Updated December 31, 2020:
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Overall, results from this trial illustrate the variation both among and within cover crop species as well as highlight top-performing varieties for East, Middle, and West Tennessee. Top-performers from the 63 cover crop varieties evaluated can be found at https://search.utcrops.com/cover-crops. In general, cereal rye, winter pea, and hairy vetch varieties offered the greatest benefits to Tennessee production systems, but significant variation was observed among varieties within these species. These results reiterate the importance of selecting varieties that are best adapted to specific regions and productions systems in order to maximize cover cropping benefits. In vitro and greenhouse studies of allelopathic impacts from cover crops on both weed and crop germination and early growth were present but differed by species and location and require further research under field conditions. Dual-use cover crops, harvested as both a forage and used as a winter cover, did not demonstrate a negative impact on insect or slug populations. These results, in combination with earlier results showing high forage yields and nutritive values, suggest this practice may be a viable option to further add economic value to cover crop systems.