MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) is funding a multi-state study, focusing on increasing water productivity, soil carbon, and sustainability in integrated multi-crop systems. The study will be conducted across the U.S. Corn Belt and the Great Plains.

Over an initial five-year period, the project will investigate how combinations of cover crops, nitrogen, crop rotation and tillage, and water management under variable soil water conditions influence soil microbial communities that drive nutrient availability and loss, researchers said.

The research team includes experts from Iowa State University, Kansas State University, Mississippi State University, The Ohio State University, the University of Kansas, the University of Minnesota, as well as major industry collaborators, Bayer Crop Science in Creve Coeur, Mo., and LI-COR Environmental in Lincoln, Neb.

The University of Minnesota will be part of a broader initiative, aiming to contribute to developing sustainable solutions for agriculture in the Corn Belt and Great Plains, researchers said.

FFAR awarded a $7,657,633 grant to Kansas State, which is leading the study. Bayer Crop Science provided $4,601,244 in matching funds, and Iowa State, Kansas State, LandScan, LCC, in Davis, Calif., LI-COR Environmental, Mississippi State, Ohio State and the University of Kansas, also provided funds for a total investment of $16,362,948, researchers said.

Dorivar Ruiz Diaz, Kansas State professor of soil fertility and nutrient management, and project lead, told Farm World, “The university collaborators were selected for their expertise in key disciplines and to ensure representation of major production systems across the Corn Belt and Great Plains regions, with particular emphasis on water use and its interactions with productivity and sustainability.

“Our industry partners are deeply committed to advancing understanding of the complex relationships among water, soil, and crop management and production,” he said. “Farmers and the broader agricultural sector face the challenge of increasing yields, while improving land sustainability and profitability, pressures that are further complicated by variable climatic conditions across gradients (a measure of a change that occurs between different quantities of something such as temperature or pressure over a particular distance).”

He said researchers in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Ohio will focus on the rain-fed systems within the project; and Kansas (including cotton in rotation), Mississippi (including cotton in rotation), and Nebraska will focus on irrigated systems; Kansas researchers will also focus on dry land systems.

“The scale and complexity of these studies can only be achieved through strong partnerships with industry and a highly collaborative research team,” Ruiz Diaz said.

Ohio State researchers will also examine the productivity effects of crop management practices on corn, soybeans and wheat.

“We’re collecting field-scale data on multiple management factors like cover cropping, tillage, nitrogen application, and crop rotation,” said Osler Ortez, Ohio State assistant professor of corn and emerging crops at the university’s Wooster campus. “This will help us determine the long-term impacts on productivity, soil health, and greenhouse gas emissions.”

Sumita Sen, an Ohio State doctoral student who is contributing fieldwork and analysis from the Ohio site in Perrysburg, added, “This project will help us understand the agronomic complexity of current cropping systems and guide sustainable choices.”

Sotirios Archontoulis, an Iowa State professor of integrated cropping systems and a researcher, told Farm World: “The ISU team is working on modeling of the cropping systems using the APSIM (Agricultural Production Systems Simulator) model, as well as monitoring one of the field experiments. The APSIM modular modeling framework will be used to simulate the biophysical processes in cropping systems, with a focus on understanding the impacts of management practices, climate and soil conditions on crop production and environmental outcomes.

“Particular focus is on water table depth, and interaction of multiple factors such as crop rotation, nitrogen fertilizer rate, and tillage on productivity,” he added.

Ortez said, “This public-private and multi-state partnership will provide vital insights for farmers and policymakers alike.”