Location: Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory
Title: National cooperative soil survey activities at the Northern Great Plains Field Station, 1949-1956Author
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Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 6/1/2023 Publication Date: 7/10/2023 Citation: Liebig, M.A. 2023. National cooperative soil survey activities at the Northern Great Plains Field Station, 1949-1956. Meeting Abstract. 1. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Previous soil survey activities in North Dakota have provided a wealth of information to understand, manage, and sustain the state’s abundant soil resources. While an active field component has been the backbone soil survey activities for over 75 years, a lesser-known laboratory component supplied critical information at a time when agriculture was rapidly evolving throughout the state. In 1949, the Missouri Basin Soil Survey Laboratory was established at the Northern Great Plains Field Station, Mandan, North Dakota. Initial activities of the laboratory focused on generating data for the proper classification of soils under irrigated agriculture. Subsequent laboratory activities were expanded to include studies on soil chemical changes under dryland cropping throughout the Great Plains. The laboratory was moved to Lincoln, Nebraska in July 1956. This presentation will document the history of the laboratory, while reflecting on soil research activities that preceded and followed its seven-year tenure. |
