Finding Natural Enemies

ARS scientists collect, study and evaluate natural enemies with potential to biologically control invasive plants like waterhyacinth, which causes harm to freshwater ecosystems.

Invasive Plant Research Laboratory. 

Protecting Natural Resources

ARS scientists develop sustainable agricultural systems to protect natural resources and support rural communities in arid and semi-arid regions through multi-disciplinary research. We are also studying the impacts of livestock grazing, fire, invasions by juniper and other species, carbon and nitrogen cycling, as well as climate on rangeland and communities of meadow plants.

Research Project: The Nexus of Agricultural & Urban Trade-offs: Interdisciplinary Education & Research to Create Emerging Opportunities in Urban Agriculture.

* Image courtesy of USDA

Managing Forage and Grazing Lands

ARS scientists are exploring sustainable approaches to managing forage and grazing lands, managing manure to protect water quality, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from manure.

Project: Sustainable Intensification of Crop and Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems at Multiple Scales.

Managing Watersheds

ARS scientists are taking a multi-disciplinary approach to developing integrated approaches to managing crop, animal and watershed systems that will increase efficiency and reduce environmental risk.

Research Project: Agroecosystem Benefits from the Development and Application of New Management Technologies in Agricultural Watersheds. 

* Image courtesy of USDA

Increasing Photosynthesis

ARS scientists are working to increase the photosynthetic ability of food and bioenergy crops as well as understand how soil microorganisms are impacted by global environmental change conditions.

Explore the project Optimizing Photosynthesis for Global Change and Improved Yield for more information. 

Reducing Ammonia Pollution from Cows

ARS researchers are investigating red clover as a feed ingredient to help cows excrete less ammonia into the environment as a pollutant. Learn more

Keeping Cranberries on the Holiday Dinner Menu

For many families, a Thanksgiving meal just wouldn't be the same without the sweet/tart goodness of cranberry dishes. An Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-funded project at Oregon State University (OSU) is working to ensure that staple stays on the table.

Weeds – moss in particular – are a big challenge to cranberry production, but the number of herbicides labeled for use on cranberry is relatively low, said Cassie Bouska, associate professor of practice with OSU Extension Service.

"We lack effective controls for weeds that can, and ultimately will, take over a cranberry bed and drastically reduce production," Bouska said.

Research in the state of Washington found that increasing moss pressure reduced yield by at least half. Although cranberry prices are increasing, they have been so low in recent years that many growers have struggled to break even.

"That impacts the economic stability of farm families and rural communities," Bouska said. "An economically sustainable farm can move forward and find ways to improve its environmental sustainability."

A cranberry bed is a complete mat of cranberry vines – 100% ground cover. Established weeds are difficult to control and hand weeding is time-consuming and expensive. As a result, the research team is studying various weed control tools and techniques to tackle troublesome weeds and may be closing in a breakthrough.

"We've tested some products that are very effective at controlling moss, while causing minimal or no damage to the cranberries," she said. "Next year's field work will provide indications of whether there are additive effects of year-on-year applications. We're optimistic that we have some good candidates with which we can move ahead."

Little Grass on the Prairie

How ARS Researchers are Improving Soil Through Better Farming Practices

Historically, grasslands stored vast amounts of carbon. Today, much of what was previously grassland has been converted to agricultural use. Researchers at ARS are investigating a variety of conservation techniques that farmers can use to preserve these lands’ ability to sequester carbon, even when they are being used to grow crops. Among the techniques are different approaches to tillage, the process of turning over the soil for planting.

A no-till approach avoids soil disturbance almost completely, maintaining the complex web of microorganisms that supports plants as they grow and draw in carbon; strip-till techniques modify this approach to till only limited stretches of soil, leaving the rest intact. Researchers are also exploring methods like cover cropping and inter-cropping, which vary the mix of vegetation to achieve better soil health.

Watch this video to see Hal Collins, research soil scientist at the ARS Grassland Soil and Water Research Laboratory in Temple, TX, discuss the impacts of retaining carbon in soil.

Let’s Get Smart About Climate Change and Farming

ARS Research Ecologist Steven Mirsky and his team develop climate smart farming systems by employing artificial intelligence (AI) to help farms become more sustainable and environmentally friendly. They’re mounting sensing technologies to tractors that combine computer vision and AI, to map crop and cover crops species and biomass in order to estimate nitrogen release and lower greenhouse gasses on farms. To feed a growing world while reducing greenhouse gasses, agriculture must become more precise and sustainable. This requires providing state-of-the-art tools and climate-smart technologies to our farmers and growers to enable real-time decision making and long-term planning.

To learn more, visit the Sustainable Agricultural Systems Laboratory website and watch short videos of some of ARS’s other cool technologies.

Water

Water is a precious commodity in many parts of the United States, especially drought-ridden areas in the western and plains areas. These conditions are expected to worsen as climate conditions become more extreme. We need clean water to grow our food, today and in the future. As water becomes more scarce in many parts of the country, ARS scientists in Arizona are exploring ways to use it more efficiently, by recycling wastewater to irrigate crops. They are also screening both water and crops for dangerous concentrations of pharmaceuticals, hormones, and other contaminants to keep our food supply safe.

Watch the video "Reusing Water For Field Irrigation" to learn more.