General Comments
Oats will grow rapidly in late summer and continue until a hard freeze. They will not over-winter in Wisconsin. They are a good choice if fall-harvesting a forage is the main goal. They are more tolerant of temporary dry conditions than legumes.
Oats and barley have had equal yields in fall forage trials of 1-3 tons of dry matter per acre
Planting specifications
Seeding rate: Seed all at 40-60 lbs per-acre for a cover crop only, 75-100 lbs per-acre for forage.
Seeding depth: Drill 1-2” deep or broadcast and lightly till-in.
Fertility needs: 40-60 lbs N, and if for forage, 20 lbs P2O5 and 90 lbs K2O.
Management and termination
None needed, will winter kill in Wisconsin
In a cover crop mix
After wheat: Oats can be mixed with any of the brassica or legume cover crops. Cut seeding rate by 1/3 in mixes.
