This ongoing study evaluates how conservation practices, including no-till, cereal rye cover crops, and improved irrigation management, affect crop productivity, soil water availability, crop water use, nitrogen uptake, and nitrate leaching in corn–soybean systems on sandy irrigated soils. The research is being conducted at two Minnesota sites, Westport and Becker, with detailed field measurements focused on how these practices perform under different water regimes, including optimum irrigation, overwatering, water-stressed conditions, and rainfed management.
At both sites, the study continues a multi-year field experiment comparing two tillage systems, two cover crop treatments, and four irrigation regimes in both corn and soybean. Soil moisture is monitored throughout the season, nitrate leaching is measured below the root zone, and crop biomass, nitrogen uptake, yield, evapotranspiration, and water-use efficiency are evaluated. This project will help determine whether conservation practices can improve water conservation, maintain crop productivity, and reduce nitrogen loss risk under Minnesota’s irrigated sandy soil conditions.
Study Period: Ongoing
Research Team: Tyler Meyer, Vasudha Sharma, Anna Cates, Jodi DeJong-Hughes, Fabian Fernandez, and Debalin Sarangi
Funding: Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council and Agricultural Fertilizer Research and Education Council (AFREC)
Research plot pictures
