Technical Abstract: The need to develop increasingly integrated pest management and sustainable food production systems has encouraged a greater interest to thoroughly evaluate effective utilization of cover crops in agricultural systems. Sunn hemp, a tropical legume that originated most likely from the Indo-Pakistani sub-continent, has been identified as a potential alternative to traditional legume cover crops employed in the southern portion of the United States. As a tropical legume, sunn hemp is able to produce larger quantities of biomass in a shorter time period than winter legumes from temperate zones while still providing agronomically important amounts of fixed nitrogen. The increased biomass residue from sunn hemp would improve and extend weed control compared to use of other legume covers. Research continues worldwide to evaluate this species in order to determine its potential for widespread use in sustainable agricultural production as well as to identify any limitations with the use of sunn hemp.