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Improving cereal rye cover crop BMPs to increase adoption of cover crops by Iowa farmers (2018-2020)
Issue: The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (INRS) calls for cover crop implementation on over 12 million acres, which equates to every other field. Despite numerous environmental benefits associated with cover crops, many farmers are still hesitant to change their current production practices. Major barriers to introducing cover crops as a conservation practice include cost of implementation, yield drag, and knowledge. This multi-disciplinary team will address the barriers of using cover crops and develop best management practices (BMPs) for including a cover crop in a corn-soybean production system in Iowa for “hesitant” farmers. Using these data, we will develop a set of BMPs with a partial cost budget to encourage farmers to include cover crops in corn-soybean production systems, and therefore meet the INRS goals of cover crop acreage adoption in Iowa.
Objective: This research will evaluate the effect of cover crop seeding rate, seeding method, and termination timing on corn production, soil health and nutrient recycling. Treatment effects on (i) cover crop and corn growth and development (ii) weed, pest and disease pressure, (iii) nutrient recycling and (iv) soil health will be assessed. In addition, partial budgets for treatments will be developed, and Iowa farmers surveyed to identify common methods of seeding cover crops users and perceived efficacy of those methods.
Approach: A comprehensive field study at the ISU Ag Engineering and Agronomy Farm, with smaller studies at the ISU Southeast Research Farm, Crawfordville, and Northwest Research Farm, Sutherland will be done. Experimental treatments will consist of a three seeding rates, two planting methods (drilled and broadcast) seeding rates, and rye termination timing. Cover crops will be seeded after soybean. The following data will be collected: cover crop growth and development in the fall and spring; corn growth and development throughout the growing season; weed, insect and disease pressure; soil and plant nitrate, soil health parameters. Relationships between data variables will be evaluated to improve our understanding of factors influencing the winter rye-corn cropping systems.
McDaniel, M.D., D. Saha, M.G. Dumont, M. Hernández, M.A. Adams. 2019. The Effect of Land-Use Change on Soil CH4 and N2O Fluxes: A Global Meta-Analysis. Ecosystems, 1-20. (DOI: 10.1007/s10021-019-00347-z)
Charkhabi, S., A.M. Bierle, M.D. McDaniel, N.F. Reuel. 2018. Resonant sensors for low-cost, contact-free measurement of hydrolytic enzyme activity in closed systems. American Chemical Society Sensors 3(8): 1489-1498. (DOI: 10.1021/acssensors.8b00267 )
Peralta, A.L., Y. Sun, M.D. McDaniel, J.T. Lennon. 2018. Crop rotational diversity increases disease suppressive capacity of soil microbiomes. Ecosphere 9(5): 1-16. (DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.2235)
Maucieri, C., Y. Zhang, M.D. McDaniel, M. Borin, M.A. Adams. 2017. Short-term effects of biochar and salinity on soil greenhouse gas emissions from a semi-arid Australian soil after re-wetting. Geoderma 307:267-276. (DOI: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2017.07.028)
McDaniel, M.D., R.R. Simpson, B.P. Malone, A.B. McBratney, B. Minasny, M.A. Adams. 2017. Quantifying and predicting spatio-temporal variability of soil CH4 and N2O fluxes in a seemingly homogeneous Australian agricultural field. Agriculture, Ecosystems, & the Environment 240: 182-193. (DOI: 10.1016/j.agee.2017.02.017)
Austin, E.E., K. Wickings, M.D. McDaniel, G.P. Robertson, A.S. Grandy. 2017. Cover crop root contributions to soil carbon in a no‐till corn bioenergy cropping system. GCB Bioenergy 9:1252–1263. (DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12428)
McDaniel, M.D., and A.S. Grandy. 2016. Soil microbial biomass and function are altered by 12 years of crop rotation. SOIL 2:583-589.
(DOI: 10.5194/soil-2-583-2016)
McDaniel, M.D., A.S. Grandy, L.K. Tiemann, M.N. Weintraub. 2016. Eleven years of crop diversification alters the decomposition dynamics of litter mixtures incubated in soil. Ecosphere. (DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.1426)
Tiemann, L.K., A.S. Grandy, E.E. Atkinson, E. E. Marin-Spiotta, M.D. McDaniel. 2015. Crop rotational diversity enhances belowground communities and functions in an agroecosystem. Ecology Letters 8:761-771. (DOI: 10.1111/ele.12453)
McDaniel, M.D., A.S. Grandy, L.K. Tiemann, M.N. Weintraub. 2014. Crop rotation complexity regulates the decomposition of high and low quality residues. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 78: 243-254. (DOI: 10.1016/j.soilbio.2014.07.027)
McDaniel, M.D., J.P. Kaye, M.W. Kaye. 2014. Do “hot moments” become hotter under climate change? Soil nitrogen dynamics from a climate manipulation experiment in a post-harvest forest. Biogeochemistry 121(2): 339-354. (DOI: 10.1007/s10533-014-0001-3)
McDaniel, M.D., L.K. Tiemann, A.S. Grandy. 2014. Does agricultural crop diversity enhance soil microbial biomass and organic matter dynamics? A meta-analysis. Ecological Applications 24(3): 560-570. (DOI: 10.1890/13-0616.1)
McDaniel, M.D., J.P. Kaye, M.W. Kaye, M.A. Bruns. 2014. Climate change interactions affect soil CO2 efflux and microbial functioning in a post-harvest forest. Oecologia 174:1437-1448. (DOI: 10.1007/s00442-013-2845-y)
McDaniel, M.D., R.J. Wagner, C.R. Rollinson, B.A. Kimball, M.W. Kaye, J.P. Kaye. 2014. Microclimate and ecological threshold responses in a warming and wetting experiment following whole tree harvest. Theoretical and Applied Climatology 116: 287-299. (DOI: 10.1007/s00704-013-0942-9)
Grandy, A.S., D.S. Salam, K. Wickings, M.D. McDaniel, S.W. Culman, S.S. Snapp. 2013. Soil respiration and litter decomposition responses to fertilization rate in no-till corn systems. Agriculture, Ecosystems, & the Environment 179: 35-40. (DOI: 10.1016/j.agee.2013.04.020)
McDaniel, M.D., J.P. Kaye, M.W. Kaye. 2013. Increased temperature and precipitation had limited effects on soil extracellular enzyme activities in a post-harvest forest. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 56:90-98. (DOI: 10.1016/j.soilbio.2012.02.026)
Castellano, M.J., D.L. Lewis, D.M. Andrews, M.D. McDaniel. 2012. Coupling biogeochemistry and hydropedology to advance C and N cycling science. In H. Lin (ed.) Hydropedology: Integration of Soil Science and Hydrology. Elsevier.
Adviento-Borbe, M.A.A., J.P. Kaye, M.A. Bruns, M.D. McDaniel, M. McCoy, S. Harkcom. 2010. Soil greenhouse gas and ammonia emissions in a long-term maize-based cropping systems experiment. Soil Science Society of America Journal 74:1623-1634. (DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2009.0446)
McDaniel, M.D., M.B. David, T.V. Royer. 2009. Relationships between benthic sediments and water column phosphorus in Illlinois streams. Journal of Environmental Quality 38:607-617. (DOI: 10.2134/jeq2008.0094)