (CEU) has been applied for. Those who participate in the live webinar are eligible. Information about how to apply to receive the credit will be provided at the end of the live webinar.

Images: Raj Raman & Perennial Groundcover (PGC) Farming in Practice

ILF Contact: Alena Whitaker, Water and Natural Resources Specialist (515.294.2473)

Iowa Learning Farms is an Iowa State University Extension and Outreach conservation and water quality education program.