SAES-422 Multistate Research Activity Accomplishments Report

Sections

Status: Approved

Basic Information

Participants

NC-1195-Annual-Meeting-Minutes_Final.docx
NC-1195-Annual-Meeting-Minutes_Final.docx

Accomplishments

Accomplishments summaries by major objectives of the project:

1) Determine the roles of innovative management practices, the environment, and their interactions on the optimum use of nitrogen in agroecosystems.

  • Based on multiple site × year data, the project members evaluated the utility and challenges of EONR based N management in corn under climate variability (annual rainfall distribution). Artificial subsurface drainage improves corn productivity and profitability in wetter years as compared to undrained soils. In wetter years, split N application reduced N rate to attain similar yield as compared to pre-plant N application.
  • Team members investigated corn EONR in response to cover cropping. Based on 36 site × year data across the US, legume cover crops did not significantly reduce EONR of corn, but cereal rye and rye-legume mixtures increase the optimum N rate.
  • Multiple project members investigated long-term impacts of no-tillage and cover cropping on soil health indicators, N2O emissions, and profile soil C. Cover crops positively influenced soil biological health indicators; however, legume cover crops increased N2O emissions following their termination. Long-term no-tillage had comparable N2O emissions with conventional tillage, whereas reduced profile-scale soil C storage.

2) Understand the role of soil biological processes in controlling plant available nitrogen and their relationships with soil health and system resilience.

  • Project members developed a soil health framework based on agronomic and environmental performance indicators, including crop response to nitrogen. They found that soil management practices such as no-tillage and artificial drainage increase soil N supply and decrease the agronomic optimum nitrogen rate of corn.
  • Poffenbarger and McDaniel contributed to an evaluation of nitrogen indicators of soil health in a study involving long-term research sites in North America.
  • Poffenbarger and Castellano began a project to determine how cover crops and planting date affect N2O emissions from corn and soybean fields.
  • In long-term dryland corn-soybean-wheat systems, cover crop (grass, legume, diverse mixture) effects were evaluated on soil biological health indicators and corn N response.

3) Translate field and laboratory research into nitrogen management decision-making tools and educational resources promoting improved profitability and sustainability of corn-based cropping systems.

  • Project members contributed data to a cereal rye biomass database, which is publicly available and can be used to understand factors that affect cover crop productivity.
  • The team members evaluated the performances of various trial design methods and yield response models used to convert on-farm experimental data into nitrogen management decisions.
  • This research group has evaluated DayCent biogeochemical model in predicting crop yield, soil carbon, and N2O emissions in response to long-term tillage, N fertilization, and cover cropping practices.

Impacts

  1. While N is a critical element of crop production, it is also highly vulnerable to environmental losses contributing to emerging global climate and sustainability issues. Therefore, managing fertilizer N input and soil N cycling is important, although challenging, for sustainable crop production. Such complexity further magnifies under changing climate bringing unpredictable growing season weather conditions as suggested by the team’s research showing corn EONR and yield at EONR can substantially vary due to inter-annual weather variability. Multi-year research conducted by the NC1195 project team members indicated that artificial drainage improves corn yield by 8% while reduced N rate by 16% - drained soils were more beneficial in improving yield and reducing N rate in wetter years. In terms of fertilizer application timing, split application reduced N need, especially in wetter years and undrained soils. Drained soils were $29/ac and $48/ac more profitable than undrained soil under pre-plant and split N application management, respectively. Increasing use of cover cropping and no-tillage as soil health promoting practices influenced corn EONR and soil N cycling. The team’s multiple years of research across different states indicated that legume cover crops before corn did not significantly reduce corn EONR, whereas grass and grass-legume mixture cover crops required more N at EONR.
  2. Research in a dryland corn-soybean-wheat-fallow/cover crop system indicated that cover crops positively influenced soil biological health indicators, especially in the adjacent crop phases after cover crop termination. However, the impact of such improvements in soil biological processes was not realized on corn EONR. Project members investigated alternative N sources such as compost and processed manure as means to reduce reliance on mineral fertilizer N and to understand their impacts on productivity and soil N cycling processes. Separating solids from liquid manure and their subsequent application in corn silage produced improved yield and reduced N2O emissions. Combining green waste compost with mineral N fertilizer consistently reduced N2O emissions across different N fertilization rates. The results are encouraging and will enhance our understanding of how different biologically based alternate N fertilizer products can alter the fate of fertilizer nitrogen. Additionally, it will clarify the agronomic and environmental benefits of applying processed manure and compost.
  3. The research performed by the project members have contributed to: 1) identification of the appropriate on-farm experimental trial designs to translate on-farm data into N management decision; 2) evaluation of process-based biogeochemical model DayCent in predicting crop yield, soil C sequestration, and N2O emissions under long-term tillage and cover cropping practices to inform the utility of such modeling tools to guide sustainable management decisions. Furthermore, the project has generated detailed guideline for farmers and consultants in 1) managing corn N rate, application method (split vs pre-plant), and timing of application considering inter-annual variability in precipitation distribution under drained and undrained systems and provided profitability estimates by reducing N rate and improving yield and 2) evaluating the impact on cover crop integration on corn EONR as influenced by changes in soil biological processes. The findings originated from NC1195 committee member’s research programs have been communicated to both scientific and extension communities through conference presentations, peer-reviewed publications, presentations and training to extension educators and growers’ meetings.

Publications

  1. Published Written Works. Include joint/multistate scientific publications, trade magazine articles, books, posters, websites developed, and any other relevant printed works produced.  Please use the formatting in the examples below. Note: Authors in bold texts indicate the NC1195 committee members
  • Huddell A.M. et al., including Poffenbarger, M. Ruark, A. Woodley. 2024. U.S. cereal rye winter cover crop growth database. Scientific Data. 11: 200. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-02996-9
  • Lussich F. et al., including S. Jagadamma, D. Saha. 2024. Cover crop residue decomposition triggered soil oxygen depletion and promoted nitrous oxide emissions. Scientific Reports, 14: 8437. doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-58942-7
  • Dhaliwal JK. et al., Jagadamma, D. Saha. 2024. Computed tomography scanning revealed macropore-controlled N2O emissions under long-term tillage and cover cropping practices. Science of the Total Environment, 926, 171782. doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171782
  • Liptzin D. et al., including D. McDaniel, H. Poffenbarger. 2023. An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long‐term agricultural experiments. Soil Science Society of America Journal. 87: 868-884. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20558
  • Yi Q, Curtright A, R. Horwath, X. Zhu-Barker. 2023. Response of soil nitrogen mineralization to warming temperatures depends on soil management history. Geoderma. 440:116716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2023.116716.
  • Haas SM, R. Horwath, X. Zhu-Barker. 2024. Effects of food waste and green waste composts on yield and nitrogen-use efficiency in irrigated tomato crops. Agronomy Journal, 1-13. http://doil.irg/10.1002/agj2.21587
  • Ransom CJ. et al., including FG. Fernández, CAM. Laboski. 2023. Combining corn N recommendation tools for an improved economical optimal nitrogen rate estimation. Soil Science Society of America Journal. 87:902-917.
  • Shao H. et al., including FG. Fernández, CAM. Laboski. 2023. Evaluating critical nitrogen dilution curves for assessing maize nitrogen status across the US Midwest. Agronomy, 13:1948.
  1. Scientific and Outreach Oral Presentations. Include workshops, colloquia, conferences, symposia, and industry meetings in which you presented and/or   See below for formatting. Note: Authors in bold texts indicate the NC1195 committee members
  • Poffenbarger H. et al., including J. Tomlinson, M.D. Ruark, A. Woodley. 2023. Winter cover crop effects on the optimum n rate of corn and cotton across multi-state field experiments. ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting, St. Louis, MO.
  • Kenneth G.C. et al., including Poffenbarger, M.J. Castellano. 2023. Towards robust, low-cost, quantitative metrics for improving soil health. ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting, St. Louis, MO.
  • Dhaliwal J.K, S. Anderson, J. Lee, S. Jagadamma, D. Saha.  2023.  Computed tomography scanning of intact soil cores revealed macropore-controlled N2O emissions under long-term soil health practices. ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting. St. Louis, MO.
  • Zhu-Barker X, Mirabella, Y. Deng, A.C. von Haden, G.R. Sanford. 2023. Assessing soil N2O emissions and nitrogen dynamics in a corn cropping system receiving processed manure. America Geophysical Union (AGU) Annual Mtg., San Francisco, CA.
  1. Fund leveraging, specifically, collaborative grants between stations and members.

Castellano M.J. (PI), A. Margenot, R. Venterea, S. Naeve, M. Salmeron, and H. Poffenbarger. 2024-2025. Reducing nitrous oxide emissions from soybean through early planting and cover crops. United Soybean Board. $1,109,360.

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