Fertility

Researchers have good news for growers. Farmers raising a nitrogen-hungry crop like sweet corn may save up to half of their nitrogen fertilizer cost. The key: using a faba bean cover crop.

Soybean is rich in protein, which is great for the humans and animals eating it. But this high protein content comes at a cost.

A ditch containing woodchips may look unassuming—but with a name like bioreactor it’s guaranteed to be up to more than you think.  

A tiny snail could be a big help to researchers measuring water quality along the U.S. and Canadian Atlantic coast.

A circle of life–and nitrogen–is playing out in farms across the United States. And researchers are trying to get the timing right.

What’s a responsible farmer to do? Manure injection is an important soil management practice that reduces the chance of manure runoff. But recent studies by Carol Adair and colleagues at the University of Vermont show manure injection can increase the release of harmful greenhouse gases. 

Soils keep plants healthy by providing plants with water, helpful minerals, and microbes, among other benefits. But what if the soil also contains toxic elements?

Nitrogen can present a dilemma for farmers and land managers.

On one hand, it is an essential nutrient for crops.

Studying the effects of great cormorant droppings on water reservoirs is a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it.

Antibiotics and manure. You probably don’t think of them at the same time. But across North America, manure and antibiotics often share the same pile.