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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Tifton, Georgia » Southeast Watershed Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #417032
Research Project: Shifting the Balance of Water Resources and Interacting Agroecosystem Services Toward Sustainable Outcomes in Watersheds of the Southern Coastal Plain

Location: Southeast Watershed Research

Title: The LTAR Croplands Common Experiment at the Gulf Atlantic Coastal Plain

Author
item Pisani, Oliva
item Coffin, Alisa

Submitted to: ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meeting Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/29/2024
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The Gulf Atlantic Coastal Plain (GACP) Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) Network site includes the Little River Experimental Watershed, a research watershed administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Tifton, Georgia, USA. The GACP region is characterized by hot, humid summers, low gradient topography with streams surrounded by wetland forests, and croplands. Beneath its sandy soils, a confining layer stifles recharge to the deeper aquifer system, so a substantial proportion of streamflow is driven by shallow subsurface baseflow. Agricultural practices in the area consist of forage and livestock production, forestry, and cropping systems that include a corn-cotton-peanut rotational system. Certain factors impose challenges to the viability of GACP agricultural systems, like changing economics and demographics, as well as disease and pathogenic infestation. The GACP communicates with stakeholders from various backgrounds, who provide their perspectives as ARS scientists execute their research plans. The GACP LTAR Common Experiment is carried out via plot- and field-scale studies that investigate the environmental and economic benefits of winter covers and crops under reduced tillage conditions. Data collection efforts quantify vegetation, hydrology, soils, and hydroclimatic data measured under controlled conditions in the field. Laboratories in the GACP process field data to produce extensive high-quality datasets for modeling and statistical analysis. Research teams quantify complex relationships between climate, land management, ecosystem services, and socioeconomic benefits. Ultimately, the GACP LTAR site works to provide sound science toward the facilitation of agricultural system health and wellbeing at local, regional, and national scales.