EDITOR’S NOTE: This press release has been updated from a version published on May 20, 2021 to include a recording of the webinar.
AMES, Iowa — The impact of prairie strips on soil health and crop yield is the topic of the Iowa Learning Farms webinar recorded on Wednesday, May 26.
Prairie strips are contour strips of native prairie species that are used like terraces. Prairie strips take up only 10% of a farm field but have disproportional benefits. Marshall McDaniel, assistant professor in soil-plant interactions at Iowa State University, explores what happens to soil under and around prairie strips and how this might affect crop yield.
“Prairie strips are being rapidly adopted by farmers in Iowa and the surrounding states. We are interested in finding out how the prairie strips are impacting the surrounding crops and soils,” said McDaniel, whose research focuses on understanding soil-plant interactions in order to inform agricultural sustainability.
Iowa Learning Farms – May 26, 2021 from ISU CALS ONLINE on Vimeo.
Archived webinars are available at https://www.iowalearningfarms.org/page/webinars.
About Iowa Learning Farms
Established in 2004, Iowa Learning Farms is building a Culture of Conservation by encouraging adoption of conservation practices. Farmers, researchers and ILF team members are working together to identify and implement the best management practices that improve water quality and soil health while remaining profitable. Partners of Iowa Learning Farms include the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Iowa Department of Natural Resources (USEPA section 319) and GROWMARK, Inc.
Contact:
Hilary Pierce Jacqueline Comito
Extension Outreach Specialist ILF Program Director
hepierce@iastate.edu jcomito@iastate.edu
515-294-8912 515-296-0081
— Iowa Learning Farms
For more news from Iowa, click here.
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