Ancient grain plants are having a real moment, and for once the culinary hype and the gardening case line up. These are crops that sustained entire civilizations for millennia before industrial agriculture narrowed our plates down to just wheat and corn. Now, they are reappearing on gourmet menus and in seed catalogs at the same time. Many are ornamental enough to carry a flower border on looks alone, offering high impact structure as well as nourishing crops.

The beauty of growing these ancient power grains is that they are often far more resilient, forgiving, and easier to grow than our pampered hybrid vegetables. These plants are survivors and are generally heat-tolerant, unfussy about soil quality, and productive without much fuss. Integrating these dual-threat ancient wheat grains allows you to effortlessly bridge a gap between a productive kitchen garden and a curated flower display. These must-have edimentals offer a unique way to experiment with heights and colors while cultivating exceptional crops.

They span a range of climates, uses, and growth habits, and May is a great time for sowing these hardy, high impact beauties. By planting these fast-growing annuals now, you set the stage for summer harvests that are as nutritious as they are visually spectacular. From high-altitude staples to sun-baked resilience, there is an ancient grain here that can help you create beautiful and edible borders. Let’s get stuck in.

Ancient Grains for Crops and Color

So what are ancient grains going to need in the way of modern yard spaces, which are often quite modest or already bulging with plants? Luckily, integrating ancient grains doesn’t require a dedicated grain plot. Most fit into a vegetable garden or mixed border without much planning, and thrive in the same conditions as your favorite summer annuals. They generally just need a spot in full sun and well-draining soil, making them perfect companions for zinnias, sunflowers, or marigolds. Because many of these species originated in challenging climates, they possess a natural drought tolerance that makes them perfect for water-conscious gardeners.

Whether you are in a northern USDA zone with a shorter window or the humid south, sowing now ensures they establish in time to produce heavy seed heads by mid-to-late summer. While they aren't heavy feeders, a light application of organic mulch or a balanced fertilizer can help them reach their maximum height which, for some, can be a towering 8 feet (2.4m). Just consider their structural role. Use taller grain crops as living screens, with airy plume options softening the edges of a path. Here are the 7 gorgeous ancient grains you can weave into garden gold.

1. Amaranth

The Victorians knew what they were doing when they called this plant love-lies-bleeding. While they would grow amaranths for the bold weeping tassels that look like cascading velvet, modern gardeners appreciate that the seeds are a superfood, high in protein and lysine. This is poppable but can also be ground into flour or cooked whole, depending on what’s needed. The grain varieties produce massive seed heads in deep burgundy, molten gold, and lime green, stretching 2-3 feet (60-90cm) long. Plants can reach 6 feet (1.8m) by late summer, and provide an architectural and visual punch that few other annuals can replicate.

To get the best from your amaranths (Amaranthus spp.), find a sunny spot with poor to average soil. Too much nitrogen leads to more leaves and fewer seeds. They are drought-tolerant once established, but staking early on will prevent toppling during late-summer rainfall. Watch seed heads closely in late August. When the seeds pop out easily between your fingers, you can harvest amaranth. Try 'Hopi Red Dye' for its deep purple foliage or 'Golden Giant' for sun-colored heads. There are some gorgeous amaranths available at Eden Brothers, including ‘Red Garnet’ and ‘Hot Biscuits’ varieties. You can also buy Seedville USA ‘Midnight Red’ Amaranthus seeds from Walmart. Grow in zones 2–11 as an annual.

2. Quinoa

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) is often treated as fussy, which comes from its love of cool summer nights. Originating in the high Andes, quinoa was bred at altitude, and lowland heat tends to stress it. It was bred where summers run cool and nights drop off, and it prefers temperatures to stay below 95°F (35°C). Meet these conditions, and quinoa is a spectacular annual in northern and coastal US zones (4-10). Its seed heads develop in rich sunset hues of neon pinks, oranges, and yellows, which make the plant look more like a deliberate ornamental than a staple crop.

This ancient grain is a relative of spinach and beets, so it appreciates soil that is rich in organic matter but also well-drained. It’s a complete protein source, making it a must-grow for vegetarian gardeners. However, the seeds are coated in a bitter substance called saponins, which naturally deters birds. Before you cook quinoa, give the seeds a thorough rinse in a fine-mesh strainer until the water no longer bubbles. Look for vibrant 'Brightest Brilliant' or 'Cherry Vanilla' for creams and pinks. You can buy ‘Cherry Vanilla’ Quinoa seeds from Amazon.

3. Pearl Millet

When quinoa gives up, pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) is just getting started. This crop came out of sub-Saharan Africa and was built for conditions that knock out other grains: sustained heat and poor, sandy soil. Often grown as a cover crop, it turns heat into rapid growth. You may recognize ornamental 'Purple Majesty' with its near-black foliage, but the grain-producing varieties are just as beautiful and great for crops, with upright spikes that are densely packed. Reaching 5 feet (1.5m), it’s a fast-grower that adds a wonderful vertical element to a flower bed.

Pearl millet is virtually pest-free and requires very little supplemental water once its roots are down. Just add a little seaweed feed, such as Neptune's Harvest Fish & Seaweed Fertilizer from Amazon, at the time of sowing to give plant roots a bolster. This ancient grain is annual and performs well in zones 2-11, but shines in southern heat, and doesn’t need much once it’s in the ground. The grain has a mild, nutty flavor and is often ground into a gluten-free flour. You can harvest the spikes as they turn golden-brown, or leave them through winter to provide a natural bird feeder for local songbirds. Buy CZ Grain Pearl Millet seeds from Walmart.

4. Sorghum

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) doesn’t get enough attention, which is odd. You can pop the grains like popcorn, grind them into a silky gluten-free flour, and even press the stalks of sweet varieties to make syrup. It handles heat and reasonable drought without complaint, and can double as a temporary screen or windbreak, growing 6-8 feet (1.8-2.4m) tall. It develops wide, corn-like leaves and heavy, textural seed heads that are favorites for dried floral arrangements. Very few plants check this many boxes while being edible. Grow in zones 2–11 as an annual.

This plant is a heat-seeker and can handle significant dry spells by going dormant until the next rain arrives. Plant seeds an inch (2.5cm) deep after all danger of frost has passed. Because sorghum can grow so tall, it’s a good idea to mulch the base to retain moisture and suppress weeds that might compete for nutrients. You can get Timberline Cedar Mulch from Lowe’s. Look for 'Tarahumara Popping' sorghum for a fun snack crop or 'Black Amber' for seed heads that add a dark contrast to borders. You can buy Thresh Seed’s ‘Dale Sugar’ Sorghum seeds from Amazon.

5. Teff

Ethiopian injera (that spongy, slightly sour flatbread) is what most people associate with teff (Eragrostis tef). It’s been a Horn of Africa staple for millennia and deserves more attention outside of that context. Teff is a tiny grain with a huge garden presence. Unlike the towering sorghum, teff is a graceful, fine-textured grass that grows 2-3 feet (60-90cm) tall. It produces delicate, airy panicles that catch the light, behaving like ornamental pony tail grass. It’s an excellent choice for the front or middle of a border, or anywhere you want a soft, meadow-like feel.

Teff is a warm-season annual that handles heat and mild dry spells without issue. The seeds are the size of a poppy seed, so to harvest you’ll want to lay a tarp down and shake the dried heads over it. However, the nutritional payoff is worth it, as teff is packed with calcium and iron and has a faintly malty flavor. This low-maintenance ancient grain plant adds elegance to any landscape from June to first frost. You can buy Country Life Organic Teff seeds from Amazon. Grow in zones 2-11 as an annual.

6. Fonio

Fonio (Digitaria exilis) is probably the least familiar name on this list and one of the more interesting crops to grow. It might be the most modern ancient grain on the list, recently gaining fame as a climate-hardy superfood. This West African grain can go from seed to harvest in 60-70 days, depending on conditions, making it perfect for short seasons or as a way to fill a midsummer gap. Fonio remains short and grass-like, producing dainty seed heads. Because it’s so fast-growing, it’s often used in West Africa to provide food in the hungry season before other crops are ready.

This ancient grain plant thrives in poor, sandy soils where other plants struggle, and doesn't need much in the way of fertilizer. Just a pinch of Dr Earth Organic Starter Fertilizer from Amazon at the time of planting is fine. Naturally gluten-free, the grain is tiny and tastes like a cross between couscous and quinoa, with a signature nuttiness. While it’s still gaining a foothold in garden centers, it’s a conversation starter for any adventurous grower looking to try something truly unique. You can buy Fonio seeds from Etsy. It is a resilient annual in zones 2-11.

7. Buckwheat

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) is related to sorrel and rhubarb, and is technically not a grain at all, though nobody seems to care once it’s in the bowl. This pseudocereal is a staple of the ancient grain world, and is perhaps the most beneficial plant you can put in your border. It’s ready to harvest 70-90 days from sowing. Its heart-shaped leaves shade out weeds, and its clusters of white flowers are a magnet for honeybees and beneficial insects. If you have a patch of bad soil that needs loosening, its deep roots will do the heavy lifting for you.

This crop is a cool-season lover, and can be tucked into the garden whenever there is a 70-day window of mild weather, or when you need a late push as the season is winding down. It’s often used as a cover crop, but if you let it go to seed, you’ll be rewarded with triangular nutty groats that can be toasted into kasha or ground for noodles and pancakes. It’s a low-maintenance, high-reward plant that finishes its cycle quickly, allowing you to replant for fall. You can buy Buckwheat seeds from Eden Brothers. Grow in zones 2–11 as an annual.

Shop Tasty Hero Grains for Color

Add another dimension to modern growing with some dynamic ancient grains. Whether you are looking for the architectural drama of pearl millet, the neon-bright seed heads of quinoa or the exotic, tassel-laden hues of amaranth, these grain-tastic crops are tasty, healthy, and perfect for color and texture in beds and borders.

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Soil can get a little run down after the growing season. Your flowers, vegetables, and other plants have worked hard all summer to utilize the nutrients from the soil. They grow fast and hard over summer, and that means the soil can end the season depleted of both nutrients and beneficial microbes.

To help give your soil a helping hand as the seasons change, it’s well worth trying some cover crop planting as part of your fall jobs. The best cover crops in late summer and early fall will work fast to give your soil a lift and get them ready for the next wave of crops and ornamentals. Planting a fall and winter cover crop is an easy and effective way to replenish the soil after summer. Try these late summer and early fall cover crops to keep soil healthy and ensure a good base for the next planting year.

Best Cover Crops to Plant After Summer

Soil becomes healthier and maintains good structure, nutrient levels, and microbe populations when it contains living roots. It’s common to leave soil barren when you’re not growing something, such as from late fall into late winter or early spring, depending on your location and climate. However, a cover crop is a better way to maintain good soil while you’re not actively growing key ornamentals and crops.

Any time you’re not growing a primary crop or plant, you can grow a cover crop plant to improve soil. Let the cover crop grow, then work it into the soil before planting vegetables, flowers, or grains. By working the cover crop into the soil, you enrich it by building up organic matter. You can test the soil to identify its current condition, with a soil meter like the Raintrip 4-in-1 Meter from Amazon. This tests for pH, nutrient loads and moisture levels. This can help when determining the best cover crop plants for you.

When choosing the best cover crops to improve soil, consider when you’ll be using it and the specific benefits. Bear in mind that most cover crops die over winter, making it easy to work them into the soil. Some, like winter rye, do survive and require machinery and more effort to turn under. Here are some ideas to get you started planning your cover crop strategy.

1. Crimson Clover

Red or crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) is a legume. This means it fixes nitrogen. Legumes like red clover are great for adding nitrogen to the soil. Another good benefit of red clover is that it flowers and attracts and feeds any pollinators that are still visiting your garden later in the year. If you sow it early enough in the fall, it should flower once before winter, helping to support your local pollinator population.

Red clover is best used in zones 6 and higher. Sow it in late summer or early fall, let it die over winter, and turn it over in early spring to enrich the soil. You can buy Survival Garden Seeds Crimson Clover seeds from Amazon.

2. Hairy Vetch

Hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) has similar properties to red clover and is a great way to recharge your soil over winter. It is a nitrogen-fixing legume that flowers, to the benefit of pollinators. For a cover crop that dies over winter, use hairy vetch in zones 5 and up. However, the soil must have good drainage, or it won’t grow well.

These are some of the best cover crops for winter soil prep – just sow in late summer and early fall, then turn them into the ground in spring. You can also grow hairy vetch in early spring and use it as an early-season mulch. You can buy Seedville USA Russian Vetch Hairy Crown Vetch seeds from Walmart.

3. Oats

Oats make a good cover crop for several reasons. They are inexpensive, they grow rapidly, and they are adaptable to various conditions. As a cool-season annual cereal, you can grow oats in the fall and work them into the soil in the spring. They reliably winter-kill in zones 6 and higher (they die with exposure to very cold temperatures), and typically in zone 7 as well.

They are great cover crops for veggie gardens. Oats are not legumes, but they offer good erosion control, weed suppression and (if you keep any animals) forage. They also have extensive root systems that are good for soil that has become compacted over the summer. You can buy five-pack bundles of Survival Garden Seeds Oats Cover Crop seeds from Walmart.

4. Cowpea

There are two strategic times to plant cowpea (Vigna unguiculata): first, in early spring, and then again in mid-late summer, while the soil is still warm. Cowpeas require warm temperatures to grow. A summer cover crop like cowpea (aka the field pea) acts like a mulch, holding moisture in the soil and suppressing weeds.

As a legume, cowpea also adds nitrogen to the soil. It’s great for cover cropping in late summer and early fall, because it grows quickly and tolerates heat. It also flowers, which is great for pollinators. You can buy a bundle pack of seeds that includes Austrian Field Pea seeds from Amazon, plus hairy vetch and crimson clover.

5. Winter Rye

Winter rye (Secale cereale), also known as cereal rye, survives winter in most areas and takes a lot of effort to turn into the soil in spring, so it is typically used in farm fields. However, if you have a large area needing protection from winter winds and erosion, winter rye could be one of the best fall and winter cover crop plants you can grow. The root system of winter rye is extensive and will also reduce compaction in the soil. You can buy Thunder Acres Organic Winter Rye seeds from Amazon.

When using cover crops, consider your location and hardiness zone, your needs for a cover crop, and whether you want it to winter-kill (die with exposure to cold winter temperatures) or not. Follow the directions on the seed packets for whichever type of cover crop you choose. It’s best to start in an area free of weeds. Add fertilizer and water your cover crop as you would any other plant. A healthy cover crop will give you better soil once it’s finished growing.

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Knowing how to harvest chia seeds means you’ll be able to easily harness their wonderful nutritional benefits. Among the many superfoods introduced in the last generation, chia seeds are an excellent source of fiber, they are great for gut health, and they lower cholesterol. Because high-fiber foods help us feel full for longer, chia seeds may also help with weight loss.

Making room in your garden to grow chia means you can utilize these incredibly powerful seeds as an important food for birds and other animals. Their plants aren’t hard to grow in warmer regions and may be grown as annuals in cooler climes. Here’s how and when to successfully harvest chia seeds, and store them at their best so you can get the most from them.

Benefits of Harvesting Chia Seeds at Home

Indigenous people knew how to harvest chia seeds manually and use them for food. Today, commercial growers use a combine and screen out the seed. The benefits of growing your own tasty edible seeds are availability and controlling what goes into this ingestible.

Harvesting chia seeds is a bit labor-intensive, but well worth it if you want a direct, controlled source of this superfood. You can direct-sow the seed after the last frost date in a full sun location and well-draining soil. Keep the soil moist until germination but thereafter they need moderate water. The plants will get 1-2 feet ( 0.3-0.6 m) tall.

You can also sow the seed in flats eight weeks prior to the date of the last frost and then plant them out. Chia seeds will self-sow, which means they will begin new plants naturally the next year.

When to Harvest Chia Seeds

So how are chia seeds harvested? Well, before tackling the ‘how’, let’s talk about when. Timing is everything when learning how to harvest your own chia seeds. Hopefully, your chia plants will produce pretty purple flowers. Once these have been pollinated, they will turn into tiny seed pods, each carrying numerous seeds.

Chia plants need 12-16 hours of darkness to promote flowering, which can be challenging in some zones. Late fall is the time the petals have mostly fallen and the seed capsules have turned brown and matured. It takes about 120-180 days from sowing to harvest.

How to Harvest Chia Seeds

Indigenous people used tightly woven baskets to beat the seed heads until they dropped into the receptacle. They would use loosely woven baskets to sieve out the chaff. But how do you harvest chia seeds from a garden plot?

Simply snip off the faded flowers just below the flower spike. Place the spikes in a paper bag for a week or so until they have completely dried. Then shake the bag to release the seeds. Alternatively, you can take out the dried flower heads and lay them on a counter. For effective seed harvesting, crush them manually with your hands. Scoop the crushed seeds and chaff into a sieve and shake out the chaff.

How to Store Chia Seeds

Like most seeds, chia needs to be kept dry. Once the seed has dried out completely, you can store seeds in a zippered plastic bag, a glass jar with a lid, a plastic tub, or any other airtight container. If you keep them in the refrigerator or freezer, these seeds will last for even longer, for anything up to two years.

Frequently Asked Questions

Cover crops have long been used in farming, but did you know they can benefit gardens too? A cover crop is something you grow in what would otherwise be bare soil between growing seasons. Farmers use cover crops to build and protect soil for the next season. When tilled into the soil, it becomes green manure, adding nutrients and organic matter.

Planting cover crops isn’t just for commercial farms. Gardeners and small-scale home farmers can also benefit from the practice. Fall is the time to sow them, so here’s what you need to know to get started.

What Are the Benefits of Using Cover Crops?

While cover crops have traditionally been used on farms to suppress weeds and create green manure, home gardeners can also gain from their benefits:

• Cover crops reduce or prevent erosion of valuable topsoil.
• They minimize weed growth.
• The roots of cover crops help prevent soil compaction.
• Cover crops increase moisture and nutrients in the soil.
• They attract pollinators and beneficial insects.

The indirect benefit of all these factors is the improved health of whatever plants you grow. If you grow your own vegetables, cover cropping can help boost your yield.

Best Cover Crops to Plant in Fall

A cover crop is any plant used to cover bare soil when not in use for another crop. So, while it can be anything, some plants are better than others for the practice of cover cropping. In particular, legumes are popular for their ability to add nitrogen to the soil.

Most cover crops need to be tilled into the soil to be used as green manure. However, there are some no-till cover crops to choose from.

Below are six excellent choices of cover crops to plant this fall in your garden.

1. Winter Rye

Winter rye is a popular cover crop for the winter in colder climates. It’s very cold hardy, so even if you’ve delayed sowing a cover crop until late fall, you can still use winter rye. It will continue to grow throughout winter, sending out long roots that break up compacted soil.

Sow rye seeds no deeper than two inches and provide water for the first couple of weeks if it doesn’t rain. Cut back winter rye about one to two weeks before you start planting in the spring. You can mulch and leave it in place or compost the plant material.

2. Winter Wheat

Winter wheat is another good option for sowing in fall because of its cold hardiness. It can send roots down more than three feet (0.9 m) into the soil, so it’s particularly good for erosion prevention and soil aeration. Winter wheat also adds a lot of nutrients to the soil.

Mow winter wheat in spring before it sets seeds. Aim to cut it back a few weeks before spring planting. This will allow time for some of the material to break down and enrich the soil. You can use dried wheat straw as mulch or compost it.

3. Red Clover

Red clover has a lot of positive attributes as a cover crop. It is a legume, which means it fixes nitrogen and boosts usable nitrogen content in the soil. It also grows quickly, covers the ground densely, and is very effective at preventing weed growth. The roots are good at loosening soil.

Sow red clover seeds throughout fall, even as late as November. Seeds should be sown to a depth of about a half inch (1cm). Keep the soil moist as the seeds germinate over the course of 7 to 10 days.

If you live in USDA hardiness zone 5 or colder, winter will kill clover groundcover. If you live in a warmer climate, till or smother clover in spring to kill it before spring planting.

4. Hairy Vetch

Hairy vetch is another legume that adds fixed nitrogen to the soil. It also excels at suppressing weeds and is winter hardy and suitable for colder climates. Its vigorous growth is what makes hairy vetch so good at keeping weeds down, but this can interfere with spring planting. It’s essential that you kill it before it can self-seed and spread.

Sow hairy vetch seeds in fall to a depth of one inch (2.5cm). Germination takes 10 to 14 days, so keep the soil moist during this period. In the spring, mow, till, or tarp hairy vetch to kill it before you begin planting.

5. Tillage Radish

This type of cover crop is different from the typical grains and legumes used for coverage in winter. Also known as forage or oilseed radish, a tillage radish is a type of daikon that grows a large taproot. This makes it ideal for soil that really needs to be broken up and aerated. As a bonus, you can eat the roots and the leaves.

Anything you don’t eat will decay in spring, adding nutrients to the soil and leaving large holes behind.

6. Sorghum

A good fall-seeded cover crop for warmer climates, sorghum grows quickly and adds nutrients to the soil. Another unique aspect of sorghum is that it suppresses nematodes. If you have struggled with these soil-dwelling pests, try sorghum as your winter cover crop.

Sow seeds in fall to a depth of about a half inch (1cm). Keep the soil moist until the seeds germinate, in two to three weeks.

Mow sorghum down in early spring and either compost the grass or use it as a mulch. Don’t let it go to seed.

Many backyard gardeners avoid planting cover crops because it seems so hard to till them into the soil the next spring without all of the appropriate equipment. That’s where it pays to read about no-till cover crops. These crops give you all the benefits of cover crops, improving your soil over winter, but you don’t have to worry about blending them in.

If you’re wondering how to use no-till cover crops in vegetable gardens, just keep reading.

What Is a No-Till Cover Crop?

Cover crops are plants sown into soil after the ordinary growing season is over. These crop seeds, often a mix of grasses and legumes, sprout, grow, and produce biomass. They are then tilled into the soil to enrich it before the ordinary growing season.

In no-till gardens, the cover crop is carefully selected so that it maximizes the benefits of cover crops. No-till cover cropping stays planted until just before the vegetable crops are planted, and can be blended into the soil without tilling them. They either die after mowing or rolling, or die back naturally over the course of the winter.

Benefits of Cover Crops

Farmers have been using cover crops for many decades. Planting soil with a cover crop after the “cash crop” is harvested builds the soil’s organic matter, suppresses weeds, prevents erosion, moderates soil temperatures, increases soil fertility, and assists and encourages pollinators and beneficial insects. In the garden, the presence of the cover crop roots all winter increases space for water storage, makes the soil permeable, and recycles nitrogen and phosphorus in the soil.

Winter cover crops, planted in late fall and terminated in spring, are critical to organic farms and gardens where chemical fertilizers and pesticides are not permitted.

Benefits of No-Till Cover Crops

Regular cover crops are tilled into the soil before the primary crop is planted, often with a rototiller. But this can lead to overtillage, which weakens and disrupts soil properties, including the soil’s microbial community. That community is what holds nutrients, carbon, and water in the soil, increasing the potential for erosion and hastening the loss of organic matter.

No-till cover crops do not need to be tilled into the soil. That means they have all the normal benefits of cover crops but do not require the mechanical blending with the soil to be effective.

Best Cover Crops for No-Till Gardens

There are more than a few no-till winter cover crop species from which a gardener can choose. Each one has its management requirements and specific benefits.

Generally, a combination of grass and legume is used. This combination results in increased biomass production which means greater thickness of the cover crop mulch, meaning more weed suppression and available organic matter. The combination grass/legume offers a balanced carbon to nitrogen ratio, which, in turn, provides for a gradual release of nitrogen.

How to Use Cover Crops in a No-Till Garden

Essentially, cover crops serve to enrich your soil, allow it to store more water, and protect the space from weeds and excess temperature changes. The crops are sown into the soil after the garden crop has been harvested and stays until the next vegetable crop is ready for planting. At that point, the living cover crop plants are terminated. In no-till with cover crops, termination does not include mechanical tilling.

How to Plant a Cover Crop in a No-Till Garden

If you are wondering how to use cover crops in a no-till garden, the basic method is to prepare the soil, plant the no-till cover crop, allow it to grow and then terminate it. But there are a few tips to follow to make the process easy and effective.

In the fall when your vegetable crops are harvested, resist pulling out the plants by the roots. Rather, cut them at the soil line and dispose of this plant material. Leaving the roots in the soil will allow them to decompose, adding even more organic matter to the soil. In the spring, it is easy to lift out any remaining stems. Then you can employ a garden fork to break up compacted soil, mix in amendments, and otherwise get ready for planting.

No-Till Cover Crop Termination Methods

Like other cover crops, no-till crops must be terminated before planting the spring vegetable crop. Different methods of termination are used with different crops. The three primary means of terminating no-till cover crops are:

• The crops die and form a mulch when they are mowed or rolled
• The crops regularly are killed by winter weather
• The crops regularly die back naturally before vegetable planting time

Gluten-free foods are in high demand, and ancient grains are leading the way with buckwheat, teff, quinoa, and amaranth becoming mainstream. But have you heard of fonio? The fonio plant is an African heritage grain and one of the oldest cultivated crops in the world.

Quick Facts about Fonio

• Botanical name- Digitaria exilis
• Height- 20 inches (50 cm)
• Spread- Approx. 10 inches (25 cm)
• Sun exposure- Full
• Soil requirements- Any
• Hardiness zones- USDA 9-11
• When to plant- Spring or summer

What Is Fonio?

Fonio, an ancient cereal grain, has been grown in West Africa for thousands of years. Early evidence indicates it was in cultivation 5,000 years ago. It has been found in ancient Egyptian tombs and other antiquity sites. Fonio was once reserved for royalty and nobility. Traditionally, fonio served a purpose during Ramadan and in celebrations like weddings.

Fonio seeds are also known as “acha,” “fundi,” and “hungry rice.” Fonio is a whole grain, meaning it has the bran attached, making it high in fiber. There is both white fonio and black fonio. White fonio is the most commonly grown. Digitaria exilis is the plant’s scientific moniker, and it is an annual millet grown for its seed. In Africa, growing fonio is ideal because it is suited to poor, rocky or sandy soils where other cereal grains would not thrive. The time from seed to maturity is 6 weeks to 2 months, much quicker and earlier than other grains.

Fonio Benefits

The early maturity is just one of the fonio seed benefits. As a food, fonio is high in protein, amino acids, and micro-nutrients. Fonio contains iron, zinc, and B vitamins. It’s gluten free and has a low glycemic index, making it ideal for diabetics.

It is primarily grown by small crop farmers, who rely upon the income from this food surging in popularity. Some of the benefits that fonio is known for are:

• Aids digestion
• Controls diabetes
• Prevents anemia
• Maintains heart health
• Good for strong bones, hair, teeth
• Good for skin
• Provides a slow release of energy

How to Grow Fonio

Fonio grows 20 inches (50 cm) high with a panicle of seeds 6 inches (15 cm) long. Fonio is not cold hardy and requires temperatures of at least 77 F (25 C) to mature and produce the seed. Modern selections may be found that have been bred to reduce “seed shatter,” where the ripe grains fall to the ground before they can be harvested. This meant a loss of much of the crop.

Fornio grows from seed and may be planted in loose, dry soil. It requires irrigation during germination, and light water after the plant is a month old. The seed is broadcast and just barely covered with soil. It germinates in 2-4 days and grows quickly.

Planting, Soil, Light & Water Needs

Fonio is tolerant of almost any soil, even heavy clay if it’s loosened prior to planting. Fonio grows in full sunlight, where temperatures are warm. Partial shade situations will prevent the full formation of the seed heads. It prefers a well draining medium and is a water conservative plant once germinated. In Africa, the plant gets little moisture except from rain. The use of furrows along the rows captures rain, and manure is spread around the plants to keep moisture in the soil.

Problems Growing Fonio

As mentioned, seed shatter can seriously affect crop yields. The fonio crop may also be prey to Pangola stunt, a viral disease that causes yellowing and twisting of stems and leaves, and a stunted inflorescence. It is caused by the whitebacked planthopper. The virus cannot be controlled once the plant has it, but the use of insecticidal soaps can control the planthoppers.

How to Harvest & Use Fonio

In Africa, fonio is harvested with traditional methods. Plants are cut down with a sickle and hung to dry in sheaves. The dried plants are beaten to release the seed, which is then collected. The seeds then need to be dehulled with a mortar.

Fonio is not consumed raw, but should be cooked. It is used like couscous, or made into porridge. It is often ground and used in bread or other flour applications. The grain is often fermented. Whole grains can be popped just like popcorn.

Fonio should be rinsed prior to cooking. One way to cook it is to soak the grain with twice as much boiling water, covered for 5 minutes. It may also be toasted in oil and then simmered on medium heat with twice as much water. Fluff the folio and enjoy as you would rice, couscous, or other grains.

Want to know how to harvest buckwheat? We'll tell you everything you need to know, from timing to threshing to storing.

What Is Buckwheat?

Buckwheat, a gluten-free grain which is popular in pancakes and breads, can be easily cultivated in the home garden. It's a fast growing plant that produces seeds within 12 weeks. Plus, buckwheat harvesting can be done by hand with minimal equipment.

When to Harvest Buckwheat

Buckwheat is an indeterminate plant, which means it continues producing seeds until it is killed by frost. Thus, not all the seeds will mature and ripen at the same time. This makes buckwheat more difficult to harvest than most grain crops.

Commercial growers harvest their fields of buckwheat when 75% of the seeds have reached maturity. This requires careful inspection of the crop, since recently formed hulls will be empty and should not be counted. Once the crop is ready for harvest, farmers either combine the crop directly or cut and allow the plants to dry in the field before threshing.

How to Harvest Buckwheat in the Garden

As a home gardener you have several options for harvesting this crop. Buckwheat seeds ripen at the bottom of the plant first.

1. Harvest by Hand

One method is harvesting buckwheat by hand as the seeds mature. This can be tedious and should be done on a regular basis to avoid losses from seed shatter.

2. Cut and Dry

Gardeners can also cut and dry their crop in the garden, much the same as commercial growers do. Ideally, this is done when 75% of the seeds have reached maturity. Begin checking the plants 10 weeks after sowing and only count hulls which contain seeds.

For this method, the only buckwheat harvesting equipment you need is a cutting tool. Hedge shears or a sickle will work fine. To avoid seed shattering, cut the plants when they are moist with dew. Allow the plants to fully dry in the garden before gathering.

3. Wait for Frost

The third option is to time the buckwheat harvest in conjunction with the first frost in the fall. Buckwheat is a cold-sensitive plant. Once frost kills the plant, the seeds will mature more uniformly. The plants can then be cut and dried. However, it can be difficult to accurately estimate when frost will arrive.

What to Do After Harvesting Buckwheat

Threshing and Drying Buckwheat

When buckwheat plants are dry, the seeds can be dislodged from the plant by threshing. An antique or homemade flail can be used, but modern gardeners find smacking the dried plants against the inside of a clean trash can works just as well.

Plant debris in the seeds can be removed by pouring the seeds back and forth between two containers in front of a fan. Clean seed may need to be air-dried or placed in a food dehydrator set at under 110 degrees F (43 C) to complete the drying process.

Grinding Buckwheat

While wheat and other grains can be ground whole using a blender or coffee grinder, buckwheat hulls tend to be bitter and are best removed with a grain mill. Hand-cranked grain mills are relatively inexpensive.

Is Buckwheat an Allergen?

Note that buckwheat is a common food allergen in humans. Care should be taken when introducing it into the diet or when consuming large quantities of buckwheat products. A buckwheat allergy can quickly lead to anaphylaxis in sensitive individuals. It is also known to cause photosensitivity, so be careful!

Quinoa is an ancient grain with more essential nutrients than wheat or other cereal crops. Yet, growing this South American native plant can be difficult. In honor of National Quinoa day on January 16, let's celebrate by taking a look at common problems with quinoa crops.

Quinoa Growing Requirements

One of the biggest issues facing commercial growers and home gardeners is meeting quinoa's climate requirements. Originating in mountainous areas, quinoa requires cool temperatures and short daylight hours to reach its full potential. This can make it difficult to grow and harvest quinoa in many agricultural areas.

Research shows that temperatures above 95 degrees F. (35 C.) cause quinoa plants to go dormant or the pollen to become sterile. Due to this temperature sensitivity, experts suggest experimenting with small plots before devoting larger areas to this crop.

On the plus side, quinoa can be grown in a variety of soil conditions. It tolerates poor drainage, low soil fertility, salinity and a wide range of pH from 4.8 to 8.5. Quinoa can withstand frost and temperatures down to 28 degrees F. (-2.2 C.).

Due to its slow growth rate after emergence, weeds are another cultivation issue. Studies indicate a higher percentage of weeds were visible in fields utilizing no-till preparation methods as compared to tilled fields. Hand pulling is recommended for home gardeners, but commercial growers are advised to contact their local extension office for the latest information on herbicide use for quinoa.

Quinoa Pests

Quinoa is related to spinach, chard and beets, thus many of the invertebrate pests that infect these crops will also reduce yields and plant vitality of quinoa. Researchers have found a number of harmful bugs in quinoa test crops, including several species of flea beetles, aphids and cutworms.

Currently, there aren't any pesticides cleared for use on quinoa. Home gardeners reported success using insecticidal soaps. Predatory insects can provide control measures for some types of quinoa pests. Commercial growers and home gardeners are advised to monitor their crops for these specific pests:

Beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua)

In the Northern regions of the US, generally 2 to 3 generations of beet armyworm larval emerge during the growing season. These caterpillars can destroy seedlings by consuming leaves and petioles.

Bertha armyworm (Mamestra configurata)

Quinoa is a secondary plant host to the Bertha armyworm caterpillar. Early larvae stages are vulnerable to weather. These pests can be mistaken for Diamondback moth larvae.

Goosefoot groundling moth (Scrobipalpa atriplicella)

Producing two generations per year, the Goosefoot groundling moth caterpillars feed upon foliage and panicles. Uncontrolled, this pest can annihilate this crop.

Quinoa plant bug (Melanotrichus coagulatus)

Little is known about this invasive species. The quinoa plant bug has reduced yields in test crops.

Stem-boring Fly (Amauromayza karli)

As the name suggests, the larvae of the stem-boring fly burrows into the stem where it feeds. They can severely reduce yields and cause plant death.

Sugarbeet root aphid (Pemphigus populivenae)

These root-dwellers potentially enter the soil through cracks caused by dry weather conditions. Infected plants wilt easily and have pale leaves. Crop rotation and destroying host weeds is recommended for control of Sugarbeet root aphids.

Tarnished plant bug (Lygus lineolaris)

Multiple generations of these quinoa bugs are produced each season. The Tarnished plant bug feeds on the reproductive organs of the quinoa and reduces harvest yields.

Quinoa Diseases

While pests are quite prevalent on quinoa crops, the primary disease pressures affecting this crop are downy mildew and leaf spot:

Passalora leaf spot (Passalora dubia)

Quinoa affected with this fungus will have dark, oval-shaped lesions with reddish-brown margins appearing on the leaves. Passalora leaf spot spores can be spread by the wind and overwinter on plant debris. Weeds, such as lambsquarter, also host this fungus. Avoiding overhead irrigation helps control this disease.

Downy mildew (Peronospora variabilis)

Cool, damp weather encourages the growth and spread of downy mildew. This fungal infection can be identified by the grayish-powdery appearance on leaf surfaces. Yellowish-pink areas can also appear on the upper side of foliage. As this is one of the most frequent quinoa farming problems seen in test fields, it's advisable to plant seed which is free of downy mildew.

As the growing season winds down, it’s a great time to protect and recondition soil. Planting certain types of cover crops can provide extra nutrients, improve tilth, and prevent erosion due to inclement weather. Late summer cover crops are easy to start and can help fix nitrogen in soil and reduce compaction. In some cases, their late blooms will also provide nectar for pollinating insects. 

The end of the harvest season signals the beginning of soil protection. As our harvests are finishing, the vegetable garden should be tidied and rejuvenated for the following season. Summer cover crops started in August take advantage of the warm weather for quick germination and establishment. Legumes and grains are the top choices for cover crops, with each having distinct benefits. 

Grains vs Legumes

Some cover crops are best sown in spring, such as Dutch clover. It is used to cover and improve soil prior to planting vegetables. Other crops need heat to grow and may be sown in August. 

Grains have the ability to enhance organic matter in soil and increase porosity when tilled into the earth, while increasing carbon. Planting a grain crop enhances biodiversity and contributes to crop rotation schedules. In areas where the crop is grazed, the animal's manure also adds nutrients to the soil. Legumes harness nitrogen from the air through a symbiotic relationship with soil dwelling bacteria. This in turn is returned to the soil in a process called nitrogen fixing. The nitrogen is stored in the soil for the next season's cash crops. There are both grain and legume crops for summer, but the general rule is to plant grain or vegetable crops followed by legumes. 

Summer Grain Crops

The additional carbon released from decomposing grain crops is a perfect partner for the nitrogen reaped from a legume crop. A summer buckwheat cover crop will provide a thick weed-proof stand in just a few weeks. It is a classic cover crop for short period use. Other grains like oats are also useful in weed suppression and soil stabilization. 

Some grain crops can survive winter and are tilled in the spring before they set seed. Annual ryegrass overwinters in many areas and keeps soil in place during winter storms. Winter wheat, sorghum, pearl millet, and rye are also good crops to plant in late summer, with the potential to overwinter. 

Legume Cover Crops

Some legume crops will overwinter, such as a crimson clover cover crop. This plant will also provide beautiful red blooms that feed late season pollinators. It is tilled into soil in spring, enhancing nitrogen and tilth. 

Hairy vetch is very hardy and will retain its greenery through winter. It does have the potential of becoming a nuisance and should be tilled in prior to blooming for control. Some legume cover crops are inoculated with rhizobia to enhance nitrogen gain. Combination grain and legume seed mixtures are available and provide diversity for maximum soil benefit.

For gardeners who want to know where their food comes from, growing and harvesting wheat by hand is an earth-friendly solution. Wheat can be used in a variety of products, including bread, rolls, cookies and pastries. But can you harvest enough wheat to make your own homemade baked goods?

Wheat Harvesting at Home

Harvesting wheat from your home garden can seem like a daunting task. After all, farmers use a large piece of equipment called a combine to bring this crop in from the fields. But for 10,000 years, humans have harvested wheat using a sickle to cut the plants and a flail to thresh the grain.

Don't worry if you don't have access to these ancient tools. A sharp pair of scissors, large kitchen knife or hedge shears can be used to cut wheat. You can make a homemade flail or simply bang bundles of wheat against the inside of a clean trash can to release the seeds.

Determining Wheat Harvest Time

In part, the time to harvest wheat will depend upon which type you grow:

• Winter wheat is planted in the fall and goes dormant as it overwinters in the field. When spring arrives, it grows rapidly and is ready for harvest in July.
• Spring wheat is planted in April or May and grows throughout the spring and early summer. It's harvested in August or September.

Aside from that, determining the ideal time to harvest wheat hinges on recognizing these four stages of seed development:

• Milk stage: The kernels are forming and contain a milk-like liquid. They are soft and can easily be squished.
• Soft dough stage: The kernel can be still be squished, but no longer releases milky liquid.
• Hard dough stage: The kernel is firm and requires pressure to dent it with your fingernail.
• Flint stage: The kernel is hard and brittle.

Most commercial growers harvest wheat at the flint stage, but as a home gardener you have another option. If you harvest wheat at the hard dough stage and cure it, the bran will be much finer when ground. This produces a more digestible and higher quality whole wheat bread. 

How to Harvest Wheat

Small amounts of wheat can be harvested by cutting off the seedheads. These can be laid to dry in the house or garage. For larger crops, home gardeners can use a sickle or other cutting tool to remove the wheat plant just above ground level.

The stems are bundled together with the wheat heads facing the same direction, then tied with string or a flexible wheat stem. To cure the wheat, lean the bundles against each other in the field with the wheat heads facing up. 

It's advisable to hand-harvest wheat during dry weather as rain will damage the crop. Warm, dry weather will also cure the wheat quicker, which gives mice and birds less opportunity to take a share of your harvest. 

Once the wheat reaches the flint stage, it's cured sufficiently for threshing. If you don't have a flail, simply beat the bundles of wheat on the inside of a trash can to release the seeds. 

To separate the chaff from the seeds, pour the grain from one bucket to another in front of a fan. The wheat is now ready to make into flour using a grain mill, blender, food processor or coffee grinder.

Quinoa has been on the radar for a while, notable for being a whole grain, complete protein that is gluten free. Delicious used in various dishes, quinoa comes with a price tag to match its popularity, which is why learning about growing and harvesting your own quinoa is a terrific idea. What exactly is the quinoa harvesting process? Is harvesting of quinoa done by hand? The following answers these questions regarding how to harvest and process quinoa. 

Growing and Harvesting Quinoa

Bolivia and Peru supply the majority of quinoa used around the globe, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try your hand at growing and harvesting it yourself. Quinoa thrives when temps do not exceed 90 F (32 C), which means knowing when to sow can be crucial. For most southern Canadian and U.S. regions, plant quinoa in late April to early May when soil temps are above 60 F (15 C). 

A warm season crop, quinoa should be sown in full sun in a finely prepared bed. Sow seeds just under the soil’s surface and spaced ½ to 2 feet (45-60 cm.) apart. Thin seeds when plants have their first sets of true leaves to 6-18 inches (15-45 cm.) apart. 

Keep the soil moist until early June at which point drought-tolerant quinoa needs very little irrigation. 

The Quinoa Harvesting Process

Harvesting quinoa by hand is indeed the method used on commercial farms and for the home grower. On commercial farms the quinoa stalks are cut down by hand and then laid on a tarp to dry in the sun. Then the plants are driven over with a tarp to break them up prior to threshing and sifting. 

How to Harvest Quinoa

Harvest quinoa when the leaves begin to turn brown (late August to mid September) and the seeds give under the pressure of a fingernail. If plants develop multiple panicles, harvest the upper one a week or two before the side shoots. Keep an eye on your plants daily to check for readiness. 

After harvesting the panicles, it’s time to process quinoa. 

How to Process Quinoa

Before you can eat the quinoa it needs to be processed. The seeds need to be removed from the heads. A simple method is to toss the heads about inside a paper yard waste bag, which will catch the seeds and the chaff as it’s separated. 

Pour the seeds and chaff onto a tarp or into a bowl (stir frequently) to dry. Now it’s time to separate the chaff from the seeds. The chaff is much lighter than the seeds so the best method (and least messy) is to pour the contents back and forth into two bowls on a windy day. The chaff will blow away and the seeds will collect in the bowl. This process can also be done inside using a bed sheet and table fan. 

Quinoa seeds have a bitter flavored saponin coating that must be removed prior to use. Wash them in water and rub vigorously multiple times until no suds form in the water. Optionally you can stitch them into a pillow case and run the load through the washer without detergent. 

Use immediately or lay out in a warm, sunless area to dry completely, then store in an air tight container. 

Noodles have been a staple of the human diet for centuries. A form of noodle is found in almost every culture. But pasta is entirely different. The best pasta is made with Durum wheat. Durum flour contains plenty of gluten protein which makes for a chewier noodle. Durum wheat semolina is slightly different from regular Durum flour. Semolina pasta is considered to be the classic Italian pasta.

What Is Durum Wheat?

Grains used in our foods are simply grasses. As such, even a home gardener can grow these bases for our favorite meals. Semolina pasta comes from Durum wheat. Making semolina flour starts with harvest, separating the seeds from the chaff, and milling. The whole process isn't difficult but does require some commitment. 

Difference Between Semolina and Durum Flour

Durum is a variety of wheat high in gluten. It is milled into a flour that’s used in pasta and baked goods. Semolina pasta is made from Durum wheat, and so is Durum flour. And yet the two are very different. Semolina is milled from the endosperm of Durum wheat. The result is a coarse, yellow product. Durum flour is the left over powder from milling semolina. It is further ground, with a texture that is much finer than Semolina. Both are traditionally used in fine pastas. Durum wheat Semolina is commonly made into hard pastas like macaroni, and helps the pasta keep its shape. Noodles that cook up softer, such as spaghetti, are often made of Durum flour. 

How to Grow Durum Wheat Semolina

Triticum durum is a semi-arid grain crop. Prepare a planting bed in a neutral soil by tilling and removing weeds and other impediments. Sow this variety of wheat in spring, either by hand broadcasting or plant in rows. Cover the seed lightly with soil and water. Keep the soil moist until the sprouts appear. Thereafter give the soil around 1 inch (2.54 cm.) of water weekly. Keep weed pests out of your plot, but otherwise sit back and watch it grow. Durum is a very self sufficient plant that doesn't need a lot of attention. The worst problem is several varieties of fungus which can be mainly avoided by watering in the morning so plants have time to dry, or watering at the roots. 

How to Make Semolina Flour

Once the seed heads have turned golden brown, it is time to harvest. Use a scythe or pruners to cut the seed heads from the stems. You may choose to till the stems in or pull them and add them to the compost pile. Shake the seed heads vigorously over a sheet or other cover. Ripe seeds will fall off easily. To remove any chaff, set the seeds near a fan and let the chaff blow away. Alternately, you can move the seed from bucket to bucket on a windy day. 

To grind your seed, a food mill is optimal. A mortar and pestle is possible, but Durum wheat seed is very hard and the task will be tedious. After you have milled your flour, add water and perhaps an egg, and make a well deserved homemade pasta dinner. 

Sorghum grain is making a comeback. The Sorghum plant has been a food plant for centuries, but in recent decades, cropping has declined. It is a common food in many countries as a porridge, flour, or even an alcoholic beverage. Grain Sorghum is also made into a syrup, although corn syrup is a top sweetener. There are many other Sorghum uses outside of a human food crop. 

What Is Sorghum?

Sorghum doesn't enjoy as much popularity today as it did in the 1800s. Then it was an important sweetener and many cuisines featured it in classic recipes. It has received more interest in recent years due to its important properties. The Sorghum plant is a southern crop in the grass family. The flower stalk matures in hues of yellow, red, brown and combinations of each. This is Sorghum bicolor, a nutrient rich food for humans and animals. 

Is Sorghum Gluten Free?

In addition to its use as a porridge or syrup, grain Sorghum is also an important animal forage or feed. It is also used to make ethanol, much in the same way as corn. As a human food, is Sorghum gluten free? Many diners are adopting a gluten free lifestyle due to allergies or dietary preferences. The Sorghum plant is a gluten free option being developed to address these new preferences. It is used much like corn and can even be popped. It is high in B vitamins, fiber, iron, and magnesium. It also contains more protein than corn or rice. 

About Sorghum Bicolor

This celiac safe grain is primarily grown in warm regions. The plant is tolerant of poor soils and dry conditions. Sorghum bicolor is cropped as either a grain crop or sweet Sorghum, used in syrups and other foods. The plant is a fast growing annual, achieving 5 feet (1.5 m) or more. The leaves are corn-like and the inflorescence is a clustered spike which is green when mature, but ripens to a variety of colors. The plant is cropped but also grows wild in many regions. 

Sorghum Uses

Sorghum has many uses. In traditional medicine, the seeds were used for a variety of ailments. Modern medicine has experimented with its use in cancer treatment and to alleviate stomach problems. In dry, arid regions where trees are scarce, the stubble is used as fuel. It may be fed to animals or cultivated as forage. Sweet Sorghum is pressed to release the sap and made into syrup or a molasses type of item. Sorghum flour is the ground plant. It is rather crumbly so if substituting in a recipe, the addition of fruit such as apples or bananas, or xanthan gum improves consistency. It can be cooked as a substitute for rice in a 3-1 ratio to water. Popping the seeds is a delicious gluten free snack. 

Sunn hemp grass is a warm weather grass that thrives in poor soil. It provides many benefits when used as a cover crop. The member of the legume family displays bright green leaves and yellow blooms that soon turn into brownish pods. Although Sunn hemp cover crop is fairly new to North America, it has been grown in India for centuries. Read on to learn more about Sunn hemp uses, with helpful tips on growing Sunn hemp as a cover crop.

Sunn Hemp Plant Information: Sunn Hemp Uses

Sunn hemp is a tropical or subtropical plant that requires warm weather for at least 8 to 12 weeks. It is a perennial in Hawaii, southern Florida, and southern Texas but can be grown as a summer crop in most areas of North America. When planted as a cover crop (sometimes known as “green manure”) it provides nitrogen, builds organic matter, improves soil health, reduces erosion, and conserves water. 

Sunn hemp grass adapts to nearly any soil type, including sand. This is a rapidly growing plant that develops a sturdy root system and reaches heights of six feet (2 m.) very quickly in warm climates. Don’t confuse Sunn hemp with industrial hemp. The two plants serve very different purposes. Unfortunately, it may be difficult to locate Sunn hemp seeds.

Sunn Hemp Cover Crop: Tips on Growing Sunn Hemp

Cultivate the soil well, then plant seeds ½ to 1 inch (1.25-2.5 cm.) deep. Water Sunn hemp grass whenever the soil is dry. Although Sunn hemp is drought tolerant, it performs best with at least an inch (2.5 cm.) of moisture every week. Till the plants back into the soil before the next planting season.

Sunn Hemp Plant Info: Is Sunn Hemp Grass Invasive?

Sunn hemp grass can become weedy and aggressive in certain climates. Check with your local cooperative extension office before planting.

There's a growing awareness among gardeners concerning the use of non-native plants. This extends to the planting of vegetable cover crops. What are cover crops and are there any benefits to using native plants as cover crops? Let's explore this phenomenon and you can decide if cover cropping with native plants is right for you.

What are Vegetable Cover Crops?

In lieu of tilling garden soil at the end of the growing season, gardeners are finding value in sowing what is best described as “green” manure cover crops. These vegetable cover crops are planted in the fall, grow over winter, and then are tilled into the soil in the spring.

Cover crops prevent erosion of garden soil and leaching of nutrients over the winter, once these plants are tilled into the soil, they begin returning nutrients to the garden. Legume cover crops have the nitrogen-fixing ability and actually return more nitrogen to the soil than they consumed.

Hairy vetch, white clover, and winter rye are among the most popular cover crops gardeners use. Surprisingly, these are not native cover crops for North America. Although not typically considered invasive, these species have become naturalized in most parts of the world.

Benefits of Native Crop Cover

Gardeners and commercial growers are finding positive effects from cover cropping with native plants. These benefits include:

• Beneficial insects – Native cover crops provide the natural food and habitat for native insect populations living within the same ecosystem. This boosts beneficial insect populations, which can provide better control of harmful invasive bugs.
• Better adapted – Native crop cover plants are well-adapted to the local climate. They can often be established with little to no irrigation, and they require less maintenance. 
• Non-invasive – While some indigenous plants might have aggressive tendencies, you'll never have to worry about controlling the spread of an invasive species when using native plants.
• Better nutrient return – Typically, native crop cover plants have deeper roots than non-native species. As these plants grow, they pull nutrients from deeper layers of the earth. Once these native cover crops are tilled under, natural decomposition returns these nutrients closer to the surface.

Choosing Native Plants as Cover Crops

Gardeners interested in vegetable cover cropping with native plants are best advised to consult their local extension agent or agricultural agency for information on local indigenous species. Often, native cover crop seeds are difficult to find or expensive to purchase.

Here are some species which have been considered when using native plants as cover crops:

• Annual ragweed
• Blue wild rye
• California brome
• Canada goldenrod
• Common wolly sunflower
• Common yarrow
• Hooker's balsamroot
• Phacelia tanacetifolia
• Prairie June grass
• Purple vetch
• Scarlet gilia

Field brome grass (Bromus arvensis) is a type of winter annual grass native to Europe. First introduced to the United States in the 1920s, it can be used as a field brome cover crop to control erosion and enrich the soil.

What is Field Brome?

Field brome belongs to the brome grass genus containing over 100 species of annual and perennial grasses. Some brome grasses are important forage plants while others are invasive species that compete with other native pasture plants.

Field brome can be differentiated from other brome species by the soft, hair-like fuzz that grows on the lower leaves and stems, or culms. This grass can be found growing wild along roadsides, wastelands, and in pastures or croplands throughout the United States and southern provinces of Canada.

Field Brome Cover Crop

When using field brome as a cover crop to prevent soil erosion, sow seeds in late summer or early autumn. During the fall, plant growth remains low to the ground with dense foliage and considerable root development. A field brome cover crop is suitable for grazing during the fall and early spring. In most areas, it is winter hardy.

Field brome experiences rapid growth and early flowering in the spring. Seed heads usually appear by late spring or early summer, after which the grass plant dies back. When using it for a green manure crop, till the plants under during the pre-bloom stage. The grass is a proficient seed producer.

Is Field Brome Invasive?

In many areas, field brome grass has the potential to become an invasive species. Due to its early spring growth, it can easily crowd out native grass species which come out of winter dormancy later in the season. Field brome robs the soil of moisture and nitrogen, making it even more difficult for native plants to flourish.

Additionally, the grass increases plant density by tillering, a process in which plants send out new grass shoots containing growth buds. Mowing and grazing stimulate tiller production. As a cool season grass, late fall and early spring tillering further displace native pasture forage.

Before planting in your area, it's advisable to contact your local cooperative extension office or state agricultural department for field brome information regarding its current status and recommended uses.

It looks like a corn seedling, but it's not. It's wild proso millet (Panicum miliaceum), and for many farmers, it's considered a problematic weed. Bird lovers know it as broomcorn millet seed, a small, round seed found in many tame and wild bird seed blends. So, which is it? Is wild millet a weed or a beneficial plant?

Wild Millet Plant Info

Wild proso millet is a reseeding annual grass that can reach heights of 6 feet (2 m.) tall. It has a hollow stem with long, thin leaves and looks very similar to young corn plants. Wild millet grass produces a 16 inch (41 cm.) seed head and it readily self-seeds.

Here are a few reasons why farmers consider wild millet grass to be a weed:

• Causes reduced crop yields which results in the loss of income for farmers
• Resistant to many herbicides
• Adaptive seed producing strategy, which produces seeds even in poor growing conditions
• Spreads rapidly due to prolific seed production

Growing Proso Millet

Also known as broomcorn millet seed, wild proso millet is cultivated for both livestock feed and bird seed. The question as to whether millet is a beneficial plant, or a nuisance weed, can be answered by looking at the two types of millet.

Weedy millet produces dark brown or black seeds, while cultivated varieties of wild proso millet have golden or light brown seeds. The latter is grown in many Great Plains states with crops yielding as much as 2,500 pounds (1,134 kg.) per acre.

To plant broomcorn millet seed, sow the seed no deeper than ½ inch (1 cm.). Water is needed only if the soil is dry. Millet prefers full sun and soil with a pH of less than 7.8. From the time of sowing, it takes millet crops 60 to 90 days to reach maturity. The plant is self-pollinating with the blossoms lasting about a week and care must be taken at harvest time to prevent seed shattering.

Cultivated millet has several agricultural uses. It can be substituted for corn or sorghum in livestock rations. Turkeys show better weight gain on millet than other grains. Wild millet grass can also be grown as a cover crop or green manure.

Wild millet seeds are also consumed by many types of wild birds, including bobwhite quail, pheasants, and wild ducks. Planting millet on mudflats and wetlands improves habitat conditions for migrating waterfowl. Songbirds prefer bird seed mixes containing millet over those containing wheat and milo.

So, in conclusion, some types of millet can be a nuisance weed, while others have marketable value.

Broomcorn is in the same genus as the sweet sorghum we use for grain and syrup. Its purpose is more serviceable, however. The plant produces big, fluffy seed heads that resemble the business end of a broom. Does that give you a clue as to what to do with broomcorn?

Some tips on harvesting broomcorn will get you in a crafty mood.

What to Do with Broomcorn

Our ancestors didn't have the ability to go to a hardware or big box store to pick up cleaning tools. They had to get creative and make their own. Consider the modest but indispensable broom. These were handmade from wild or cultivated plants such as broomcorn. There are more broomcorn uses, though, than just this practical device.

People who like fun and useful crafts make their own brooms from broomcorn even today. It is a fairly easy plant to grow, but you need about 60 seed heads per broom. These need to be unbroken and sturdy. If you just want to make one broom, a small plot is all you need, but the plants can grow up to 15 feet (about 4.5 m.) high.

The plant needs similar conditions to corn and a long growing season. It was once grown as feed for animals as well as broom use. Today, using broomcorn for crafts seems to be all the rage.

Using Broomcorn for Crafts

Outside of brooms, the fibrous seed heads are also used as whisks, in floral arrangements, wreaths, swags, baskets, and autumn displays. Broomcorn can be found in its natural greenish hue or in dyed colors.

It could feature prominently in the décor – table displays and even bridal bouquets in fall weddings. It can be found in bundles at farmer's markets, craft stores, floral outlets, and even in nurseries where it is sold to attract and feed wild birds.

For any of these broomcorn uses, the stalks must be thoroughly and carefully dried to prevent damaging the tasseled tops.

How to Harvest Broomcorn

If you are growing the plant yourself for the first time, the harvesting process is important. The plant goes from yellow to pea green when it is time to harvest.

Walk backwards through the patch and break stalks in half, laying the broken parts over each other. The process of harvesting broomcorn is called tabling because looking out over the field, it seems to look like a big table.

After several (hopefully dry) days in the field, each stalk is cut, brought indoors, and laid over screens to finish drying. Bundle the dry stalks and hang them to preserve the seed heads until ready for use.

Do you wonder where those broom straws originate, the ones that are bound tightly into the broom you may still use for sweeping porches and hardwood floors inside? These fibers come from a plant called broomcorn (Sorghum vulgare var. technicum), a variety of sorghum.

What is Broomcorn?

In addition to more traditional brooms, the broomcorn plant was also used for whiskbrooms, a short, hand broom that may still be used occasionally for small chores.

Many brooms are replaced these days with some type of small, electronic sweeping device or with a sweeper product that grabs dust, dirt, and hair. But, just in the previous century, brooms were regularly used as a cleaning device. Many people grew their own broom straw and made their own brooms.

The crop was measured by how many hundreds of brooms it produced. It was a type of sorghum used exclusively for making brooms and whiskbrooms until these became less necessary. Now, broomcorn uses are largely for decorative products. This sorghum differs from others in that the stalks have little value as livestock feed. Seeds have an equal value with oats.

Broomcorn Uses

Broom straw, while no longer as much of a household necessity, has found new, interesting uses. Baskets and autumn arrangements benefit from the long fibers. Witches’ brooms, often used in Halloween and autumn displays, are made from raw, broom straw. It takes approximately 60 heads (sprays) to make a broom.

Floral arrangements and wreaths need even less of the sprays. When purchasing broomcorn, you’ll find it in natural hues and dyed with fall colors.

Broomcorn growing is simple and can provide materials for the items mentioned above. If you have the inclination for DIY decorative broomcorn items, and the room to plant a crop, get started in late spring.

How to Grow Broomcorn

Growing broomcorn is similar to growing a crop of field corn. Broomcorn is flexible to grow in different soils and tolerates heat and drought. The best quality of this crop grows on silty, loamy soils that are well-draining, moist, and fertile.

Preparing beds for an entire crop includes “plowing, disking, and double harrowing” of the soil. Locate plants six inches (15 cm.) apart in rows that are at least a foot (30.5 cm.) apart.

If you don’t have a field, but wish to grow a few plants, try them in a sunny spot in your garden or around your yard.

Plant seeds of broomcorn in spring. Broomcorn plant care involves pest control and harvesting at the right time. This is after the seedpods are developed. Dry harvested plants before using them in crafts.

Crown rust is the most widespread and damaging disease found in oats. Epidemics of crown rust on oats have been found in almost every oat growing region with reductions of yield affected by 10-40%. For individual growers, oats with crown rust may result in a total crop failure, making learning about oat crown rust treatment very important. The following article contains information on oat rust control.

What is Crown Rust in Oats?

Crown rust on oats is caused by the fungus Puccinia coronata var. avenae. The amount and severity of the infection varies depending on weather conditions, number of spores present, and percentage of susceptible varieties planted.

Symptoms of Oats with Crown Rust

Crown rust in oats manifests as early as late April. The first symptoms are tiny, scattered, bright orange pustules on the leaves. These pustules may also appear on the leaf sheaths, stems and panicles. Soon after, the pustules burst to release thousands of microscopic spores.

The infection may be accompanied by yellow streaks on foliage or stems areas.

Similar in appearance to stem rust of oats, crown rust in oats can be distinguished by the bright orange-yellow color, the smaller pustules, and the lack of jagged bits of oat skin adhering to the pustules.

Oat Rust Control

The severity of the infection depends on the species of oat and weather. Rust on oats is fostered by high humidity, heavy dews or light rains in succession, and a temp at or above 70?. (21?.).

A new generation of spores can be produced in 7-10 days and will be blown in the wind, spreading the disease from field to field, which makes oat rust control imperative. Oat rust is also spread by nearby buckthorn, a host that allows the disease to overwinter.

Unfortunately, oat crown rust treatment has a long way to go. The most effective method for controlling crown rust is to plant resistant varieties. Even that isn’t always completely effective at eliminating the disease. Given enough time, the crown rust fungus is able to overcome any resistance bred into oat varieties.

A properly timed application of fungicide can protect against infection of crown rust on oats. Spray at flag leaf emergence. If pustules have appeared on the flag leaf already, it’s too late. Fungicides approved for crown rust in oats are considered protective, meaning they can prevent the disease from infecting the plant but can’t do anything if the plant is already infected.

Note: Any recommendations pertaining to the use of chemicals are for informational purposes only. Chemical control should only be used as a last resort, as organic approaches are safer and more environmentally friendly.

Growing your own grain in the garden, like wheat or rice, is a practice that’s gaining in popularity, and while it’s a little intensive, it can also be very rewarding. There’s a certain amount of mystery surrounding the harvest process, however, and some vocabulary that doesn’t often show up in other types of gardening. A couple obvious examples are chaff and winnowing. Keep reading to learn the meanings of these words, and what they have to do with harvesting grain and other crops.

What is Chaff?

Chaff is the name given to the husk surrounding a seed. Sometimes, it can apply to the stem attached to the seed as well. In basic terms, chaff is all the stuff you don’t want, and that needs to be separated from the seed or grain after harvest.

What is Winnowing?

Winnowing is the name given to that process of separating the grain from the chaff. This is the step that comes after threshing (the process of loosening the chaff). Often, winnowing uses airflow – since the grain is much heavier than the chaff, a light breeze is usually enough to blow the chaff away, while leaving the grain in place. (Winnowing can actually refer to the separating of any seed from its husk or outer shell, not just grain).

How to Winnow

There are a couple different methods for winnowing chaff and grain on a small scale, but they follow the same basic principle of allowing the lighter debris to blow away from the heavier seeds.

One simple solution involves two buckets and a fan. Place an empty bucket on the ground, pointing a fan set to low just above it. Lift the other bucket, filled with your threshed grain, and slowly pour it into the empty bucket. The fans should blow through the grain as it falls, carrying away the chaff. (It’s best to do this outside). You may have to repeat this process a few times to get rid of all the chaff.

If you have a very small amount of grain, you can winnow with nothing more than a bowl or winnowing basket. Just fill the bottom of the bowl or basket with threshed grain and shake it. As you shake, tilt the bowl/basket to its side and blow gently on it – this should cause the chaff to fall over the edge while the grain stays in the bottom.

Grains provide the basis of many of our favorite foods. Growing your own grain allows you to control whether it is genetically modified and what chemicals are used during production. Harvesting small grains as an individual can be tricky, without big threshing machines, but our ancestors did it and so can we. Knowing when to harvest grain is the first step, but you also need to know how to thresh, winnow, and store it for best results.

When to Harvest Grain

Learning how to harvest grains is crucial for the small farmer. Each type of grain will ripen at a slightly different time, so you need to know how to recognize ripe seeds and then step into the world of reaping. If you are lucky, you will have a small combine and the grain harvest is a breeze. The rest of us will have to do it the old-fashioned way.

Before harvesting small grains, you need to know when they are ready. To recognize ripe grain, take a seed and press a fingernail into it. No liquid should ooze out and the seed should be relatively hard. The entire seed head will nod forward with the weight of the ripe grain.

Winter grain harvest is ready around early July, while a spring sown crop is ready late in July to early August. These harvest dates are just generalities, as many conditions can change the ripening date.

The overall color of the plants will change from green to brown. Some warm-season grains are ready in three months, but those winter varieties can take up to nine months to mature.

How to Harvest Grains

Once you know your crop is ready, harvesting grains can be done a couple of different ways. If you have a combine, you just drive around the crop and let the machine do its work. The back to basic method is a little more labor intensive but not difficult.

Use a scythe or similar tool to cut down the stalks. Bundle the stalks together and hang them to dry for about two weeks. Test a couple of seeds by biting into them. If the seed is dry and crunchy, it is ready to harvest. Before harvesting grains, spread a tarp out to catch the seed.

Threshing and Winnowing

To get the seed off the stalks, rub with your hands or beat the seed heads with a bat or dowel. You can also bang them against the inside of a clean garbage can or other bin. This is called threshing.

Next you need to separate the seeds from the other plant material, or chaff. This is called winnowing, and may be done in front of a fan by pouring seeds from one container to another. The fan will blow away the chaff.

Store the seed in containers in an area below 60 degrees F. (15 C.) or freeze it in sealed bags. Mill the seed as needed and store for up to six months in dry, cool, sealed conditions.

For years, small batch microbreweries have reigned supreme, titillating beer lovers with the thought of making their own small batch brew. Today, there are plenty of beer making kits available on the market, but why not take it a step further by growing your own malted barley. Actually, the process of making beer starts with harvesting barley for beer and then malting it. Read on to find out how to grow and harvest malted beer barley.

Growing Malted Barley for Beer

Malting barley comes in two varieties, two-row and six-row, which refer to the number of rows of grain on the head of the barley. Six-row barley is much smaller, less starchy, and more enzymatic than two-row and is used for making many American style microbrews. Two-row barley is plumper and starchier and is used for all-malt beers.

It used to be that six-row was most commonly grown on the East Coast and in the Midwest while two-row was grown in the milder Pacific Northwest and the Great Plains. Today, there are more and more two-row barleys grown throughout the country by virtue of the introduction of new cultivars.

If you’re interested in growing malted barley, start by talking to your local cooperative extension for information on the types of barley best suited for your region. Also, many smaller, local seed companies will have not only information but seeds adapted to the area.

How to Grow Beer Barley

Growing and harvesting malted barley for beer is pretty simple. The first step, after selecting your seeds of course, is preparing the bed. Barley likes a fine seedbed consisting of loamy soil with a low pH in full sun. It does fine in poor soils but does need phosphorus and potassium, so if need be, amend the soil with rock phosphate and greensand. Take a soil test to adequately analyze the components of your soil beforehand.

As soon as the ground is workable in the spring, dig the plot up and prepare the soil. The amount of seed to sow depends on the variety, but a rule of thumb is one pound (under ½ kg.) of seed for every 500 sq. feet (46 sq. m.).

The easiest way to sow the seeds is to scatter them (broadcast). Try to spread the seed as evenly as possible. This can be done by hand or with a broadcast seeder. Once the seed has been broadcast, rake it into the soil lightly so the birds have less of a chance of finding it.

Most six-row barleys are quite drought tolerant but the same can’t be said for two-row. Keep two-row barley moist. Keep the area around the crop as weed free as possible. Weeds harbor pests and diseases that can affect the crop.

How to Harvest Malted Barley

Barley is ready to harvest about 90 days from planting. At this juncture, the straw will be golden and dry, and a peeled kernel will be difficult to dent with a fingernail.

Use a light weight sickle or even garden shears to harvest the grain. As you cut the grain, lay it in bundles with the heads facing the same way and tie them into sheaths. Gather 8 to 10 of these tied bundles together and stand them up to dry, with most standing up and a few laid across the top. Leave them to dry in the sun for a week or two.

Once the grain is dry, it’s time to thresh it, which just means to separate the grain from the straw. There are a number of methods for threshing. Traditionally, a flail was used, but some people use a broom handle, plastic baseball bat, or even a garbage can as a threshing machine. However you choose to thresh, the goal is to separate the grain from the awns, husks, and straw.

Now it’s time to malt. This involves cleaning and weighing the grain, then soaking it overnight. Drain the grain and keep it covered with a damp cloth while it germinates in a dark room with a temp around 50 degrees F. (10 C.). Stir it a few times per day.

By the second or third day, white rootlets will form on the blunt end of the grain and the acrospire, or shoot, can be viewed growing underneath the skin of the grain. When the acrospire is as long as the grain, it is fully modified and it’s time to stop its growth. Transfer the grain to a large bowl and keep it covered for a few days; this limits oxygen to the acrospire and stops its growth. Turn the grains once a day.

When the grains stop growing, it’s time to kiln them. Small amounts of grain can be kilned, dried in the oven at the lowest setting, in a food dehydrator, or in an oast. A few pounds (1 kg.) of grain will dry fully in the oven in 12 to 14 hours or so. The malt is dry when it weighs the same as it did before you started steeping it.

That’s it. Now you are ready to use the malted barley and create a masterful brew sure to impress your friends not only because you made the beer yourself, but also because you grew and malted the barley.

While many people think of barley as a crop only appropriate for commercial growers, that isn’t necessarily true. You can easily grow a few rows of barley in your backyard garden. The trick to getting a good crop is knowing how and when to harvest barley. Read on for information about how to harvest barley, including tips on the timing of a barley harvest.

About Harvesting Barley

Harvesting barley involves more than simply picking barley grains. You need to know how long the crop takes to mature, as well as factors that can impact when to harvest barley. The exact timing and procedure for a barley harvest depends on the size of your operation and how you intend to use the cereal. Some plant barley for home eating, while other gardeners intend to sell the crop to malt houses or brew their own beer.

Picking Barley Grains for Eating

If you are growing barley to use as cereal in your home cooking, the process for harvesting it is straightforward. You wait until the grain is ripe, cut it down, and let it dry in shocks.

How to harvest barley? The most common way to harvest a small crop of home-garden barley is to use a scythe and cut the plants down manually. Be sure to wear long sleeves to avoid skin irritation.

If you are wondering when to harvest barley for eating, it depends on when you plant it. You can plant barley in the fall or in the spring. Expect a barley harvest from fall-planted barley about 60 days after the plants begin to grow in spring. Spring-planted barley ripens 60 to 70 days after planting.

Barley Harvest for Malting

Some gardeners grow barley with the intention of selling it to malting houses. This can be lucrative, but you’ll have to be very careful with the barley to make your grain eligible for malting. Of course, many home brewers grow and harvest barley too.

Malt houses will only buy grain if it is in excellent condition, a bright gold color with both husks and kernels intact. They buy high quality barley with less than five percent broken kernels, a protein content of 9 to 12 percent, and a germination rate of 95 percent or higher. How you harvest barley and how the grain is stored impact these factors. Generally, those growing barley for malting use equipment that harvests the grain directly from the standing crop.

You will get the best barley harvest if you cut your crop as soon as it can pass through the combine machine. The moisture level of the grain at this point is 16 to 18 percent. It is then necessary to dry the grain to get the moisture level down to an acceptable level for malting. Natural aeration is the preferred method since heating the barley can reduce seed germination.

Barley is one of the ancient cereal crops that has been grown in many places in the world. It is not native to North America but can be cultivated here. The hull around the seeds is not very digestible but several hull-less varieties exist. Can you grow barley at home? The plant establishes well in cool, dry areas, but can be grown in hot, humid regions. The latter sites tend to be prone to fungal disease, however. It is really an adaptable grain and, once established, barley grain care is minimal.

Barley Plant Information

Barley is a good cover crop but it is also an important malting ingredient and may be turned into flour. You don't need acres of land to grow barley in the garden, but it may be hard to source small amounts of seed. It is a cool season grass that is also used as a feed for domesticated animals. Even if you are not a beer enthusiast, you can learn how to grow barley for bread, soups, and stews.

In North America, barley grows in cooler regions far better than most cereal grains. As a cover crop, it is seeded with legumes, but as a forage or food crop it is sown alone. You can plant barley in the garden or even in a container, although most pots won't yield much grain.

The most important ingredient is well-draining soil. Next is seed selection. Depending upon your use for the grain, there are hulled, hull-less, and malting varieties. Most seed companies sell the seed by the bushel but a few have it in smaller quantities. Once you have seed, prepare the area by removing weeds and ensuring good drainage. A full sun location is best for maximum seed production.

How to Grow Barley at Home

According to barley plant information, the grass is quick growing in cool soils. You may choose from broadcast or direct seed planting. Broadcast seed doesn't germinate as well and may be eaten by birds and animals. Direct soil contact is necessary for germination.

It is best to plant in manageable rows. Plant in early spring once soil is workable. Barley requires at least 90 days from seed to harvest, so the earlier it is planted, the better chance of ripened seed before freezing temperatures encroach. In warmer areas, plant in fall for a spring harvest. Keep the bed weed free and moderately moist.

Barley Grain Care

To minimize the need for fungicides or other disease management strategies, select seed that has resistance to most major barley problems. Spring storms can be a problem in some sites. A large wind event can flatten a barley field. If you choose a slightly protected location that should prevent major crop loss.

The major pests of barley are aphids, grasshoppers, armyworms, and Hessian flies. Use appropriate organic control in food crops at the first sign of invasion.

Once seed heads have formed, turn brown, and are nodding, it is time to harvest. Wear long sleeves to protect your skin from the rough awls. Cut the grain to the base and tie into bundles. If necessary, dry the bundles further before threshing.

Growing barley is quite easy in most regions and can provide you with an interesting homegrown grain for a variety of uses.

Rye is an extremely easy crop to grow. However, some gardeners don’t plant this cereal crop since they aren’t clear about how to harvest rye. While it’s true that picking rye crops is very different from gathering garden tomatoes, that doesn’t mean that harvesting rye is complex. Read on for information about managing a rye plant harvest, including tips on how and when to harvest rye.

Harvesting Rye Plants

Rye is grown as a food crop in many parts of the world and the cereal is frequently a central ingredient in breads. However, in home gardens, rye is often grown as an inexpensive and effective cover crop.

One of the hardiest cereal crops, rye can be seeded later in fall than similar crops. It is stronger and faster growing than wheat. As a cover crop, it offers an extensive soil-holding root system and does a great job at keeping weeds down. It also catches and holds excess nitrogen in the soil.

Gardeners who use rye as a cover crop are often not concerned with a rye plant harvest. That means they do not have to worry about picking rye crops. Rather, these gardeners kill off the rye when it has served its purpose by rolling, spraying, burning, or mowing.

When to Harvest Rye

If you are a gardener hoping for a rye plant harvest, you’ll need to know when to harvest rye and how. The timing is easy, since you can watch your crop go through the stages toward golden maturity. Once the rye is mature, you can start harvesting rye.

To figure out when it’s time to harvest, watch your grain pass through three stages. In the first stage, when you squeeze a grain, a milky liquid oozes out. In the second stage, this “milk” hardens inside the grain, and the grain simply indents if squeezed.

The time to harvest rye is during the third, mature stage. The grain is hard and heavy. When you pinch the grain, it does not ooze or indent, and the head hangs down. That’s when you want to start picking rye crops.

How to Harvest Rye

Once your grain is mature, you need to remove the seed heads from the plant for your rye plant harvest. The best method depends on the size of your crop and your preferences.

You can simply snap off the seed heads and gather them in a basket. Alternatively, you can use garden scissors, pruners, a sickle, or a scythe. The tools are useful for a bigger crop.

Don’t forget to dry the seed heads or rye sheaves. Let them dry out for a week or more before the threshing process. That’s when you remove the edible portions of the crop. You can separate the heads from the stalks by rubbing the seed heads between your hands, hitting them with a wooden stick, treading on them with your feet, or knocking them about in a metal can. Then separate the seeds by pouring them from one pail to another in front of a fan.

If you are thinking of growing barley in your home garden, you’ll need to learn about barley tillering and heading. Understanding barley heads and tillers are essential to growing this cereal crop. What are barley tillers? What is a barley head? Those just getting started with growing grains should read on to learn the ins and outs of tillering and heading of barley plants.

About Barley Heads and Tillers

To raise a good crop of barley, you need to understand how the cereal crop grows and the stages of barley development. The agricultural chemicals on the market today for barley only work if applied during specific barley growth stages.

Both barley heads and tillers are parts of the barley plant. Their appearance signals new stages of barley plant growth.

What are Barley Tillers?

It is correct to say that tillers signal a stage of growth of the barley plant. But that is not enough to explain the term. What are barley tillers exactly? They are independent lateral branches on the grass plant. They emerge from the soil, not from another stem.

Tiller growth is essential to a barley crop since each tiller is independent and can produce a seed-bearing flower, increasing your cereal yield. However, you only want vigorous tillers, since unproductive tillers (often those appearing late in the season) use up nutrients without increasing grain production.

Barley tiller development is said to have three different stages. The first is bud initiation, followed by bud development, and finally the growth of the bud into a tiller.

What is a Barley Head?

So, what is a barley head? Barley heads are also very important to your hopes for a barley crop since this is the part of the plant that develops and carries the cereal.

When gardeners talk about barley tillering and heading, they are referring to the plant process of producing lateral branches (tillers) and grain clusters (heads.) The process of heading in barley starts when the first tip of the flower is visible.

It is during heading that the plant develops the inflorescence from which the grain grows. When heading is done, grain fill on the barley is begun.

The longer it takes for the inflorescence to emerge, the more grain you will get from the plant. After heading comes the pollination of the flower. This is when grain fill is completed.

If you like organic whole grains on your table, you might enjoy growing rye for food. Organic cereal grain rye is expensive to buy and fairly easy to grow in a backyard garden. Are you wondering how to grow rye grain? Read on for tips and information that can help get you started.

Cereal Rye Information

Many gardeners work hard to produce vegetables and fruits in the backyard, but never think of planting grains. Don’t be fooled by the rumors that grains are hard to grow. In fact, grains like rye, wheat, and oats are much easier to grow than most veggies.

Rye, for example, is one of the easiest crops you might choose to grow. It grows well even in very poor soils, requiring little work. It is also quite cold-hardy, much more so than wheat. Rye as a cereal can be used to make pasta, bread, or even beer.

People wrongly believe that cereal grain rye or similar grain crops can only be grown in large commercial operations, but nothing is farther from the truth. You can start growing rye for food by including one row of rye plants in your garden plot. This will yield enough rye to make plenty loaves of bread.

Another myth about growing grains is that you need specialized, expensive equipment for the harvest. While you can harvest cereal grain rye with a scythe, you might also use pruning shears or even a hedge trimmer. You can beat the seed heads with a wooden stick to remove the grain, then remove the papery covering with a household fan. A basic blender does a great job of turning rye grain into flour.

How to Grow Rye Grain for Food

Cereal grain rye is one crop that prefers to grow in cool weather. Generally, if you are growing rye for food, plant your seeds in fall for a spring harvest. Cereal rye grain plants produce dense, fibrous roots that love cool temperatures.

Buy seeds online or in feed stores and sow them in a sunny garden bed. Once you have broadcasted seed on the soil surface, rake the soil to cover the seeds a little, then roll or pack down the soil to make sure the seeds are making soil contact.

Cover the area lightly with straw to hide the seeds from birds. Keep the soil moist if rainfall is inadequate.

Harvest the grain in late spring when the stalks begin to turn brown. Cut them at ground level, tie them up in bundles, and store them in a dry place for a few weeks. After that, thresh out the grain by beating the stalks with a stick over a sheet or tarp.

Anyone who is growing rice needs to learn the basics about diseases that affect this grain. One particularly destructive disease is called rice sheath blight. What is rice sheath blight? What causes rice sheath blight? Read on to get answers to your questions about diagnosing and treating rice with sheath blight.

What is Rice Sheath Blight?

When your rice crop looks diseased, the odds are good that you have rice with the fungal disease called rice sheath blight. What is rice sheath blight? It is the most destructive disease of rice in many states.

This blight doesn’t only affect rice. Other crops can be hosts of this sheath blight as well. These include soybean, bean, sorghum, corn, sugarcane, turfgrass, and certain grass weeds. The destructive pathogen is Rhizoctonia solani.

What are the Symptoms of Rice with Sheath Blight?

The early symptoms of sheath blight include oval circles on leaves just above the waterline. They are usually pale, beige to pale green, with a darker border. Look for these lesions at the junction of the rice plant leaf and the sheath. The lesions can join together as the disease progresses, moving up the plant.

What Causes Rice Sheath Blight?

As previously mentioned, the disease is caused by a fungus, Rhizoctonia solani. The fungus is soilborne and overwinters year to year in the soil taking the form of a hard, weather-resistant structure called a sclerotium. A sclerotium floats on rice flood water and the fungus infects other rice plant sheaths it contacts.

Damage from rice sheath blight varies. It ranges from minimal leaf infection to grain infection to plant death. Both the amount of grain and its quality are reduced as the blight infection prevents water and nutrients from moving to the grain.

How Do You Treat Rice with Sheath Blight?

Fortunately, treating sheath blight of rice is possible using an integrated pest management approach. The first step in rice sheath blight control is to select resistant varieties of rice.

In addition, you should use sound cultural practices in terms of spacing rice plants (15 to 20 plants/per square foot (0.1 sq. m.)) and planting times. Early planting and excess nitrogen applications are to be avoided. Foliar fungicide applications also work well as rice sheath blight control.

Rice may not be a typical backyard garden plant, but if you live somewhere soggy, it can be a great addition. This tasty staple food thrives in wet, marshy conditions and warm climates. Diseases can ransack your rice paddy, though, so be aware of signs of infections like leaf smut of rice and what to do to manage or treat it.

Rice Leaf Smut Information

What causes rice leaf smut is a fungus called Entyloma oryzae. Fortunately for your garden, if you see its signs, this infection is usually minor. It is widespread where rice is grown, but leaf smut doesn’t often cause serious damage. However, leaf smut can make your rice vulnerable to other diseases, and ultimately this can cause a yield reduction.

The characteristic sign of rice with leaf smut is the presence of small black spots on the leaves. They are slightly raised and angular and give the leaves the appearance of having been sprinkled with ground pepper. Coverage by these spots is most complete on the oldest leaves. The tips of some leaves with the most infection may die.

Management and Prevention for Leaf Smut of Rice

In most situations, there is no major loss caused by rice leaf smut, so treatment isn’t usually given. However, it can be a good idea to use good general management practices to prevent the infection or keep it in check, and to keep plants healthy overall.

As with many other fungal infections, this one is spread by infected plant material in the soil. When healthy leaves contact the water or ground with old diseased leaves, they can become infected. Cleaning up debris at the end of each growing season can prevent spread of leaf smut.

Keeping a good nutrient balance is also important, as high nitrogen levels increases the incidence of the disease. Finally, if leaf smut has been a problem in your growing area, consider using rice varieties with some resistance.

Rice is one of the most important crops in the world. It is one of the 10 most eaten crops, and in certain cultures, forms the basis for the entire diet. So when rice has a disease, it is serious business. Such is the problem with sheath rot of rice. What is rice sheath rot? Keep reading for diagnostic info and advice on treating rice sheath rot in the garden.

What is Rice Sheath Rot?

Rice is actually a member of the grass family and its arrangement is very similar. For instance, the sheath, which is a lower leaf that wraps around the stem, is much the same as any other grass plant. Rice with sheath rot will have that tubular, clasping leaf turn brownish black. This clasping leaf enshrouds the budding flowers (panicles) and future seeds, making the disease damaging where the sheath dies or infects the panicles.

The sheath is marked by reddish-brown lesions or sometimes brownish tan irregular spots on the enfolded sheath. As the disease progresses, darker dots form inside the spots. If you pulled off the sheath, white frost-like mold would be found in the interior. The panicle itself will be malformed with a twisted stem. The florets are discolored and the resulting kernels are lightweight and damaged.

In severe sheath rot of rice infections, the panicle will not even emerge. Rice with sheath rot diminishes its yield and can be infectious to uninfected crops.

What Causes Rice Black Sheath Rot?

Rice black sheath rot is a fungal disease. It is caused by Sarocladium oryzae. This is primarily a seed-borne disease. The fungus will also survive on remaining crop residue. It flourishes in overly crowded cropping situations and in plants that have damage that allows for entry of the fungus. Plants that have other disease, such as viral infections, are at greater risk.

Rice with sheath rot fungus is most prevalent during periods of wet weather and in temperatures of 68 to 82 degrees F (20-28 C). The disease is most common late in the season and causes reduced yield and malformed plants and grain.

Treating Rice Sheath Rot

An application of potassium, calcium sulfate or zinc fertilizer has been shown to strengthen the sheath and avoid much of the damage. Certain bacteria, such as Rhizobacteria, are toxic to the fungus and can suppress disease symptoms.

Crop rotation, disking and maintaining a clean field are all effective measures to prevent damage from the fungus. Removal of weed hosts in the grass family can help reduce the incidence of rice sheath rot.

Chemical fungicide applications of copper twice every other week has been shown to be effective in very infected crops. Pre-treating seed with Mancozeb prior to planting is a common reduction strategy.

Note: Any recommendations pertaining to the use of chemicals are for informational purposes only. Specific brand names or commercial products or services do not imply endorsement. Chemical control should only be used as a last resort, as organic approaches are safer and more environmentally friendly.

Bacterial leaf blight in rice is a serious disease of cultivated rice that, at its peak, can cause losses of up to 75%. In order to effectively control rice with bacterial leaf blight, it is important to understand what it is, including symptoms and conditions that foster the disease.

What is Rice Bacterial Leaf Blight?

Bacterial leaf blight in rice is a destructive bacterial disease that was first observed in 1884-1885 in Japan. It is caused by the bacterium Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae. It is present in rice cropping regions of Asia, Africa, Australia, Latin America and the Caribbean and very rarely in the United States (Texas).

Symptoms of Rice with Bacterial Leaf Blight

The first signs of rice with bacterial leaf blight are water-soaked lesions at the edges and towards the tip of leaf blades. These lesions grow larger and release a milky sap that dries and turns a yellowish color. This is followed by characteristic, grayish-white lesions on the leaves. This last stage of infection precedes the drying out and death of the foliage.

In seedlings, infected leaves turn grayish-green and roll up. As the disease progresses, leaves turn yellow and wilt. Within 2-3 weeks, infected seedlings will dry up and die. Adult plants may survive but with reduced yields and quality.

Rice Bacterial Leaf Blight Control

The bacterium thrives in warm, humid environments and is fostered by high rainfall combined with wind, wherein it enters the leaf through injured tissues. Further, it travels through the flooded waters of the rice crop to the roots and leaves of neighboring plants. Crops heavily fertilized with nitrogen are the most susceptible.

The least expensive and most effective method of control is to plant resistant cultivars. Otherwise, limit and balance the amount of nitrogen fertilizer, ensure good drainage in the field, practice good sanitation by removing weeds and plowing under stubble and other rice detritus, and allow fields to dry between plantings.

Loose smut of oats is a fungal disease that damages various types of small, grain cereal crops. Different fungi affect different crops and are usually host-specific. If you grow cereal crops, it’s good to understand the basics about loose smut of oats in order to prevent it. Read on for information about what causes oat loose smut, as well as tips on oats loose smut control.

Oats Loose Smut Info

Loose smut of oats is caused by the fungus Ustilago avenae. You are likely to find this disease almost everywhere oats are grown. Related species of Ustilago attack barley, wheat, corn, and other cereal grasses.

The term “smut” is a descriptive one, referencing the appearance of the black spores typical of oats with loose smut. According to oats loose smut information, the fungal spores enter and infect the oat seed kernels. They are visible on the seed heads that look gray and smutty.

What Causes Oat Loose Smut?

The fungal pathogen causing oats with loose smut is transmitted through infected seeds. It lives from season to season inside the embryo of the seed. Infected seeds look normal and you cannot tell them from healthy seeds.

Once the infected seeds germinate, however, the fungus is activated and infects the seedling, usually when the weather is cool and wet. As flowers start to form, the oat seeds are replaced with the black, powdery spores of the fungus. The infected oat heads usually emerge early and spores are blown from one plant to others nearby.

Oats Loose Smut Control

Anyone growing oats will want to find out about effective oats loose smut control. What can you do to prevent this fungus from attacking your crops?

You can control this disease by treating the seed with systemic fungicides. Don’t rely on contact fungicides to treat oats with loose smut since the fungus causing it is inside the seed. Carboxin (Vitavax) is one that works.

You should also take care to use oat seed that is clean and healthy, completely free of the fungus. Grain varieties are available that are resistant to loose smut of oats, and these are a great idea as well.

Crop losses of as much as 15 percent have been reported during certain seasons in the highest oat producing regions from leaf blotch of oats. It is caused by any one of three different fungal pathogens - Pyrenophora avenae, Drechslera avenacea, Septoria avenae. While this isn't a huge number, in commercial settings and in smaller fields the impact is significant. However, oat leaf blotch control is possible through several means.

Symptoms of Oat Leaf Blotch

Fungi are probably one of the most common disease causes in cereal grains, such as oat crops. Oat leaf blotch occurs in periods of cool, moist conditions. Oats with leaf blotch develop later phases of the disease, which can damage the culm to the extent that it cannot develop seed heads. It causes symptoms that start as leaf blotch and move to black stem and kernel blight phases.

In the first phase, symptoms of oat leaf blotch only affect the leaves, which develop irregular, light yellow lesions. As these mature, they become reddish brown and decayed tissue falls out, while the leaf dies. The infection spreads to the stems and, once it infects the culm, the head that forms may be sterile.

In the final phase, dark blotches appear on the flower head. In severe cases, the disease will cause the plant to produce malformed kernels or no kernels at all. Not all leaf blotch of oats progress to the kernel blight phase. It depends upon the time of year, prolonged weather conditions that favor the fungus and cultural conditions.

Oat leaf blotch info suggest that the fungus overwinters in old plant material and occasionally from seed. After a hard rain, fungal bodies form and are dispersed with wind or further rain. The disease can also spread through contaminated manure where oat straw was consumed by the animal. Even insects, machinery, and boots spread the disease.

Oat Leaf Blotch Control

Since it is most common in areas with oat stubble, it is important to completely till this into soil deeply. The area should not be replanted with oats until the old plant material has rotted. Oats with leaf blotch can be sprayed with fungicides early in the season, but if caught when disease symptoms have spread to other parts of the plant, these are not effective.

Besides fungicides or tilling in old material, crop rotation every 3 to 4 years has the greatest efficacy. There are some resistant oat varieties that are useful for disease control in prone areas. Seed can also be treated with EPA approved fungicides prior to planting. Avoiding continuous cropping also seems to be helpful.

Old plant material can also be safely destroyed by burning where this is reasonable and safe. As with most diseases, good sanitation practices and cultural care can prevent impact from this fungus.

Smut is a fungal disease that attacks oat plants. There are two kinds of smut: loose smut and covered smut. They look similar but result from different fungi, Ustilago avenae and Ustilago kolleri respectively. If you are growing oats, you probably need oats covered smut information. Read on to learn the basic facts about oats with covered smut, as well as tips on oat covered smut control.

Oats Covered Smut Information

You can find oats with covered smut in many places that oats are grown. But the disease is not easy to spot. You may not realize that your oat plants are diseased until the crop develops heads.

Oats covered smut symptoms are generally not visible in the field. That’s because the smut fungus forms in small, loose balls inside the oat panicle. In oats covered with smut, the spores are contained within a delicate gray membrane.

The kernels of oats are replaced by the dark spore masses, composed of many millions of spores called teliospores. While the fungus destroys the seeds of the smut covered oats, it doesn’t ordinarily destroy the outer hulls. This effectively masks the problem.

It is only when the oats are threshed that the oats covered smut symptoms become apparent. Covered smut spore masses burst during harvest, giving off the smell of decaying fish. This also spreads the fungus to healthy grain that can then become infected.

It also spreads the spores onto the soil where it can survive until the next season. That means that susceptible oat crops the following year will also be infected with covered smut.

Treating Oats with Covered Smut

Unfortunately, there is no way of effectively treating oats with covered smut once you have threshed the oats. And a heavy outbreak of the fungal disease will almost inevitably result in a poor crop.

Instead, you should look to earlier methods of treating the issue. First, always use smut-resistant seeds that are recommended by your local university extension. With smut-resistant seeds, you are must less likely to suffer crop loss due to this issue.

If you don’t get smut-resistant oat seeds, you can also use a seed treatment for oats covered smut control. If you treat the oat seeds with an appropriate fungicide, you can prevent covered smut as well as regular smut.

Barley loose smut seriously affects the flowering part of the crop. What is barley loose smut? It is a seed-borne illness caused by the fungus Ustilago nuda. It can occur anywhere barley is grown from untreated seed. The name comes from the loose seed heads produced that are covered in black spores. You don't want this in your field, so keep reading for more barley loose smut info.

What is Barley Loose Smut?

Barley plants that have begun flowering and develop dark, diseased heads likely have loose smut of barley. The plants will look completely normal until they start to flower, which makes it difficult to get an early diagnosis. Barley with loose smut releases teliospores that infect other plants in the field. Crop losses are massive.

Barley with loose smut will become apparent at heading. Plants with the disease normally head earlier than healthy plants. Instead of producing kernels, olive black teliospores colonize the entire head. They are enclosed in a grayish membrane the soon fractures, releasing the spores. These dust over normal barley heads, infecting the seed and starting the process anew.

The disease survives in the barley seeds as dormant mycelium. Germination of that seed wakes up the fungus which colonizes the embryo. Infections are encouraged by cooler, wet weather in temperatures of 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 21 C.).

Damage from Loose Smut of Barley

Barley heads have three spikes, each of which can produce 20 to 60 grains. When barley with loose smut is present, each and every seed, which is the commercial commodity, will fail to develop. After the teliospores rupture, all that is left are the empty rachis, or seed heads.

Barley is a cultivated crop in tropical and subtropical regions. The seed is used as animal feed and made into beverages, particularly malt beverages. It is also a food cereal for humans and a commonly planted cover crop. The loss of the seed heads from loose smut represents a huge economic hit but, in some countries, the grain is so relied upon that human food insecurity can result.

Barley Loose Smut Treatment

Developing resistant strains has not been a priority. Instead, barley loose smut treatment consists of treated seed, which is certified pathogen-free, and the use of fungicides. Fungicides must be systemically active in order to work.

In some cases, hot water treatment of the seed can remove the pathogen, but it must be done carefully to prevent damage to the embryo. The grain is first pre-soaked in warm water for 4 hours and then spends 10 minutes in a hot tank at 127 to 129 degrees Fahrenheit (53 to 54 C.). The treatment does delay germination but is fairly successful.

Fortunately, disease-free seed is readily available.

Fungal diseases in grain crops are all too common, and barley is no exception. Barley spot blotch disease can affect any part of the plant at any time. Seedlings are most commonly infected but, if they escape, the disease may show up in developing shoots. The disease can reduce yield and kill young plants. There are several steps to preventing and treating barley spot blotch.

Barley Spot Blotch Symptoms

Barley spot blotch disease is found in many wild and cultivated grasses. Spot blotch of barley is caused by the fungus Bipolaris sorokiniana. The fungus is known to reduce yields by one to three percent. When barley kernels are produced, they often have black point, a discoloring on the tips of the kernels.

In seedlings, look at the soil line for chocolate brown streaks. The infection progresses to turn shoots yellow, and they may die. If they survive, the shoots and roots are weak and deformed, and seed heads may not completely emerge.

Mature plants can develop oblong dark brown lesions. Where many lesions are present, the leaves dry out and may die. Kernels on barley with spot blotch are shriveled and underweight. Presence of the disease diminishes yield and weight of grain.

Once barley spot blotch symptoms are evident, the field is already infected. The fungus overwinters in wild or cultivated grasses and grains. The disease moves quickly when temperatures are between 60 and 80 degrees F. (16-27 C.) and conditions are wet and windy. Spores will travel on wind and rain splash.

The barley spot blotch disease can also be seed borne and causes seedling blight, crown rot, and root rot. Injury caused by insects allows a pathway for introduction in mature plants. No-till fields are at greatest risk of barley spot blotch fungus.

Treating Barley Spot Blotch

Timed fungicide applications can reduce the damage and incidence of the disease. There are also cultural steps to take to prevent the occurrence of the fungus. Barley with spot blotch should be treated with registered fungicides at the first sign of the disease. Studies show that four applications of fungicide during the season will help control spot blotch and reduce grain loss.

Watch seedlings carefully. Prevention is possible with certified treated, disease free seed. Do not save seed from fields that have shown signs of the disease. Rotate barley with non-host plants such as oats, rye, and broadleaf grasses. Cleanup discarded plant material. The 6-rowed barley varieties have greater resistance than 2-row cultivars.

Spot blotch of barley also mutates, causing new races, which makes creating effective resistant cultivars difficult.

Barley speckled leaf blotch is a fungal disease wherein leaf lesions interfere with photosynthesis, resulting in lower yields. Leaf blotch in barley is part of a group of diseases known as Septoria complex and is in reference to multiple fungal infections that are commonly found in the same field. While barley with leaf blotch is not a fatal condition, it opens the crop up to further infections that can decimate the field.

Symptoms of Barley with Leaf Blotch

All types of barley plant are susceptible to barley septoria leaf blotch, which is caused by the fungus Septoria passerinii. Symptoms of leaf blotch in barley appear as elongated lesions with blurred margins that are yellowish brown in color.

As the disease progresses, these lesions merge and may cover large areas of the leaf tissue. Also, a plethora of dark brown fruiting bodies develop between the veins in the straw-colored dying areas of the spots. Leaf margins appear pinched and dry.

Additional Information on Barley Speckled Leaf Blotch

The fungus S. passerinii overwinters on crop residue. Spores infect the next year’s crop during wet, windy weather that splashes or blows the spores to uninfected plants. During wet conditions, plants must remain wet for six hours or longer for successful spore infection.

A higher incidence of this disease is reported amongst crops that are densely planted, conditions that allow the crop to stay moist longer. It is also more common with crops of higher nitrogen inputs.

Barley Leaf Blotch Control

Since there are no resistant barley cultivars, be sure that seed is certified disease free and treated with a fungicide. Rotate the barley crop to aid in barley leaf blotch control and, most importantly, dispose of crop residue.

Barley is one of the oldest cultivated grains. It has not only been used as a human food source but for animal fodder and alcohol production. Leaf rust on barley has likely been an attendant disease since its original cultivation around 8,000 BC. This fungal disease can harm the productivity of the plants. Learn how to prevent barley leaf rust and gain bigger yields of healthier plants.

Barley Leaf Rust Info

According to barley leaf rust info, these types of fungal disorders seem to be host specific. That means barley leaf rust only occurs on barley and any of its family members. It is a late season disease that can cause crop loss. Historical infections between 1900 and the 1950s infected crops in the U.S. and into Canada. U.S. losses were in the Midwest and Great Plains states. Today, good barley leaf rust control exists and large-scale crop damage is not as common. Barley leaf rust occurs in years with high humidity and low spring temperatures. It is especially prevalent in crops that were planted late. The symptoms are small, orange masses with a lighter halo on leaf surfaces. These masses are spores, which are windblown to other plants. The optimal temperatures for spores to grow are 60 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit (16 to 22 C.). The spores can cause secondary infections during this time at 7- to 10-day intervals. When severely affected, plant sheaves will display lesions and plants will die.

Barley Leaf Rust Control

There are several cultivars that are resistant to leaf rust on barley. A University of Queensland scientist, Dr. Lee Hickey, uncovered a gene that provides resistance to the disease, as well as to powdery mildew. In certain areas, the Star of Bethlehem plant harbors the spores and should be kept eradicated well away from barley fields. Young, self-sown barley plants should be removed, as they provide a place for the rust fungus to survive. Removal is especially important during wet summers. Spacing and good cultural care are also keys to preventing and treating barley leaf rust. Most of the barley grown today is from resistant strains. Heirloom varieties are more prone to the disease, as they have no inbred opposition to the fungus. Foliar fungicides offer the best protection. They must be applied at the first sign of lesions. Alternatively, you can apply systemic fungicides between tillering and heading. Unfortunately, rust diseases commonly mutate into a new race, so what works one season may not work the next. Vigilance is crucial to managing this disease, as is the use of resistant cultivars, which can reduce the chances of the fungus mutating.

Barley yellow dwarf virus is a destructive viral disease that affects grain plants around the world. In the United States, yellow dwarf virus affects primarily wheat, barley, rice, corn, and oats, often reducing yield by up to 25 percent. Unfortunately, the options for treating barley yellow dwarf are limited, but it’s possible to slow the spread, thus minimizing the damage. Read on to learn about barley yellow dwarf control.

Signs of Yellow Dwarf Virus of Barley Crops

Symptoms of barley yellow dwarf virus vary depending on the crop, but the primary signs of disease are stunted growth and discoloration. Older leaves of wheat plants may turn yellow or red, while corn turns purple, red, or yellow. Diseased rice plants turn orange or yellow, and barley with yellow dwarf becomes a distinctive shade of bright, golden yellow. Yellow dwarf virus of barley can also cause water-soaked areas on the leaves. The disease is often mistaken for mosaic or other plant diseases, and the symptoms often mimic nutritional problems or environmental stress. Stunting may be mild or significant. Kernels may be small or unfilled.

Causes of Barley with Yellow Dwarf

Yellow dwarf virus of barley is spread by certain types of winged aphids. The disease can be localized, or the aphids can travel from field to field with the help of strong wind. Symptoms generally show up a couple of weeks after an aphid infestation. Barley yellow dwarf virus is favored by warm falls followed by mild winters.

Barley Yellow Dwarf Control

There’s not much you can do about treating barley yellow dwarf virus, but the following tips may help: It’s always a good idea to start with disease-resistant seeds, but resistance varies depending on the plant. Keep weeds and wild grasses in check, along with volunteer wheat, barley, or oats. Grassy plants may harbor the virus. Timing is critical. Plant spring cereal crops as early as possible to get ahead of aphid infestations. On the other hand, fall seeding should be delayed until the aphid population declines. Your local cooperative extension is the best source of information regarding optimal planting dates. Insecticides aren’t recommended for control of aphids, and are generally not economical unless the infestation is extremely severe. Although insecticides have proven to be of little use, they will decimate populations of lady beetles and other natural predators, thus allowing aphids to thrive unchallenged. Systemic insecticides may help limit spread if applied when aphids are feeding on the plant. Unfortunately, fungicides have absolutely no effect on barley yellow dwarf virus.

Barley is a popular crop both commercially and in home gardens. While the plants are grown for their grain harvest, barley is also commonly grown on farms for livestock or as a cover crop. Whether wishing to make their farm more sustainable or hoping to grow barley for its use in beer making, there is no doubt that its growers have mixed opinions regarding how different types of the plant should be used. One type, 6-row barley plants, are specifically debated for their use.

What is 6-Row Barley?

Growing 6-row barley has many uses. While European beer makers believe this specific type of barley should only be grown as feed for livestock, many North American brewers welcome the use of 6-row barley for beer.

These 6-row barley plants are easily distinguishable due to the size and shape of their seed heads. Seed heads of 6-row barley plants maintain a somewhat unorganized appearance with varying sized kernels. These varying kernels make the process of grinding the barley more difficult, as the smallest seeds must be screened and sifted. Even the largest of the 6-row barley kernels will be smaller than that which is produced by 2-row barley types.

Should I Grow 6-Row Barley?

While much more common in North America, there are some advantages to growing 6-row barley for beer. Although the kernels are smaller, 6-row barley types contain a greater number of enzymes which are able to convert sugars throughout malting in the beer making process. This makes 6-row barley very helpful for use in beer recipes that incorporate the use other grains which are not able to convert sugars.

Growing 6-Row Barley Plants

As with growing any other small grain crop, the process of growing 6-row barley is relatively simple. In fact, even home gardeners should be able to achieve crops with yields large enough for personal use.

First, growers will need to select varieties that are well suited to their gardening zone. While barley does demonstrate some tolerance to cold, it is important to carefully determine the best planting time for the garden. This will help to better ensure a successful harvest. 

To sow, choose a planting location that is well draining and receives at least six to eight hours of direct sunlight each day. Broadcast the seeds onto the planting area and rake the seeds into the upper surface layer of the soil. Then, water the area well, making sure that the planting bed receives adequate moisture until germination occurs.

Some growers may need to spread a thin layer of straw or mulch over the planting area in order to ensure that the seeds are not eaten by birds or garden pests before germination occurs.

For many growers, the process of expanding their garden to include unique and interesting crops is an exciting one. This is especially true for gardeners who wish to expand their hobbies to make use of fresh, homegrown ingredients, as is often the case for experienced home brewers and beer enthusiasts. Although labor intensive, the process of growing grains, such as 2-row malting barley for use in home brewing, is one that can be extremely rewarding.

What is 2-Row Barley?

Commonly referred to as 2-row malting barley, 2-row barley plants are the most common type of barley used for brewing beer. European brewers, specifically, emphasize its use due to the large kernel sizes produced by the plants. This type of barley is extremely easy to identify, as evidenced by the growth arrangement on the seed head.

Seed heads of this barley are neatly organized, with two distinct rows of seed growing down the entire length. This uniformity is especially helpful for processing and grinding of the barley.

Why Grow 2-Row Barley?

Growing 2-row barley for beer is done for many reasons. Traditionally, European growers emphasize the use of only 2-row barley in beers, as other types are often regarded as being better grown for livestock. In addition to its uniformity, the larger barley kernels allow for easier production of sugar for the beer making process.

Growing 2-Row Malting Barley

Growing barley is a relatively simple process. Though a small crop, the process of growing barley at home does not necessarily require large amounts of space to produce a usable harvest. First and foremost, growers will need to select a variety that will grow well in their own gardens. While some types may be more cold tolerant than others, it is imperative to choose a type which will thrive in your home garden climate.

To sow barley, broadcast the seeds in a well-draining location that receives direct sunlight. Gently rake the seeds into the soil and water well. Keep the soil moist until germination occurs. In some areas, plantings may need to be lightly covered with straw in order to prevent the seeds from being eaten by birds and other garden pests.

Beyond planting, barley requires little care or attention from gardeners.