Mizzou Sanborn Field

Every year one of the oldest Scientific Experiments in the World continues at Sanborn Field. Many think that Sanborn Field is just a museum but in reality the data collected each year is expanding our knowledge of the soil/plant/environment interaction.

A winter wonderland on April 20th???

Research from Sanborn Field leads to other studies in order to further examine what was found. For example, research at Sanborn shows that after 132 years that if wheat and/or manure is included in the crop rotation then soil properties are greatly improved. The question is whether these same differences can be in seen in a few years and whether cover crops could influence these results. As a result a study was initiated at the MU Bradford Research Center this fall/spring examining the interaction of crop rotation x manure x cover crop on soil properties and crop yield. The attached photos are from applying the poultry manure this spring.

Can you tell the difference in the soil of these plots? Both of these plots have been continuous wheat since 1888 with the one on the right never having any fertilizer or manure while the one on the left has has manure applied each year. We are very excited that the wheat survived the cold weather that we had during mid February where lows were consistently at or below 0 degrees F for two weeks. The blanket of snow kept the soil temperatures near 32 during that time,