Protective covering by a companion crop or crop waste reduces the danger of winter kill. Hairy vetch will not successfully overwinter in many northern areas of the Midwest. Check on the adaptability of hairy vetch to your location before planting. Although the vetches are not drought resistant, this is rarely a problem. The crop is summer-seeded and harvested the following July before the hot, dry conditions of late summer.
Vetches grow well on a wide range of soil types, but are best adapted to loamy and sandy soils.
Because they are legumes, vetches can be grown on nitrogen-depleted soils without the addition of N fertilizer. The seed should be inoculated with the proper strain of Rhizobium bacteria within 24 hours of planting, unless well-nodulated peas or vetch have been grown on the field recently. Follow instructions carefully to achieve an even coat of fresh inoculum on the seed. Seed should be sown when the soil is moist, because a hot, dry soil will reduce, if not prevent, effective inoculation. Some fungicide seed treatment compounds can also interfere with the nodulation process.