A new four-month project which is being funded by AHDB and three water firms is set to predict nutrient release from cover crops.
It will include assessments of decision support tools that estimate the quantity of nitrogen and nutrient release patterns associated with a wide range of cover crop species.
An online questionnaire and a stakeholder workshop will canvass opinions and identify the resources needed to improve nutrient management planning across rotations.
Payment incentives and the movement towards the adoption of regenerative agriculture, which advocates keeping the soil covered, have accelerated the adoption of cover crops on UK farms.
Joanna McBurnie, AHDB environment scientist, said one of the biggest knowledge gaps was associated with legacy effects.
She said: “Some benefits of cover crops are clear, such as reducing soil erosion and nitrate leaching risks.
"This project will provide evidence on the amount and timing of nutrient release from cover crop residues.”
The development of reliable information on nutrient release is complicated by the availability of a wide range of cover crop species, including mixes.
Diversity of agroclimatic conditions across the country, for example soil types, cropping and weather, is also stumbling block.
Other countries, notably France and the United States, have already developed decision support tools.
These use predictive models to estimate the availability of nitrogen from a wide range of cover crops to the next cash crop. AHDB said its project would build on such tools.
A short questionnaire, which is open until the end of the month, is gathering views from people who grow or provide advice on cover crops.
The questions capture the ways people account for nutrients from cover crops and assess the potential to develop a decision support tool for the UK.
An online stakeholder workshop will also take place on 29 April 2025 to discuss the interim findings.
