What’s with the low-flying planes over NJ? The real reason they’re buzzing towns

✈ Low-flying planes may be seen over parts of New Jersey

✈ They are seeding thousands of acres of farmland with cover crops

✈ Seeding will continue through Sept. 15

If you live in certain areas of northern and central New Jersey and see some low-flying planes hovering about, don’t panic.

Chances are, these planes are seeding.

From now until Sept. 15, planes will blanket 4,200 acres of New Jersey cropland with cover crops, an all-natural mixture of annual ryegrass, winter rye, and crimson clover seeds.

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Why the need to aerial seed?

The aerial cover crop seeding program is a partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service and nonprofit North Jersey Resource Conservation and Development.

Seeding by plane allows planting before crops are harvested, giving cover crops extra weeks to establish.

“Planting from the air is efficient, timely, and eases the workload on farmers. It builds healthy soils and protects water quality,” said NJRCD Executive Director Laura Tessieri.

Cover crops protect water quality and sequester soil carbon, North Jersey RC&D said. The seeds grow under the dense corn and soy cover. When the grains and beans are harvested, the newly established cover crops will remain, protecting the soil from erosion through the winter.

The cover crops provide additional soil nitrogen, build organic matter, and suppress weeds, North Jersey RC&D explained.

How does this blanket of protection work?

On many corn and soybean farms, fields can sit bare for up to seven months after harvest, leaving the soil vulnerable to nutrient loss and erosion.

The cover crops keep living roots in the ground, reducing runoff, improving fertility, and protecting waterways.

Ryegrass provides quick, dense coverage to prevent erosion. The clover naturally adds nitrogen.

In the spring, the remaining vegetation will improve the soil’s organic matter and reduce weeds.

Farmers

Since 2013, North Jersey RC&D has coordinated the aerial seeding program with local farmers, seed companies, aerial applicators, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service.

Farmers sign up for the aerial seeding program months in advance, allowing NJRCD to purchase seeds in bulk and aerial applicators to plan flight paths.

Seeding requires calm days, and ideally, with rain in the forecast. Some farmers say the aerial seeding is good for the fields, good for the waterways, and good for their next crop.

NJ areas targeted for aerial seeding

Aerial seeding will occur in the following townships through Sept. 15:

• Warren County – Blairstown, Franklin, Greenwich, Harmony, Hope, Liberty, Mansfield, Pohatcong, Washington, and White
• Hunterdon County – Alexandria, Bethlehem, Clinton, Delaware Township, East Amwell, Franklin, Holland, Kingwood, Lebanon, Raritan, Tewksbury, and West Amwell
• Mercer County – Hopewell and Pennington
• Morris County – Washington

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