Progress 08/01/14 to 07/31/19
Outputs
Target Audience:
Nothing Reported
Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?All conference presentations were well accepted At least 55 citations for all three publications, reported by ResGate. These publications are most convincing contributors for our USDA proposals. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
All the goals were achieved, Two successive proposals were submitted:: USDA-NIFA-SBIR for a volatile organic compounds sensor. USDA-NRCS-CIG on farm demonstrations
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Smucker, Alvin J.M., Brian C. Levene and Mathieu Ngouajio. 2018. Increasing Vegetable Production on Transformed Sand to Retain Twice the Soil Water Holding Capacity in Plant Root Zone. J. Horticulture 5(4): 246. DOI: 10.4172/2376-0354.1000246.
Proteek Chandan Roy, Andrey Guber, Mohammad Abouali, A. Pouyan Nejadhashemi, Kalyanmoy Deb and Alvin J. M. Smucker. 2019. Simulation Optimization of Water Usage and Crop Yield Using Precision Irrigation. Evolutionary Multiple Optimization Models, Springer (LNCS).
Lib�re Nkurunziza, Ngonidzashe Chirinda, Marcos Lana, Rolf Sommer, Stanley Karanja, Idupulapati Rao, Miguel Romero Sanchez, Marcela Quintero, Shem Kuyah, Francis Lewu, Abraham Joel, George Nyamadzawo, and Alvin Smucker. 2019. The Potential Benefits and Trade-Offs of Using Subsurface Water Retention Technology on Coarse Textured Soils: Impacts of Water and Nutrient Saving on Maize Production and Soil Carbon Sequestration. Frontiers Front. Sustain. Food Syst., 06 September 2019 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2019.00071
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Progress 10/01/17 to 09/30/18
Outputs
Target Audience:Farming community of sandy soils. Changes/Problems:Continuing the development of digital controls of polymer placement without failure. Also need to incorporate 3D RTK-GPS using commercial agricultural systems that assemble specific production results on and off installations of larger areas of sand under control of farmer management systems. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We are developing specific training modules for certifying and licensing SWRT membrane installers. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Multiple farm owners of sand have agreed to support the installation of 3 to 5 acres paid by the farmer. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Installed at least 30 acres of SWRT membranes on at least 8 different farms.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Using EMO hybrid model of DSSAT and HYDRUS we can identify how RWUE contributes to the successful increased yields with less water and smaller root lengths. Discovered SWRT membranes, maintained smaller, healthier shorter root length, plant root systems that increased water uptake efficiency 3 to 6-fold greater than controls receiving same rainfall and irrigation schedules.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2019
Citation:
Water Use Efficiency and Water Saving of Cucumber by Subsurface Water Retention Technology and Irrigation of a Loam Soil. European Journal of Soil Science
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Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17
Outputs
Target Audience:Agricultural industries and farming communities on sand soils Changes/Problems:Digital controls and recordings of SWRT membrane presention and soil filling by all four chisels of the improved SWRT membrane installation chisel which installs four fail-safe membranes at exact spatial horizontal and with depth positions for best approach for maximizing and maintaining optimal soil water, nutrients and oxygen in plant root zones growing on sand soils. SWRT improvement of crop production efficiency offers an exciting opportunity to transform highly permeable soils into maximum efficiency of water, labor, energy. Current production levels of 338 bushels of maize grain and fodder production levels of 18.9 tons per acre annually by prescription irrigation of corn growing on SWRT improved sands, currently containing less than 1% soil organic matter has tremendous potential across the entire spectrum of US agriculture. Calculations of at least 9 tons of C, based upon Iowa values of 50% C in each ton of maize fodder, at least 9 tons of carbon per acre (21.2 MT/h) incorporated annually into at least 300 million acres of sand soils, can sequester 2.7 billion tons of C annually. This highly successful agricultural production enhacement and environmental protection SWRT transformed agricultural technology offers extraordinary opportunities for US agricultural exports, farm gate profits, climate change and groundwater protection. This patented, fully tested, and NRCS/CIG field-proven agricultural technology requires Farm Bill subsidies for a few decades, similar to the historic government subsidies for farmer installation of drainage tile systems since the 1960. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This was the year to test how many new irrigation and fertigation management practices are needed to maximize SWRTmembrane enhancements of parental isolines of the hybrid corn variety, which produced a record high 338 bu/a of grain. Greater shoot to root ratios (S:R), lower root death and turnover, plant tasselling and ear silking synchrony along with other phenological sequencings have been compared to determine best soil water and nutrient retention required to maximize ear filling by larger corn plants. Similar soil monitoring of tomatoes, water melon and spicy peppers growing on SWRT membranes, combined with multiple nutrient retention, absorption and leaching are providing valuable baseline information for training farmers and their agronomic advisors how to precisely manage soil and nutrient levels which produce highest crop yields. These data both provide background information for best production practices on SWRT improved sands and this information is foundational to the next generation of best management practices for highest levels of conservation when addressing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus. This research is designed to identify the most efficient irrigation/fertigation with less energy. Conventional irrigation and soil nutrients were used on the vegetable crops in SW USA to identify specific improvements necessary to maximize production with less water, nutrients and energy. These conventional farmer management practices emphasized the need to train irrigation applicators with the best prescription practices identified by past SWRT research. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?SWRT membrane field research provided training for colleagues at MSU, visiting professionals, manufacturing and small business professionals, bankers, crop insurance personnel, undergraduate students and graduate students. Prescription level irrigation scheduling and nutrient balances are needed for highest production of crops growing on SWRT membranes. Best IWUE coupled with low energy and nutrient requirements are being taught to industry service providers. A new SWRT Solutions website has been contracted to highlight all components of SWRT conversions of highly permeable soils into sustainable agricultural production. Three posters and four oral reports have been presented at national and international conferences and symposia. Multiple manuscripts are at multiple stages of publication. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?SWRT Solutions, LLC has a new website: http://swrtsolutions.weebly.com to attract more interested farmers and agricultural irrigation managers with the new prescription irrigation scheduling that improves IWUE while protecting groundwater contamination by deep leaching. Our goal is to complete and submit multiple manuscripts to scientific journals, as book chapters, and extension bulletins on an improved website for SWRT Solutions improvement of sand soils across multiple agroecosystems.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Combinations of HYDRUS with DSSAT have been incorporated into the EMO. This new EMO ouput paralleled actual data production of maize on the SWRT field trials which were irrigated to soil volumetric water contents (VWC) in the 10 to 30 cm depths. Constant human involvement with Lindsey's FieldNet provided prescription levels between 15% and 17% VWC at 15 and 30cm in plant root zones. This modeling is the beginning of identifying greater opportunities for expanding agricultural production on sands by the SWRT enhancements for greater irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) while reducing groundwater pollution. Only the surface water scheduling parameter was used as a variable and one of four different membrane shapes and their placement plans are kept fixed in a single run. The combined EMO models with the HYDRUS-2D identified most efficient irrigation energy required for best IWUE for aspect ratios of SWRT membrane ranging from 2:1, 3:1 and 5:1 to verify the 2:1 aspect ratio maintained nearly three times more water for longer periods of time.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
Smucker, A.J.M., Z. Yang, A. K. Guber, X.C. He, F.H. Lai, S. Berhanu. 2016. A New Revolutionary Technology to Feed Billions by Establishing Sustainable Agriculture on Small and Large Landscapes Including Urban Regions Globally. International Journal of Development Research. Vol. 06, Issue 10, pp. 9596-9602, October 2016. ISSN: 2230-9926.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Smucker, A.J.M., B.C. Levene, M. Ngouajio, and R.G. Goldy. 2017. A New Soil Water Retention Technology Improves Water Holding Capacity in the Plant Root Zone, Yield and Water Use Efficiency of Pepper and Cucumber under Plastic Mulch. Hort. Tech. Vol. 27 (accepted with revisions).
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Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16
Outputs
Target Audience:
Nothing Reported
Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?SWRT membrane field research provides training for colleagues at MSU, visiting professionals, manufacturing and small business professionals, bankers, crop insurance personnel, undergraduate students and graduate students. Prescription level irrigation scheduling and nutrient balances are needed for highest production of crops growing on SWRT membranes. Best IWUE coupled with low energy and nutrient requirements are being taught to industry service providers. A new SWRT Solutions website has been contracted to highlight all components of SWRT conversions of highly permeable soils into sustainable agricultural production. Three posters and four oral reports have been presented at national and international conferences and symposia. Multiple manuscripts are at multiple stages of publication. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Crop production increases by irrigated and non-irrigated SWRT membrane improvements have been distributed to farmers and university cooperators in nine states. Information has been presented to RWF BRON who published a commercial 14 page descriptive pamphlet distributed at 5 national and international equipment conferences. Annual white papers and single page brief announcements have been personally delivered to MI Senators/ Legislators and their staff, John Deere, Syngenta, Dow Chemical, Monsanto-Pioneer and DuPont-DeKalb seed corn companies, GreenStone farm loan and crop insurance companies, as well as Netafim and Lindsay irrigation companies. A new business SWRT Solutions, LLC has been established to train, certify and license commercial installers of SWRT membranes. SWRT Solution instruction also includes short courses for best prescription irrigation and fertigation of crops growing on SWRT improved sands, to agricultural service providers. SWRT Solutions personnel inspect and retain highest quality LLDPE film for most uniform installation and long-life function. Digital libraries of membrane deliveries by each of the four SWRT MIC chisels, will be required for commercial membrane installers to maintained their certification and license to install SWRT membranes in farmer's fields. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Digital recording of membranes exiting from all four chisels of the commercial MIC implements in a manner that verifies their fail-safe installation. These four SWRT membrane chisels are precisely positioned into the most efficient water retention two-tier configurations with each pass of the SWRT membrane installation chisel (MIC). The new MIC, model IV will be used to further improve the soil water retaining capacities for farmers requesting demonstration sites for multiple crops grown on irrigated sands located in Michigan, Missouri, Arizona, Kansas, Florida, South Carolina, Indiana, Nebraska, Nevada and California. Training farmers and agronomy advisors to utilize their common farm practices and the new water and energy conservation management practices for irrigating and fertigating their sand fields with and without SWRT membranes.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Welinked NSGA-II [6] with HYDRUS-2D [7] and considered two objectives: minimizations of WEF and REF. Only the surface water scheduling parameterwas used as a variable and one of four different membrane shapes and their placement plans are kept fixed in a single run. The combined EMO models with the HYDRUS-2D identified most efficientirrigation energy requiredforbest IWUE for aspect ratios ofSWRT membraneranging from 2:1, 3:1 and 5:1 to verify the2:1 aspect ratio maintained nearly three times more water for longer periods of time. This was the year to test how many new irrigation and fertigation management practices are needed to maximize SWRT membrane enhancements of parental isolines of the hybrid corn variety, which produced a record high 325bu/a of grain. Greater shoot to root ratios (S:R), lower root death and turnover, plant tasselling and ear silking synchrony along with other phenological sequencings have been compared to determine best soil water and nutrient retention required to maximize ear filling by larger corn plants. Similar soil monitoring of tomatoes, water melon and spicy peppers growing on SWRT membranes, combined with multiple nutrient retention, absorption and leaching are providing valuable baseline information for training farmers and their agronomic advisors how to precisely manage soil and nutrient levels which produce highest crop yields. These data both provide background information for best production practices on SWRT improved sands and this information is foundational to the next generation of best management practices for highest levels of conservation when addressing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus. This research is designed to identify the most efficient irrigation/fertigation with less energy. Conventional irrigation and soil nutrients were used on the vegetable crops in SW USA to identify specific improvements necessary to maximize production with less water, nutrients and energy. These conventional farmer management practices emphasized the need to train irrigation applicators with the best prescription practices identified by past SWRT research.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Tutum, C.C, A.K. Guber, K. Deb, A.J.M. Smucker, P. Najadhashemi, B. Kiraz. 2015. An integrated approach involving EMO and HYDRUS-2D software for SWRT-based precision irrigation: Initial results. 2015 IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Guber, A. K., Smucker, A. J. M., Berhanu, S., & Miller, J. M. (2015). Subsurface water retention technology improves root zone water storage for corn production on coarse-textured soils. Vadose Zone Journal, 14, 2-13. Available from: http://vzj.geoscienceworld.org/content/14/7/vzj2014.11.0166.abstract doi:10.2136/vzj2014.11.0166
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Tian, Y., Liu, C.-H., Smucker, A. J. M., Li, H., & Zhang, W. (2015). Plant root exudates decrease mobility of smectite colloids in porous media in contrast to humic acid. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 79(2), 467-475. doi:10.2136/sssaj2014.10.0412
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Miller, S.A. and A.J.M Smucker. 2015. A new soil water retention technology for irrigated highly permeable soils. Emerging Technologies for Sustainable Irrigation. Proceedings of the Joint ASABE / IA Irrigation Symposium, Long Beach, California, November 10 12, 2015. Proceedings Number: 152147252.
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:Target audiences for this project are mainly farmers. Industry for manufacturing membrane installation devices and small business membrane installers, State USDA personnel, irrigation and banking organizations. Crop production increases by irrigated and non-irrigated SWRT membrane improvements have been distributed to farmers and university cooperators in nine states. Information has been presented to RWF BRON who published a commercial 14 page descriptive pamphlet distributed at 5 national and international equipment conferences. Annual white papers and single page brief announcements have been personally delivered to MI Senators/ Legislators and their staff, John Deere, Syngenta, Dow Chemical, Monsanto-Pioneer and DuPont-DeKalb seed corn companies, GreenStone farm loan and crop insurance companies, as well as Netafim and Lindsay irrigation companies. A new business SWRT Solutions, LLC has been established to train, certify and license commercial installers of SWRT membranes. SWRT Solution instruction also includes short courses for best prescription irrigation and fertigation of crops growing on SWRT improved sands, to agricultural service providers. SWRT Solutions personnel inspect and retain highest quality LLDPE film for most uniform installation and long-life function. Digital libraries of membrane deliveries by each of the four SWRT MIC chisels, will be required for commercial membrane installers to maintained their certification and license to install SWRT membranes in farmer's fields. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? SWRT membrane field research provides training for colleagues at MSU, visiting professionals, manufacturing and small business professionals, bankers, crop insurance personnel, undergraduate students and graduate students. Prescription level irrigation scheduling and nutrient balances are needed for highest production of crops growing on SWRT membranes. Best IWUE coupled with low energy and nutrient requirements are being taught to industry service providers. A new SWRT Solutions website has been contracted to highlight all components of SWRT conversions of highly permeable soils into sustainable agricultural production. Three posters and four oral reports have been presented at national and international conferences and symposia. Multiple manuscripts are at multiple stages of publication. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Crop production increases by irrigated and non-irrigated SWRT membrane improvements have been distributed to farmers and university cooperators in nine states. Information has been presented to RWF BRON who published a commercial 14 page descriptive pamphlet distributed at 5 national and international equipment conferences. Annual white papers and single page brief announcements have been personally delivered to MI Senators/ Legislators and their staff, John Deere, Syngenta, Dow Chemical, Monsanto-Pioneer and DuPont-DeKalb seed corn companies, GreenStone farm loan and crop insurance companies, as well as Netafim and Lindsay irrigation companies. A new business SWRT Solutions, LLC has been established to train, certify and license commercial installers of SWRT membranes. SWRT Solution instruction also includes short courses for best prescription irrigation and fertigation of crops growing on SWRT improved sands, to agricultural service providers. SWRT Solutions personnel inspect and retain highest quality LLDPE film for most uniform installation and long-life function. Digital libraries of membrane deliveries by each of the four SWRT MIC chisels, will be required for commercial membrane installers to maintained their certification and license to install SWRT membranes in farmer's fields. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Digital recording of membranes exiting from all four chisels of the commercial MIC implements in a manner that verifies their fail-safe installation. These four SWRT membrane chisels are precisely positioned into the most efficient water retention two-tier configurations with each pass of the SWRT membrane installation chisel (MIC). The new MIC, model IV will be used to further improve the soil water retaining capacities for farmers requesting demonstration sites for multiple crops grown on irrigated sands located in Michigan, Missouri, Arizona, Kansas, Florida, South Carolina, Indiana, Nebraska, Nevada and California. Training farmers and agronomy advisors to utilize their common farm practices and the new water and energy conservation management practices for irrigating and fertigating their sand fields with and without SWRT membranes.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Welinked NSGA-II [6] with HYDRUS-2D [7] and considered two objectives: minimizations of WEF and REF. Only the surface water scheduling parameterwas used as a variable and one of four different membrane shapes and their placement plans are kept fixed in a single run. The combined EMO models with the HYDRUS-2D identified most efficientirrigation energy requiredforbest IWUE for aspect ratios ofSWRT membraneranging from 2:1, 3:1 and 5:1 to verify the2:1 aspect ratio maintained nearly three times more water for longer periods of time. This was the year to test how many new irrigation and fertigation management practices are needed to maximize SWRT membrane enhancements of parental isolines of the hybrid corn variety, which produced a record high 325bu/a of grain. Greater shoot to root ratios (S:R), lower root death and turnover, plant tasselling and ear silking synchrony along with other phenological sequencings have been compared to determine best soil water and nutrient retention required to maximize ear filling by larger corn plants. Similar soil monitoring of tomatoes, water melon and spicy peppers growing on SWRT membranes, combined with multiple nutrient retention, absorption and leaching are providing valuable baseline information for training farmers and their agronomic advisors how to precisely manage soil and nutrient levels which produce highest crop yields. These data both provide background information for best production practices on SWRT improved sands and this information is foundational to the next generation of best management practices for highest levels of conservation when addressing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus. This research is designed to identify the most efficient irrigation/fertigation with less energy. Conventional irrigation and soil nutrients were used on the vegetable crops in SW USA to identify specific improvements necessary to maximize production with less water, nutrients and energy. These conventional farmer management practices emphasized the need to train irrigation applicators with the best prescription practices identified by past SWRT research.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Guber, Andrey K., Alvin J.M. Smucker, Samrawi Berhanu, and James M.L. Miller. 2015. Optimizing water regime for sustainable corn production on coarse textured soils by subsurface water retaining membranes within plant root zone. Vadose Zone Journal. 2004-11-0166-ORA.R1-PDF0001
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Tutum, C.C, A.K.Guber, K. Deb, A.J.M. Smucker, P. Najadhashemi, B. Kiraz. 2015. An integrated approach involving EMO and HYDRUS-2D software for SWRT-based precision irrigation: Initial results. 2015 IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Tian, Y., C.H. Liu, A.J.M Smucker, H. Li, and W. Zhang. 2015. Plant root exudates decrease mobility of smectite colloids in porous media in contrast to humic acid, Vadose Zone Journal doi:10.2136/sssaj2014.10.0412.
- Type:
Websites
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Alvin Smucker, Kurt Thelen, Bruno Basso, Andrey Guber, Zouheir Massri, Ning Gong and Rafael Auras 2015. Subsurface Water Retention Technology (SWRT) for Crop Improvement on Coarse Textured Soils webinar: https://connect.msu.edu/p7x01brb8a9/
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Submitted
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Bourcier, J.M., A.J.M. Smucker, A.N. Kravchenko, W. Wang and T.L. Marsh. 2015. Flavobacterium species decrease strength of remolded soil aggregates in vitro and may contribute to the loss of soil organic carbon in native systems. Soil Sci. Soc. Amer. J. 2015. (in review).
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Progress 08/01/14 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Target audiences for this project are mainly farmers. Industry for manufacturing membrane installation devices and small business membrane installers. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? SWRT membrane field research provides trainingfor colleagues at MSU,visiting professionals, manufacturing and small business professionals,bankers, crop insurance personnel,undergraduate students and graduate students. All gain field experience with the installation process, crop and soil best management systems, irrigation systems, crop production, analyses of data, research reporting, website development and manuscripts for publication. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Plant production increases by the irrigated and non-irrigatedSWRT membrane improvements have attracted literally dozens of farmers, small industries, John Deere, small businessinvestors, Pioneer and DeKalb seed corn companies and irrigation companies. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? As with all new technologies, there will be a need for additional training of farm managers to accurately manage SWRT systems coupled with prescription-based best management practices for SWRT improved sand soils for maximum production. As more new paradigm-changing technologies surface, additional educational cooperation between owners and operators of commercial and large farms, local equipment dealers, and soil water engineering firms becomes more essential. As employment increases, local communities surrounded by sand soils will prosper. Newly franchised businesses are emerging among farm equipment sales and service companies. As SWRT field research continues, new precision management practices will become more profitable, resulting in greater farmer interest in SWRT improvements of their sandy soils. Soil water retention technology water-saving soil treatments must be adopted to eliminate the high risk and uncertainty associated with plant water deficits. This new SWRT has the potential to ameliorate sandy soil regions that provide multiple ecosystem services to rural communities experiencing job losses and depressed economies. Since most rural farming operations insure planted crops to financially offset unpredictable weather and climate conditions that reduce plant productivity, SWRT-enhanced plant production offers additional crop protection, reducing insurance payments for crop losses enabling industry-wide reductions in crop insurance premiums, a win-win savings for both producers and insurance companies. Soil water retention technology transformations of highly permeable soils into sustainable agricultural production enables farmers to achieve the necessary 70% expansion of global food production by 2050 with less water. SWRT will continue to secure water for food that meets the nutritional needs of billions even as climates change across continents. Successful contacts with industry, entrepreneural business, banking and crop insurance organizations are leading to MEDC road map development, state conservationist is considering including SWRT membranes into the MI CIG, next year. Irrigation companies are expanding their interest and support of the SWRT membrane water conservation approach for expanding successful agriculture on farmlands located in sandy regions of Michigan.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Major goals of this project are to expand farmer, industry and small business interests in the new Subsurface Water Retention Technology (SWRT). This is being accomplished by placing new SWRT membranes in sandy soils on active agriculture farm lands across the USA, with an emphasis on MI, MO and AZ.Currentexpansion of the SWRTmembranes from two university experimental station projects includes three on farm sites in TX. To license an established agricultural industry tofurther develop and manufacture new commercial SWRT membrane installation device (MID) implement that expands the previously developed MID prototype implement. Significant progress has been achieved by the RWF BRON manufacturing companyduring these past few months. A new fail-safe commercial implement simultaneously installstwo or moremembranes 18 inches wide from rolls of LDPE, transports these films belowground and positions them in specific 2:1 aspect ratios before filling them with soil overburden passing over the membrane installation device (MID) chisel without major disturbance of the soil profile. Optimal membrane depths are primarily determined by soil texture controlling capillary rise of water, ranging from 17 cm to 38 cm for coarse to fine sands. Depths of membranes are adjusted based upon capillary rise, tillage and rooting depths of plants. We anticipate new membrane installation devices for installing SWRT water conservation will be on the public market by the end of 2014 by RWF BRON. We are beginning the training of certified and licensed water saving membrane installers.Discussions for subsidizing the installation of SWRT water and nutrient saving membranes on farms participating in the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and CIG grant agreement provisions by state NRCS are underway in Michigan and should be established for national funding in drought prone areas with limited water resources in a manner similar to the promotion of soil drainage systems among poorly drained soils supported by the original Soil Conservation Service, now the NRCS, in 1960 through 1990. To develop algorithms for HYDRUS-2D that benefit the accuracy of selecting best aspect ratios of SWRT membranes, installation depths of SWRT membranes in a range of coarse textured soils. HYDRUS-2D algorithms have been developed to accurately predict SWRT membrane retention rates of water, nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. This model projects the most ideal membrane depth and configuration for maintaining optimal air to water ratios and nutrient flux rates in multiple soil textures. Using the soil water retention graph we can model hydropedological optimizations of plant-available water at multiple distances above SWRT membranes. For example, calculations of soil water diffusivity, 0.85 to 1.75 x10-3 cm h-1, to roots located at multiple distances above SWRT membranes exceed transpiration rates needed by maize planted at very high populations. Consequently, we now have a highly useful model for projecting much broader applications of SWRT water and nutrient saving membranes, well beyond sand soils. This phenomenon is now being tested as we expand demonstrations on sandy loam soils with the goal of increasing yields along hilltops of eroded soils located in the agricultural heartlands of America. We estimate these findings expand the positive contributions for SWRT to sustainably improve agricultural production on an additional 200 million acres of agricultural soils across the USA. This new soil water retention technology (SWRT) rearranges the hydropedology within plant root zone by improving the quantity and homogeneity of soil water above the U-shaped impermeable SWRT membranes. Collaborative soil physics and engineering research has developed, field tested a highly sustainable SWRT membrane that doubles soil water holding capacities increasing plant production by 44% among vegetables to 238% of grain crops beyond irrigated controls. These same SWRT impermeable membranes capture nutrients and agricultural chemicals reducing deep leaching losses of both nitrogen and potassium into groundwater. Additional ecosystem services by SWRT membranes include increased soil carbon sequestration, formation of new stable soil aggregates, increased water use efficiency, increased shoot to root ratios, and reduced root turnover within the root zone above membranes installed in fields of surface drip tape irrigated horticultural beds and row crop. Vegetable crops of cucumber and squash, grown on beds of homogeneous Spinks sand underlined with SWRT membranes, during the past 4 months, produced 28% more commercial cucumber products and 44% more commercial squash products than irrigated controls without SWRT membranes. Although major differences are observed among soil water contents, nutrient concentrations, plant height and plant nutrient deficiency symptoms of corn and soybeans growing on irrigated and non-irrigated SWRT membrane and control plots without membrane water and nutrient retainers, harvest has been delayed by the moisture and warm weather. SWRT U-shaped water-saving membranes, having 2:1 width to depth aspect ratios, retain more soil water content for longer time periods in arid regions receiving site-specific irrigation frequencies and rates that establish optimal soil VWC between 15% and 17%. Combinations of greater corn grain production coupled with higher glucose and other free sugar levels in the grain of corn grown on irrigated sand equipped with SWRT improved water retention, continuously supplies plant-available water, produced 317% more ethanol than non-irrigated corn growing on controls without SWRT membranes.
Publications
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Smucker, Alvin J.M. and Bruno Basso. 2014. Global Potential for a New Subsurface Water Retention Technology- Converting Marginal Soil into Sustainable Plant Production. In: The Soil Underfoot: infinite possibilities for a finite resource, Editors; G. J. Churchman and E.R. Landa. Chapter 24, pp. 315 324. CRC Press.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Kavdir, Y., W. Zhang, B. Basso and A.J.M. Smucker. 2014. Development of a new soil water retention technology for increasing production and water conservation. J. of Soil and Water Conservation. DOI 10.2489/jswc.69 (5):154-160.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Smucker, A.J.M., Y. Kavdir, A.K. Guber, B. Basso. 2014. Optimization of Soil Water Content in the Root Zone. Soil Science Society of America Journal (Submitted).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Alvin Smucker, Zeyuan Yang , Xuechen He, Fuhua Lai, Bruno Basso, 2013. SWRT is a New Technology for Converting Arid Sands into Oases of Food and Fiber Production. International Journal of Biobased Materials and Bioenergy.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Urbanek, Emilia Urbanek, Rainer Horn, Alvin J.M. Smucker. 2014. Tensile and erosive strength of soil macro-aggregates from soils under different management systems. J. Hydrol. Hydromech. 62: 4-10. DOI 10.2479/johh-2014-0034.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Smucker,Alvin J.M. and A.K.Guber. 2014. Soil water retention membranes double crop production using half the irrigation water. International ACS Conference, Long Beach, CA.
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