Fall-planted cover crops support good yields of muskmelons

Four cover crops {alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. 'Kansas Common'), hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth), Austrian winter pea [Pisum sativum subsp. arvense (L.) Poir], and winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L. 'Tam 107' )}, alone and in combination with feedlot beef manure at 5 t·ha^-1 were evaluated for 2 years to determine whether sufficient N could be supplied solely by winter cover cropping and manure application to produce high-quality muskmelons (Cucumis melo L. 'Magnum 45') in an intensive production system using plastic mulch and drip irrigation. Among the legumes, hairy vetch produced the most biomass (8.9 t·ha^-1) and accumulated the most N (247 kg·ha^-1). Winter wheat produced more biomass (9.8 t·ha^-1) than any of the legumes but accumulated the least N (87 kg·ha^-1). Melon yields produced using legume cover crops alone were similar to those receiving synthetic N fertilizer at 70 or 100 kg·ha^-1. Melons produced on plots with cover crops combined with beef manure did not differ significantly in yield from those produced on plots with only cover crops. Legume cover crops alone, used with plastic mulch and drip irrigation, provided sufficient N for the production of high-quality muskmelons.