).Abbreviations: CC, cover crops; FNEQ, fertilizer nitrogen equivalence; PL, poultry litter. core ideas• Fall-applied poultry litter and legume cover crop equate to more than 100 kg fertilizer N in corn.• Without legume cover crop, fall-applied poultry litter failed to result in fertilizer N credit.• Fertilizer N equivalence of legume/rye biculture was variable between -12 to a credit of 75 kg N ha -1 .• Fertilizer N equivalence of legume cover crops and poultry litter increased across the 3-yr study.

Soil solarization is used to manage nematodes, pathogens and weeds, but relatively few studies have examined solarization effects on soil mineral nutrients, soil properties and plant tissue nutrients. This study was designed to optimize the duration of solarization treatment for the management of soil and plant nutrients and crop biomass in an agroecosystem utilizing an organic nutrient source. The experiment was a split-plot with treatment duration as the main effect and solarization as the sub-effect. Solarization treatments of 2-, 4-and 6-week durations began on sequential dates and concluded in mid-August. Immediately post-treatment, okra (Hibiscus esculentus L.) seedlings were transplanted into subplots for tissue nutrient analysis. Freshly chopped cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] hay was applied to the soil surface directly around the okra seedlings as an organic nutrient source. Immediately following solarization treatment, concentrations of soil K and Mn were higher, while Cu and Zn concentrations were lower in solarized soils than in non-solarized soils. Soil pH was slightly lower in solarized plots. Concentrations of K, N, Mg and Mn in okra leaf tissue were higher in solarized plots than in nonsolarized plots, but concentrations of P and Zn were lower in plants grown in solarized soil. Okra biomass was three and four times higher in the 4-and 6-week solarization treatments than in non-solarized treatments. Based on data from this experiment, 4-and 6-week durations of solarization were optimal for increasing crop biomass. The data indicate that solarization has significant effects on soil and plant nutrients. Results of the nutrient analyses suggest that the availability of nutrients from an organic source was not limited by solarization.

Tenure-track faculty at research intensive universities have competing responsibilities in their role as both researchers and teachers, leading to barriers to pedagogical change. This has been well-documented in the sciences. Coteaching models of collaborative planning and teaching with an explicit goal of facilitating educator growth have been successful in increasing the use of research-based pedagogy in higher education settings. We documented our experiences coteaching in an undergraduate ecological agriculture course and, drawing on sociocultural views of faculty work as learning, identified opportunities for learning that occurred. We found that the collaborative teaching team structure provided timely access to pedagogical knowledge, the collaborative planning process was a mechanism for faculty learning, and observing members of the team teach provided opportunities for new insights. Coteaching has had significant, lasting impacts for the instructors. We recommend that universities implement coteaching as a mechanism for supporting faculty use of student-centered pedagogy.

Increasing diversity in monoculture production through inclusion of cover crops (CC) and reducing chemical fertilizer inputs by application of animal manures could increase multiple ecosystem services and agroecosystem function. This study was designed to quantify selected ecosystem services from legume, grass, and biculture CC and poultry litter (PL) in strip‐tilled corn (Zea mays L.). Treatments included hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth), cereal rye (Secale cereale L.), vetch‐rye biculture, and winter fallow (WF) all with and without fall‐applied PL. Prior to CC termination and corn planting, aboveground dry matter, N content, and C/N ratios of CC and weed biomass were measured; soil inorganic N (ΣNO3− and NH4+) was analyzed every 2 wk following CC termination. Biculture transgressively over‐yielded in 2014 but not in 2015, accumulated levels of biomass N similar to vetch treatment (Vetch), suppressed weeds as effectively as rye treatment (Rye), and maintained soil inorganic N levels similar to Vetch by the second year of study. Overall, CC yield increased 20 to 30% with fall applied PL. Vetch C/N ratio decreased 14% with PL in 2015, while Rye C/N ratio was unaffected. Average weed C/N ratios were 24.5 with Rye and 16.2 with vetch + poultry litter treatment (VetchPL). Cover crop systems with Vetch showed the greatest soil inorganic N, while Rye inorganic N levels were similar to WF. Winter annual weeds were suppressed at least 92% by CC, and most effectively when Rye was present. Ultimately, optimization of cropping systems including CCs and PL will require consideration of interspecific interactions and variable responses among species. Core Ideas Cover crop yield increased 20 to 30% with fall applied poultry litter. Biculture cover crop optimized yield, nitrogen content, weed suppression, and soil nitrogen. Carbon/nitrogen ratios of vetch and weeds were affected by poultry litter and cover crop treatments. Apparent poultry litter nitrogen recovery was greatest when a legume was present. Soil inorganic nitrogen increased with vetch and poultry litter.