Updating cover crop guidance: destruction approaches and soil health impacts (scoping review)

This project will help update UK cover crop guidance, with respect to cover crop destruction and long-term soil health impacts. It will also identify knowledge gaps in these areas.

The work, which will consider winter-, spring- and summer-sown cover crops, will review evidence from UK systems and comparable international agricultural systems.

This desk-based research will use a rapid evidence assessment (REA), which is a structured and transparent way to collate, review and appraise academic and non-academic (grey) literature. REAs are considered more robust and reliable than traditional literature reviews but quicker and less costly than full systematic reviews.

In terms of cover crop destruction, various destruction approaches (methods and timings) in various soil types will be appraised. It will include consideration of the ease of termination and legacy impact of destruction approaches, such as biomass breakdown, changes to weed population dynamics and the impact on the establishment of the following cash crop.

In terms of long-term soil health impacts, the review will include an evaluation of UK research findings where cover crops have been used repeatedly and key soil health indicators have been measured (commercial and experimental sites). The work will consider how various cover crops (straights and mixes) affect soil biodiversity – including beneficial soil biology (e.g. earthworms) and plant pathogens.

Ultimately, the research will produce a report in spring 2025, which will include collated guidance on the best practice management of cover crops for optimum destruction and soil health benefits. It will also detail the key knowledge gaps an how they could be addressed.

AHDB will promote the main findings of the work from summer 2025.

Providing answers to your questions

This research project was funded via a levy-payer-led commissioning process