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Title: Long Term Agroecosystem Research in the southern plains

Author
item Steiner, Jean
item Starks, Patrick
item Garbrecht, Jurgen
item Moriasi, Daniel
item Bartholomew, Paul
item Neel, James
item Turner, Kenneth
item Northup, Brian

Submitted to: Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/26/2015
Publication Date: 3/3/2015
Citation: Steiner, J.L., Starks, P.J., Garbrecht, J.D., Moriasi, D.N., Bartholomew, P.W., Neel, J.P., Turner, K.E., Northup, B.K. 2015. Long Term Agroecosystem Research in the southern plains. In: Proceedings of the Fifth Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds. Headwaters to Estuaries: Advances in Watershed Science Management, March 2-5, 2015, North Charleston, South Carolina. p. 252-254.

Interpretive Summary: Abstract only.

Technical Abstract: The Southern Plains (SP) site of the Long Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) network is headquartered at USDA-ARS’s Grazinglands Research Laboratory (GRL) in El Reno, Oklahoma. The GRL was established in 1948. A long-term watershed and climate research program was established in the Little Washita River Experimental Watershed (LWREW) in 1961 and in the Fort Cobb Reservoir Experimental Watershed (FCREW) in 2004. Research is conducted at: 1) the 27 km2 GRL which is comprised of tall grass prairie, pastures, and annual crops and forages that support beef cattle herds, 2) the 610 km2 LWREW watershed which was established to study hydrologic impacts of USDA-funded flood retarding structures, and 3) the 786 km2 FCREW watershed that was established to quantify interactive effects of climate, land use, and agricultural conservation on environmental outcomes. The SP LTAR addresses a spectrum of cropland, pastureland, and grazed prairie characteristic of SP landscapes. Extreme climate variability in space and time make it essential to identify sustainable and resilient forage-based production systems that are adaptable across enterprise types. Developing knowledge and tools to support diverse agricultural systems in the face of complex interactive ecological, climate, policy, and economics drivers requires transdisciplinary science conducted over decades to provide understanding that is scalable in time and space. The broad research emphasis spans productivity and resilience of forage-grazing systems, multiple marketing options, agro-ecosystem impacts of climate variability and change at multiple scales, and environmental impacts of conservation practices. The research is conducted with a multitude of collaborators within the region and within the LTAR network. Improved understanding within this regional research program will be linked with other long-term research efforts to advance our understanding of processes that transcend across regions.