By Karen Hill

Figure 1. Wheat residue on field near Ritzville, Washington, which is part of the drier grain-fallow cropping system. (Photo credit: Darrell Kilgore)

The production of crop residue varies dramatically across the Inland Pacific Northwest, with estimated residue production for winter wheat ranging from roughly 0.9 ton/acre in the drier grain-fallow cropping system (Figure 1) to 8.5 ton/acre in the wetter annual crop system, which has enough precipitation to support cropping every year. Crop residues are often seen as simply something to “manage” so that they don’t impede future plantings or as a byproduct that can be sold to help improve the bottom line. However, while editing chapters for the recently released publication Advances in Dryland Farming in the Inland Pacific Northwest, I was introduced to another way to think about these residues in the chapter in that publication titled “Crop Residue Management.” Continue reading →

By: Sonia A. Hall

Both John Aeschliman (left) and Douglas Poole (right) practice no-till, though they farm with very different precipitation regimes. Photo: Alex Garland.

Extension has traditionally involved getting results from researchers to decision-makers in agriculture. Partly because I work on climate change and agriculture, and partly because of the approach my team and the researchers we work with take, extension is, for us, a two-way street. In this article I want to highlight the “other” side of that street: how innovations that producers test out in real life complement research and supports future preparedness.

In preparation for a new project I reviewed case studies and profiles others I work with published as part of the Regional Approaches to Climate Change – Pacific Northwest Agriculture (REACCH-PNA) project, which focused on dryland cereal production in a changing climate. These case studies tell the stories of producers who are implementing practices that break some mold, and that is leading to both interesting results and to benefits that will help them be prepared for future climates. Continue reading →

By Amy Pendegraft

Articles contained within this post:

1. The Where and When of Earthworms in Wheat
2. Research on the Ground: A Survey of Wheat Growers
3. Climate Change and Winter Wheat Systems: A Case Study from the Pacific Northwest
4. Pulling Weeds: Timing downy brome control in a changing climate

Continue reading →

By Amy Pendegraft

Articles contained within this post:

1. Water Issues: Sediment and Organic Carbon Transport
2. Soil Organic Carbon in a Long-term Tillage Experiment
3. Tillage, Cropping Intensity, and Climate Effects: A Soil Health Perspective

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By Amy Pendegraft

Articles contained within this post:

1. Rotational nitrogen-use efficiency evaluations
2. Remote Sensing: Estimating Nitrogen Uptake from Space
3. No Laughing Matter: Monitoring N₂O Emissions from Agriculture

Continue reading →