KBS LTER

Kellogg Biological Station | Long-Term Ecological Research

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7th Annual Underground Innovations set to take place February 4-5, 2025

12.18.24

Frankenmuth, Michigan - Michigan Agriculture Advancement's 7th Annual Underground Innovations meeting will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, February 4-5, 2025 at the Bavarian Inn Lodge. Hosted by MiAA and the KBS LTER. Network with producers from across Michigan and beyond to help take ideas home to implement on your own operations. Speakers will share how they've come to adopt new practices on their farms, how they've gotten to this point, and where they are looking to go in the future. This year's speakers will focus on conservation topics such as cover crops, prairie plantings,

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Prairie strip and soil health farm field day to be held in Cassopolis on August 26th

7.13.22

CASSOPOLIS, Michigan— A farm field day centered on prairie strips and soil health will be held on Friday, August 26th (September 2nd rain date) from 1:00- 3:00 p.m. at the Edward Lowe Foundation. The field day will feature speakers including farmers, land managers, and soil scientists who will describe the implementation, management, and soil health benefits associated with on-farm prairie strips. The event is free and open to the whole family and will include a soil pit demonstration, a wagon tour of prairie strips and refreshments.  This field day is supported by Michigan State

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Kellogg Biological Station joins multi-state effort to increase the adoption of prairie strips across the Midwest

8.17.21

Before there were the gently rolling hills of farmland and forest we see today, southwest Michigan’s landscape included large areas of prairie habitat. Dominated by wildflowers, grasses, and sedges, these habitats were maintained by periodic fires and included oak barrens, dry sand prairies, and wetland prairies. Today, only a few remnants of Michigan’s historical prairies remain on the landscape.  Prairie strips, a conservation practice in row crops that protects soil and water while providing habitat for wildlife, are one way to restore these habitats to the

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Herbicide resistant weeds threaten conservation agriculture

6.16.21

Glyphosate-resistant horseweed growing in a Michigan soybean field.

East Lansing, MI – Soybean farmers are turning away from conservation agriculture practices that protect soil and environmental health to manage herbicide resistant weeds, say researchers in Michigan State University’s (MSU) Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics (AFRE). In a new study published in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Braeden Van Deynze (now a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Washington), Scott Swinton (MSU), and David Hennessy (MSU), examined the herbicide and tillage records of thousands of soybean farmers across the United

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Supporting Michigan farmers using soil health assessment tools: Reflections from an LTER fellow

8.26.20

Graduate researcher, Xinyi Tu, is a graduate student advised by Dr. Sieglinde Snapp in the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences Department at Michigan State University (MSU). The term “soil health” is similar to that of the health of an organism – it originates from the underlying connection of soil to animal and human health, and to the connection between soil and its living biota. However, there is no concensus amongst scholars as to what soil health means, and various definitions can be found in the literature. This confusion translates to farmers through the creation

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Fertilizing to help the planet

7.18.14

Nitrogen fertilizer application to corn on the KBS LTER Resource Gradient Experiment; Photo Credit: J.E.Doll, Michigan State University

This news piece by KBS LTER volunteer and retired journalist Bill Krasean. Researchers at Michigan State University's Kellogg Biological Station (KBS) Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) program have helped develop a way for farmers to reduce crop-related emissions of a greenhouse gas while potentially lowering fertilizer costs, maintaining crop yields, and getting paid to do so. KBS scientists have developed a program to reduce farm-related emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas that also destroys ozone in the stratosphere. Using data collected from Michigan farms,

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KBS LTER researchers find way for farmers to participate in carbon markets

7.18.12

Aerial view the KBS LTER Main Cropping System Experiment in late August; Photo Credit: K.Stepnitz, Michigan State University

Via MSU News, news.msu.edu EAST LANSING, Mich. — Researchers at Michigan State University have helped develop a way for farmers to participate in carbon markets and get paid to reduce their use of nitrogen fertilizer, which represents one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural production. The methodology, which was developed for the American Carbon Registry with support from the Electric Power Research Institute, will allow farmers to participate in carbon markets by creating greenhouse gas offsets by reducing the amount of nitrogen used to fertilize crops.

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Recent News and Events

  • New research leverages long-term treatments in novel ways to study plant biotic interactions
  • Announcing the 2025 KBS LTER Artists-in-Residence!
  • Graduate research from the KBS LTER reveals the value of soil microbe diversity for sustainable agriculture
  • Science Communication and Data Literacy: Reflections on My Fellowship with Data Nuggets 
  • Now & Then: An evening with KBS LTER Artist-in-Residence, Erica Bradshaw

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