Farmer-Led Research

In a Nutshell: Hannah Breckbill, Roxane Mitten, Mark Quee, and Kyle Maxwell & Kate Solko trialed newly developed snap pea variety SL3123 against the old favorite Sugar Ann.  Key Findings Sugar Ann performed best for Quee and Maxwell …

In a Nutshell: Lee Matteson tested five varieties of romaine lettuce in a hydroponic setup.  Matteson carried out the trial over three successions from February through June.  Matteson was especially curious to learn of varietal tolerance to climate …

This research was funded by USDA-NIFA, Walton Family Foundation, Albert Lea Seed House, Welter Seed and Honey Co., SDSU Seed Foundation, UW Foundation Seeds and Zabel Seeds.  In a Nutshell: 18 oat varieties were screened at two Iowa …

This research was funded by: USDA-NIFA, Albert Lea Seed House, Green Cover Seed, North Dakota State University, KWS and FP Genetics. In a Nutshell: 11 cereal rye varieties were trialed at three Iowa State University research farms.  Key …

This research was funded by IDALS and The Builders Initiative. In a Nutshell: Sprouting broccoli is an increasingly popular brassica that grows quickly and has sweet and tender stems. The plant produces small, loose and long-stemmed florets that …

This research is supported by The Builders Initiative. In a Nutshell Goat farmers often wonder when they should wean kids. Earlier weaning times may allow farmers to send animals to market sooner or produce more profit from milking …

This research was funded by USDA-NRCS. In a Nutshell: Managing fall cover crop planting around soybean and corn harvest schedules is a major barrier to successful cover crop establishment for many Iowa farmers. Some farmers instead interseed cover …

In a Nutshell: Fifteen farmers identified one field in their farm with a history of cover cropping and recorded throughout the growing season which days were suitable for fieldwork. These farmers believe they are getting into their fields …

This research was funded by USDA-NRCS and FFAR. In a Nutshell: Nineteen farmers performed 22 replicated strip trials testing their typical nitrogen (N) rate against that rate reduced by an amount of their choosing.  Four of the 19 …

This research was funded by Ceres.   In a Nutshell: Honeyberries evolved in boreal forests; the cooperators hypothesized that they might benefit from being shaded.  Honeyberries require pollination from a different variety. For commercial production varieties are developed in …

This research report was funded by IDALS and Ceres Trust. In a Nutshell: Heat decreases radish marketable harvest yield and quality, causing plants to bolt, roots to get woody, and flavor to get sharp and bitter.  Carmen & …

This research was funded by Cargill. In a Nutshell: Biostimulants are products that intend to introduce beneficial microbes to crops, to harness the microbes’ biological processes to boost plant performance.  The aims of this project were to determine …