Main Cropping System Experiment
Most long-term hypotheses associated with the KBS LTER site are being tested within the context of the main cropping systems study. This study was established on a 48 ha area on which a series of 7 different cropping systems were established in spring 1988, each replicated in one of 6 ha blocks. An eighth never-tilled successional treatment, is located 200 m off-site, replicated as four 0.06 ha plots.
Cropping systems include the following treatments:
- standard chemical input corn/soybean/wheat rotation conventionally tilled (corn/soybean prior to 1992)
- standard chemical input corn/soybean/wheat rotation no-tilled (corn/soybean prior to 1992)
- low chemical input corn/soybean/wheat rotation conventionally tilled (ridge till prior to 1994)
- zero chemical input corn/soybean wheat rotation conventionally tilled (ridge till prior to 1994)
- Populus clones on short-rotation (6-7 year) harvest cycle
- continuous alfalfa, replanted every 6-7 years
- early successional community on historically tilled soil
- successional community on never-tilled soil.
For specific crops in a given year see the Annual Crops Summary Table.
In 1993 a series of forest sites were added to the main cropping system study to provide long-term reference points and to allow hypotheses related to substrate diversity to be tested. These include:
- DF – three deciduous forest stands, two old-growth and one 40-60 years post-cutting
- CF – three conifer plantations, 40-60 years old
- SF – three old-field (mid-successional) sites 40+ years post-abandonment.
All share a soil series with the main cropping system treatments, and are within 5 km of all other sites.
For each system (and for a number of microplot treatments nested within the main treatment plots) the following baseline variates are being measured (described in greater detail in other data set descriptors):
- plant characteristics, including species distributions and abundances, net aboveground productivity by functional group (crop vs. non dominant biomass, selected non dominant biomass), economic yields, tissue C and N contents, seed bank composition;
- soil chemical and physical characteristics, including soil moisture, pH, inorganic N and P pools, total C, N, and P pools, bulk density;
- soil biological characteristics, including microbial biomass C and N, N mineralization rates (buried bags), microbial populations, invertebrate populations; and
- insect and pathogen dynamics, including distributions and abundances of major insect pests and predators and of Fusarium pathogens.
- Status: active
- Date Initiated: 1988-01-01
- Date Completed:
Tables
- KBS004-001 Agronomic Field Log
This is a log of agronomic activity on the LTER site.
- KBS004-002 Main Site Planting Details by Year and Treatment
Crops are rotated each year for the main agronomic treatments of the LTER main sit...
- KBS004-003 Project Manager's Log
This is a log of research activity on the LTER site.
- KBS004-004 Soil Sampling Log
This is a log of the soil sampling done as part of the baseline data collection. <...
- KBS004-005 Treatment Descriptions
Main site treatments for the KBS LTER experiment are briefly described.
- KBS004-006 Agronomic Field Log by Study
This is a log of agronomic activity on the LTER site, with entries grouped accordi...
- KBS004-007 Field Activity Classification
A compliation of all of the field activites that occurred on the main site
W...
- KBS004-008 Full Agronomic Log
- The aglog as one big table
- View_SiteUseRequests Approved Site Use Requests (SURFs)
Site Use Request Forms are filled out by investigators wishing to conduct sampling...
Protocols
- KBS004-prot03 1 Literature Cited
- KBS004-prot01 1 Soil Sampling
- KBS004-prot04 1 Agronomic Protocol
- KBS004-prot02 1 Roller Mill
Personel
- Original investigators
- Lead investigators