1. CORN YIELD AND NITROGEN USE EFFICIENCY RESPONSE TO WHEAT COVER CROP AND SPLIT NITROGEN APPLICATION

Corn (Zea mays L.) grain is a major commodity crop in Illinois and its production largely relies on timely application of nitrogen (N) fertilizers. Currently, growers in Illinois and other neighboring states in the U.S. Midwest use the maximum return to N (MRTN) decision support system to predict corn N requirements. However, the current tool does not factor in implications of integrating cover crops into the rotation, which has recently gained attention among growers due to several... R. Keshavarz-afshar, E. Jahanzad, M. Battaglia, Y. Luo, A. Sadeghpour, O. Adeyemi