The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR), a Washington, D.C.-based public-private partnership, has announced a $7.6 million grant to Kansas State University (K-State) in support of a study exploring how crop, soil, and water management affect the soil microbial communities that drive agroecosystem functions.

In addition, Bayer Crop Science has awarded $4.6 million in matching funds for the study across the U.S. Corn Belt and Great Plains, and additional investments from K-State, LandScan, LI-COR Environmental, the University of Kansas, and Iowa State, Mississippi State, and Ohio State universities boost the total project investment to $16.4 million. Over an initial five-year period, the project aims to implement field research across a wide range of environments while measuring indicators of cropping systems’ performance and sustainability. To that end, partners will investigate how combinations of cover crops, nitrogen, crop rotation and tillage, and water management under variable soil water conditions influence soil microbial communities that drive nutrient availability and loss.

“With climate change, there is an urgent need to unravel the interactions between genetics, environmental conditions, and agriculture management if we want to produce more while preserving the environment,” said FFAR Sustainable Water Management scientific program director Kathleen Boomer. “This integrated field research and modeling effort will provide insights critical to improving field operations and sustaining vibrant agroecosystems across diverse landscapes.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/KarenHBlack)