Research Purpose
Soil conservation practices that keep water (and therefore soil and nutrients) from running off a field are commonplace for stewardship-minded producers. Preliminary research data from an Iowa project shows that they may soon have another tool to manage their land.
Activities
The project involves planting 10 percent or 20 percent of the land area to perennial prairie strips and comparing them with areas without the prairie strips. The strips are placed at critical points in the landscape, either at the bottom or midway up the slope.
Year 2008 marked the first full year of data collection with researchers measuring runoff volume, quality and depth of groundwater, amount of sediment, nitrogen, and phosphorus leaving the watershed, and animal, plant and insect biodiversity.
What Have We Learned?
In the spring of 2008, there were 10 precipitation events that included measurable soil loss. The average loss from areas without the prairie strips was 8.5 tons per acre. The areas with prairie plantings averaged only a .5 ton-per-acre loss.
Measurements on the carbon storage taking place in the prairie strips will begin in 2010.
Additional Information
Matt Helmers, Iowa State University
The project is funded by the Leopold Center, Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, National Science Foundation, and Iowa Department of Land Stewardship. A video about the project is located at the Leopold Center website.
