Location: New England Plant, Soil and Water Research Laboratory
Project Number: 1915-62660-002-00
Project Type: Appropriated
Start Date: Sep 09, 2008
End Date: Sep 08, 2013
Objective:
1. Quantify land availability and soil suitability for selected food production systems in the Northeast. 2. Develop management practices that maintain or improve productivity and market quality, reduce soilborne and foliar diseases, reduce income variability and economic risk, and improve profitability and competitiveness.
Approach:
Research will be conducted to 1) identify the constraints to sustainability of selected food production systems and 2) develop practices and management strategies to overcome or reduce those constraints. Limitations to sustainability will be identified through interdisciplinary evaluation of selected food production systems designed and managed as a) Status Quo, b) Soil Conserving, c) Soil Improving, and d) Pest Suppressive Systems under both irrigated and rainfed management. Each system will be evaluated for its impacts on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties; plant growth; plant diseases; human pathogens; profitability and risk; nutrient availability; and their interactions. Simultaneously, research will be conducted to overcome or reduce these limitations through enhanced plant disease control, manure-borne zoonotic pathogen control, management options to increase productivity and improve economic viability, and by incorporating bioenergy crops into the cropping systems. The sustainability of each system and alternative management practice will be evaluated and transferred to growers in a decision support system through multiple avenues, including distribution on compact disks, hands-on demonstration at grower meetings, and on-farm trials. The research and technology transfer endeavors proposed in this project are expected to enhance food system sustainability, thereby improving agricultural viability and rural economic vitality in the Northeast.