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Soil is a living thing. It sustains life in many ways and plays a vital role in providing us with food, fuel, fiber, and shelter. Therefore, it is important to think about what we can do to protect this incredible resource for the present and future generations.
One of the methods farmers can contribute to protecting soil is with the use of cover crops. These are defined as “crops grown for the protection and enrichment of soil.” The benefits of the use of cover crops on agricultural land have been known for decades. However, the total acreage using these crops is extremely small. The main reason for that is that cover crops generally don’t turn a financial profit, so it is costly for farms to implement this great resource.
This is where pennycress comes in as a great alternative to traditional cover crops.
