Researchers at the KBS LTER have leveraged the MiSTRIPS partnership network to launch new grant-funded projects and field studies that may not have been possible without the program.
The MiSTRIPS Program at the KBS LTER has become a springboard for new research, helping scientists secure grants and expand studies in sustainable agriculture.
Its impact now reaches well beyond installing native prairie species in cropland. In addition to supporting farmers and adding 50 new acres of prairie across Michigan, MiSTRIPS sites also provide valuable field locations for researchers to investigate conservation practices in working landscapes.
By conducting research directly on MiSTRIPS farms, scientists engage more closely with the communities their work serves.
These connections strengthen trust, increase understanding of the science behind sustainable agriculture, and foster meaningful partnerships between farmers and researchers. What began as a program to plant prairie strips has grown into a collaborative platform that supports multiple projects, funding opportunities, and a large network of scientists and MiSTRIPS participants.
Several of the research grants and field studies involving MiSTRIPS participants include:
- USDA SARE grant awarded to study soil health at the margins of agricultural fields. LTER researcher Christine Sprunger, LTER Education & Outreach Specialist Liz Schultheis, and Western Michigan University Professor Kathryn Docherty received funding to assess how edge-of-fields practices impact soil biological health. Lab members have spent the past two summers sampling soil from multiple farms in the MiSTRIPS program to understand the context in which various edge-of-field practices alter soil biological, chemical, and physical properties. This research has been passed back to farmers: MSU graduate student Rachel Drobnack has created soil health reports to share information back with participating MiSTRIPS farmers.
- USDA NIFA grant awarded to determine how replacing under-yielding croplands with native plants can improve biodiversity and ecosystem services. LTER researchers Nick Haddad, Sarah Evans, and Christine Sprunger received funding to understand the impacts of replacing underperforming croplands with native perennials. The experimental design will be able to address farmer-led questions, like whether prairie strips can increase farm profit, as well as fundamental ecological research questions, like whether patch shape and location will impact biodiversity and soil health. The research is in collaboration with the Michigan DNR and occurs on farms that are part of the MiSTRIPS program.
- Bayer Foundation grant awarded to examine prairie strip seed dispersal and farmer resistance to prairie strip implementation. LTER researchers Olivia Smith and Lauren Sullivan, along with Liz Schultheis, received funding to study whether seeds from prairie strips disperse into adjoining farmland, and the role of birds as seed dispersers. They will also work to quantify farmers’ attitudes towards weed pressures from prairie strips and look at whether those attitudes represent barriers to implementation. Farms participating in the study are from MiSTRIPS.
- Efforts to use community-engaged scholarship to address conservation barriers in rural Michigan croplands. MSU graduate student Cindy Fiser led a community engaged research project to understand why adoption of prairie strips among rural farmers in the Midwest remains low, despite demonstrated benefits. Cindy has engaged with farmers directly and hopes to expand the current network of farmers in the MiSTRIPS program.