The objective of the four farmers is to coordinate four trials on their farms with different soil types (sandy and loamy/clayey) and production methods (organic or conventional) that practice cover crop sowing in winter intercropping.
The support structures offer comprehensive monitoring of the four test plots with different soil characteristics (organic matter, biological and microbial activity, structure, history) to identify the different impacts of cover crops on these soils. Soil analyses will enable farmers in the area to understand the mechanisms of residues (particularly nitrogen) and the impacts on subsequent crops in order to adapt fertilization and amendments according to the inputs from cover crops. The results will be compared with MERCI calculation methods, which estimate theoretical inputs.