Frost seeding is broadcasting forage seed onto the ground surface while the ground is frozen in the spring. The repeated freezing and thawing of the soil surface causes surface cracks in the soil which allow seed incorporation.
Kevin Shelley specializes in cover crops with the Division of Extension Nutrient and Pest Management Program. He joins the Mid-West Farm Report in-studio to go over the ins and outs of frost seeding, including the pros and cons it can bring to pastures, forage stocks, and a winter wheat crop, depending on the weather.
“It’s more common with pasture management,” he says. “And we want to improve the compliment of the species in the pasture, maybe get some legumes into that grass like red clover or white clovers. We really need a species that is a little bit more rapid to establish and a little bit more hardy from the get-go. “
Learn more about frost seeding: https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/forage/frost-seeding-of-forages/
