Project Number: 1902-13000-012-14
Project Type: Nonfunded Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Oct 01, 2010
End Date: Aug 31, 2013

Objective:
Research: (1) Develop a practical technology for subsurface application of poultry litter into reduced tillage soils (no-till) that does not exacerbate leaching losses of nutrients; (2) Quantify the effects of subsurface application on crop response, nutrient and trace element losses, and odor emissions. Extension: (1) Transfer the dry litter incorporation technology to farmers on Maryland’s Eastern Shore; (2) Provide education on odor management to stakeholder farmers, and training of University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) microbiology faculty; (3) Improve UMES-stakeholder farmer collaborating relations. Education: Enhance UMES teaching curricula by infusing various aspects (odor management) of the project research components into targeted classes.

Approach:
Field research trials will be conducted to evaluate agronomic and environmental performance of the USDA-ARS Subsurfer in comparison with conventional methods of litter application. Research will primarily be conducted at UMES’s Research & Teaching Farm in Princess Anne, MD, with additional agronomic field trials conducted on at least five stakeholder farms in the surrounding area as part of the outreach phase of this project. Teaching will be linked to research objectives of the project providing experiential training for students in engineering design and technology development.