Helping People Help the Land

NRCS Cover Crop Termination Guidelines December 2013

Background:

To ensure that USDA policies are coordinated and up to date with evolving 

cover crop practices, the administrators of the Natural Resources Conservation 

Service (NRCS), Risk Management Agency (RMA) and Farm Service Agency 

(FSA) organized an interagency workgroup to develop consistent, simple and 

flexible policy across the three agencies. National and local experts, along with 

multiple stakeholders, were involved in the process. Research literature, plant 

growth and soil hydrology models, and input from national/local experts in cover 

crop management provided the basis for developing cover crop termination 

guidelines to achieve their conservation benefits while minimizing risk of 

reducing yield to the following crop due to soil water use. 

The guidelines apply to non-irrigated cropland, including systems that contain 

a fallow period. Termination of cover crops utilized in an irrigated cropping 

system is not restricted to a given cover crop termination zone. Cover Crops in 

irrigated cropping systems should be terminated based on the crop system and 

conservation purpose, but before the planted crop emerges.

*See map on page 2.

Photo: Lynn Betts, NRCS

Cover crops on a field in Black Hawk County, 

Iowa.

Note: These guidelines can be used as a stand alone document, if needed.

NRCS Cover Crop Termination Guidelines for Management Zones

Zone 1 - See Map Zone 2 - See Map Zone 3 - See Map Zone 4 - See Map

For Late Spring to Fall Seeded Crops - 

Terminate cover crops 35 days or earlier

prior to planting the crop.

For Early Spring Seeded Crops - 

Terminate cover crops as soon as 

practical prior to planting the crop. 

(Additional Cover Crop Termination 

Considerations 4 and 8)

For Late Spring to Fall Seeded Crops - 

Terminate cover crops 15 days or earlier

prior to planting the crop.

For Early Spring Seeded Crops 

Terminate cover crops as soon as 

practical prior to planting the crop. 

(Additional Cover Crop Termination 

Considerations 4 and 8)

Terminate cover crop at or before 

planting the crop.

Terminate cover crop 

at or within 5 days after 

planting, but before crop 

emergence.

RMA Designated Summer Fallow 

Practice

 * For summer seeded or fall

 seeded crops terminate the cover 

 crop at least 90 days prior to 

 planting.

 * For early spring seeded crops

 terminate the cover crop either in late 

 fall or as early as possible

 in the spring prior to planting.

RMA Designated Summer Fallow 

Practice

 * For summer seeded or fall

 seeded crops terminate the cover 

 crop at least 90 days prior to 

 planting.

 * For early spring seeded crops

 terminate the cover crop either in 

 late fall or as early as possible

 in the spring prior to planting.

RMA Designated Summer Fallow 

Practice

 * For summer seeded or fall

 seeded crops terminate the 

 cover crop at least 90 days 

 prior to planting.

 * For early spring seeded crops

 terminate the cover crop 

 either in late fall or as early as 

 possible in the spring prior to 

 planting.

NRCS Cover Crop Termination Period Guidance - Non-Irrigated Cropland:
page 2

*

1. If the season is drier than normal nearing cover crop termination time, 

consider an earlier termination to conserve soil moisture.

2. If the spring season is wetter than normal at cover crop termination 

time, consider a later termination to use excess soil moisture and 

improve seedbed condition.

3. If the cover crop is part of a no-till system, termination can be delayed 

 up to 7 days from the above termination period guideline, but terminated 

prior to crop emergence for all zones and systems.

4. In zones 1 and 2, fall seeded cover crops will have limited growth in 

the spring prior to “early” spring seeded crops (e.g., spring wheat, sugar 

 beets, corn), and therefore the cover crop may be terminated at or just 

prior to planting.

Additional Cover Crop Termination Considerations:

Photo: Justin Fritsher, NRCS
page 3

Additional Cover Crop Termination Considerations (Continued):

5. Cover crop termination zones 1 and 2, in the largely mountainous 

regions in the Western U.S. (from Montana south to New Mexico and 

west to California), were refined by NRCS and other local university 

experts to identify proper cover crop management due to wide variability 

in climate and cropping systems in those areas. 

6. Early vs. Later Spring Seeded Crops - Crops planted as early as 

possible after the spring thaw are considered early spring crops (e.g., 

spring wheat, spring barley, sugar beets, corn). Later spring crops 

include such crops as dry beans and soybeans.

7. New Technology - Where new technology has at least three years 

 of satisfactory performance (achieves historical yield) based on farm 

records and the written approval of two “agricultural experts” as 

defined by RMA, the cover crop may be terminated closer to planting, if 

recommended by the experts.

8. Cover Crop Grazing or Forage Harvest – In all areas, except for 

 the RMA summer fallow practice in Zones 1, 2 and 3, cover 

 crops may be grazed or harvested as hay or silage as long as the 

 planned amount of biomass is available at the time of termination 

to meet the conservation purpose. For the RMA designated summer 

fallow practice, cover crops should not be hayed or grazed. A cover 

 crop harvested for grain or seed will not be considered to have been 

planted for conservation purposes, and will be considered a “crop”.

9. Herbaceous Wind Barriers - There are specific cropping situations 

 when seasonal cover is needed to protect young seedlings from 

wind erosion abrasion. The typical seasonal covers may include 

such crops as wheat, rye, or oats that are planted in rows, e.g., 20 feet

apart (single or double row of small grain). These seasonal covers fall 

 under the NRCS Conservation Practice Code 603 – Herbaceous Wind

 Barriers. These barriers are not considered cover crops.

10. Short Season Cover Crops – There are specific cropping situations 

 where the producer will plant the intended crop, plus a short term 

 seasonal cover crop (NRCS Conservation Practice Code 340 – Cover

 Crop) prior to or at the same time as planting the main or insured crop.

In this case the seasonal cover emerges first and provides short 

 term wind erosion protection until the main crop becomes established

 crops are terminated by cultivation, frost /winterkill, or herbicides once

the main crop is established. The seasonal covers used for the purpose 

 of early crop establishment must be appropriate species for the area 

and the planned purpose.

11. Early Crop Planting – When earlier than normal planting occurs due to 

 favorable weather or soil conditions, cover crop termination will naturally 

occur closer to planting. For example, in zone 2, if planting occurs 2 

 weeks earlier than normal, the cover crop termination period may be 2 

weeks closer to planting. 

Cover crops in an orchard reduce soil erosion.

Photo: Gary Kramer
www.nrcs.usda.gov

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. 

12. Multiple Climates Within a County – Some counties may have 

multiple climate areas. In these situations, producers may request 

 a different cover crop termination zone management or timeframe 

due to unique geographical and topographical features that reflect a 

different climate. Producers should contact either Extension or the local 

NRCS for management guidance. If the guidance includes practices 

 other than indicated by the zones in this document, the producer must 

 inform FSA and their crop insurance agent, as appropriate, and provide 

copies of the recommended management practice(s).

Stripcropping with Cover Crops, Lancaster 

County, PA.

Photo: Bob Nichols

Additional Cover Crop Termination Considerations (Continued):

Definitions:

1. Over-Seeding/Interseeding – Both terms can be defined as planting one or more cover crop species into an existing 

or established crop. Common uses that involve over-seeding or interseeding include: (1) over-seeding a grass and/

or legume cover crop into an existing stand of small grain at an appropriate time for the cover and germination, or (2) 

seeding a cover crop into an existing crop of corn or soybeans about the time of physiological maturity (leaves 

beginning to yellow) to get the cover crop started a few weeks earlier. Neither of these examples of over- seeding/

interseeding would interfere with harvest of the main crop.

2. Interplanted – This involves multiple crop species grown together, with no distinct row pattern and does not permit 

separate agronomic maintenance or management. For RMA purposes, this means if a cover crop and cash crop 

 are planted in a way that does not permit separate agronomic maintenance or management, then RMA will not 

insure the cash crop. This would also apply to cover crops if interplanted into the main crop and the cover crop 

interfered with the agronomic management and harvest of the main crop.

3. Relay Cropping – The practice of interseeding a second crop into the first crop well before it is harvested. The relay 

 cropping strategy is used to enable production of a second crop in areas where time seeding the second crop 

following harvest of the first is considered inadequate for double cropping. This is not considered a cover cropping 

practice, but a method of double cropping and may fall under the RMA 1st / 2nd crop rules.

4. Double-Cropping – RMA and NRCS term: Harvesting at least 2 crops from the same land in the same year. This 

does not include cover crops.

5. Cover Crop - Crops including grasses, legumes and forbs for seasonal cover and other conservation purposes. A 

cover crop managed and terminated according to these guidelines is not considered a “crop”.

6. Good Farming Practice – RMA term - The production methods utilized to produce the insured crop and allow it to 

 make normal progress toward maturity and produce at least the yield used to determine the for late planted acreage, 

which are: (1) for conventional or sustainable farming practices, those generally recognized by agricultural experts 

for the area; or (2) for organic farming practices, those generally recognized by organic agricultural experts for the 

area or contained in the organic plan.

7. Late Planting Period – RMA term - The period of time following the date considered as the final planting date for an 

insured crop. The late planting period may vary from a week up to a few weeks.

8. Prevented Planting – RMA term - Failure to plant the insured crop by the final planting date designated in the 

 Special Provisions for the insured crop in the county, or within any applicable late planting period, due to an 

 insured cause of loss that is general to the surrounding area and that prevents other producers from planting 

acreage with similar characteristics.

9. Continuous Cropping – RMA Term – A practice of growing crops annually in a rainfall limited area (where summer 

fallow is also a practice).