A HIGH-YIELDING WINTER COVER CROP PRESENTS TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWERS OF COTTON AND PEANUT IN CONTINUAL ROTATION OR FOR LOBLOLLY PINE PLANTATIONS GROWN FOR PULP OR TIMBER. PRODUCERS OF ROW CROP COMMODITIES HAVE RECENTLY SEEN DECLINING MARKET PRICES. THUS ANY INCREASE OF INCOME FROM MARKETING A BIOMASS WINTER COVER CROP OR SUBSEQUENT DECREASE IN INPUT COSTS FOR SUMMER ROW CROP PRODUCTION COULD HAVE MAJOR POSITIVE RURAL ECONOMIC IMPACT. PLANTED ACREAGE OF COTTON AND PEANUT IN ALABAMA, GEORGIA, FLORIDA, SOUTH CAROLINA, AND MISSISSIPPI AVERAGED OVER 3.4 MILLION PER YEAR IN 2014 AND 2015. WITH AVERAGE YIELDS OF 9 MG/HA (4 TONS/AC) WINTER COVER CROPS WITHIN THIS PRODUCTION SYSTEM COULD SUPPLY OVER 12 MILLION TONS OF BIOMASS FROM THESE STATES ALONE. OTHER ESTIMATES ON THE POTENTIAL TOTAL YIELD OF COVER CROPS REACH UP TO 650 MILLION TONS NATIONWIDE. WHILE THE BENEFITS OF COVER CROPS ON ROW CROPS HAVE BEEN STUDIED EXTENSIVELY, VERY LITTLE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON THE USE OF COVER CROPS WITHIN NEW PINE PLANTINGS.NEW PINE PLANTINGS PER YEAR ARE IN THE RANGE OF 500,000 ACRES FOR STATES IN THE DEEP SOUTH. IF COVER CROPS WERE PRODUCED WITHIN THE FIRST 5 YEARS OF PINE GROWTH, AN ADDITIONAL 10 MILLION TONS OF BIOMASS COULD BE PRODUCED WITHIN THESE STANDS. THERE IS INTEREST BY INDUSTRY TO HAVE AMPLE SUPPLY OF BIOMASS IN THE REGION TO PRODUCE BIO-JET FUEL AMONG OVER RENEWABLE PRODUCTS. THE COVER CROP RESEARCH PROPOSED IN THIS PROJECT WILL GIVE RELIABLE INFORMATION TO FARM AND FOREST LANDOWNERS IN THE REGION THEREBY INCREASING THE ADOPTION OF COVER CROPS PRODUCTION IN THE REGION FOR ENSURING BIO-ECONOMY DEVELOPMENT, WATER CONSERVATION, SOIL QUALITY ENHANCEMENT, AND INCREASED RURAL INCOMES. BESIDES THE PRODUCTION OF BIOMASS FROM WINTER COVERS IN THE SOUTHEAST, THERE ARE MANY OTHER BENEFITS. WINTER COVER CROPS ARE KNOWN TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO SUSTAINABLE PRIMARY ROW CROP PRODUCTION. COVER CROPS CAN: 1) CUT FERTILIZER COSTS; 2) REDUCE THE NEED FOR HERBICIDES AND OTHER PESTICIDES; 3) IMPROVE YIELDS BY ENHANCING SOIL HEALTH; 4) PREVENT SOIL EROSION; 5) CONSERVE SOIL MOISTURE; 6) PROTECT WATER QUALITY; AND 7) HELP SAFEGUARD PERSONAL HEALTH AMONG OTHER BENEFITS. LEGUMINOUS COVER CROPS ARE ALSO BENEFICIAL IN PROVIDING NUTRIENTS TO NON-LEGUMINOUS SUMMER CROPS SUCH AS COTTON (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L.) AS THEY TYPICALLY RELEASE ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS AT CRITICAL GROWTH STAGES. ALSO, THE MOBILE NUTRIENTS FROM COVER CROPS ARE LESS LIKELY TO BE LOST SINCE THE RESIDUES PRIOR TO MINERALIZATION DO NOT LEACH THROUGH THE SOIL UNLIKE A SYNTHETIC FERTILIZER SOURCE.LEGUMINOUS COVER CROPS ARE ALSO BENEFICIAL IN PROVIDING NUTRIENTS TO NON-LEGUMINOUS SUMMER CROPS SUCH AS COTTON (GOSSYPIUM HIRSUTUM L.) AS THEY TYPICALLY RELEASE ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS AT CRITICAL GROWTH STAGES. ALSO, THE MOBILE NUTRIENTS FROM COVER CROPS ARE LESS LIKELY TO BE LOST SINCE THE RESIDUES PRIOR TO MINERALIZATION DO NOT LEACH THROUGH THE SOIL UNLIKE A SYNTHETIC FERTILIZER SOURCE.A HIGH-YIELDING LEGUME AS A WINTER COVER CROP POSSESSES HIGH APPEAL DUE TO NITROGEN FIXATION, WHICH CAN REDUCE NITROGEN FERTILIZER INPUTS AND IMPROVESOIL ORGANIC MATTERWITH HIGH RESIDUAL N. NO PUBLISHED STUDY INCLUDED LUPIN OR CARINATA AS COVER CROPS OR HAS ANALYZED THE ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF BIOENERGY COVER CROPS ON PINE GROWTH CHARACTERISTICS IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. ALSO, NO STUDIES HAVE INCLUDED THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF HARVESTING AND MARKETING WINTER COVERS WITHIN NEWLY ESTABLISHED PINE PLANTATIONS.THIS STUDY WILL BE CONDUCTED BY INTRODUCING DIFFERENT WINTER COVER CROP COMBINATIONS (LUPIN WITH OR WITHOUT RYE OR CARINATA) WITHIN BOTH A SUMMER ROW CROP ROTATION OF COTTON AND PEANUT AS WELL AS WITHIN NEWLY PLANTED PINE PLANTATIONS. THE WORK WITH BE DONE AT THREE LOCATIONS,REPRESENTING THE SOUTHERN COASTAL PLAIN FOR FOUR YEARS AND WILL BE ANALYZED FOR BIOMASS YIELD FROM THE COVERS, OIL SEED YIELD FROM CARINATA AND LUPIN, THE POTENTIAL COMVERSION OF OIL-SEED AND BIOMASS MATERIAL INTO BIO-BASED COMPOUNDS THAT CAN BE USED FOR BIOFUELS OR BIO-BASED PRODUCTS. THE EFFECTS ON SOIL HEALTH AND SUBSEQUENT PRIMARY CROP PRODUCTION WILL ALSO BE MEASURED AND ANALYZED. BOTH ECONOMIC (BY COMPARING THE INTRODUCED PRODUCTION PRACTICES WITH TRADIONAL METHODS) AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS (ON INCREASE OF SOIL ORGANIC MATERIAL AND NITROGEN CONTENT AMONG OTHER ASPECTS) WILL BE DETERMINED IN HOPES THAT THIS PROJECT WOULD PRODUCE VALUABLE INFORMATION TO PRODUCERS,END PRODUCT USERS , AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC ON THE BENEFITS OF GROWINGWINTER COVER CROPSTHROUGHOUT THE SOUTHERN COASTAL PLAIN.