It's not too late to sow your oats (!!) but is rapidly approaching that cut-off date. Oats need time to establish a sufficient biomass before killing frosts and frozen ground and if you wait much longer that won't happen. Plant now!!

Ha, ha! Thanks for the smile. :) Okay, then. I will get to it.

Oats are considered a spring cover crop, not a fall seeded one because they are not frost hardy. Seed for Oats are not very readily available around here (mid Michigan) but Field, Annual, or Cereal Rye, Clovers, the wheat's, and vetch's are and these are frost hardy and will aid in protecting the soil during the winter better than Oats would.

I have seeded Cereal Rye into my planting beds as late as mid October and had good growth so you still have about a month to do that. That is a benefit if the garden is still producing, as many in zone 5 are as yet..

kimmq is kimmsr

Hey, thanks! I appreciate the advice!

One question, come spring, do you plant directly into the cover crop or do you till it under?

If you choose cover crops that winter kill, then in the spring just rake them aside and plant. If you've got cover crops that are still green, or green up in spring, then you have to till or smother or whatever method you want to use to kill them, otherwise they will be the same as weeds.

Sorry, but oats are perfectly reasonable/acceptable for a fall seeded cover crop in colder climates, primarily for the purpose the OP expressed: " I want something easy and that will winter kill that I can plant directly into in the spring." Winter hardy or spring sown cover crops must be incorporate into the soil before planting, as noted above.

Even when winter killed, oats are able to project the soil surface and oat residues left on the soil
surface may chemically suppress weed growth, in addition to acting as a
physical barrier.
Oats as a fall cover crop.

Thanks, everyone, for all the information and for the link. I've decided to give oats a try.

You could do either. For years people did till in the cover crops and then wait a few weeks after to allow for soil Nitrogen tie up that accompanied that process, especially if a winter killed cover crop, such as Oats, was used.

However, much research over the last few years has shown that rolling over a growing cover crop, crimping, and leaving the stalks on the soil as mulch is quite viable.

About cover crop crimping, http://www.covercrops.msu.edu/crimper/about.html

Oats have mostly been used as a nurse crop for legumes, Clover, Vetch, etc., used as a winter cover crop. Oats, seeded in the fall, do not have enough growing time to develop the volume of organic material that cover crops are usually planted to provide.

kimmq is kimmsr

beebooks (5): cereal rye is a great cover, but it usually comes back strong early in spring when it will provide stiff competition for your vegetables. For me (Southeast Michigan) it works best if its incorporated deep, and then waiting a month before planting small-seeded vegetables, although you can safely plant potatoes, fava beans, and other large seeded plants. White clover can work, but you need to chop it into the top few inches of the soil in spring; don't expect it to fix nitrogen however, too late for that. How about the option of planting some vegetables that will over-winter, like fava beans, garlic, and lettuce-under-a-row cover? Another thing: I understand that incorporation is a stiff chore, but it does build up live carbon in the soil, which is never bad. Regards, Peter.

"tillage® or forage radishes" [daikon] are great if planted by early September. They winter kill and there is no spring fight killing them off.