Research & Scientific Publications - Page 12
The Land Institute’s work advances research and agricultural scientific knowledge and is conducted in an innovative yet rigorous professional context. Explore our findings and ideas via articles authored or co-authored by members of our staff and published in research and peer-reviewed journals.
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Breeding perennial grain crops (part 1 of 3)
Part 1: One-third of the planet’s arable land has been lost to soil erosion in recent decades, and the pace of this degradation will increase as the limits of our…
Perennial wheat: The development of a sustainable cropping system for the U.S., Pacific Northwest
Abstract: Perennial wheat offers a new solution to the long-standing problems of soil erosion and degradation associated with conventional annual small-grain cropping systems in the Pacific Northwest region. Download PDF
An Economic Comparison of Traditional and Conventional Agricultural Systems at a County Level: Appendices and Expanded References
Appendices, tables and expanded references for the paper, “An economic comparison of traditional and conventional agricultural systems at a county level” by M.H. Bender, published in the American Journal of…
Energy in Agriculture and Society: Insights from the Sunshine Farm
Accompanying Tables 1-3 found here are available in downloadable PDF format. Click here and the PDF will automatically begin downloading. To read a PDF file you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed…
An economic comparison of traditional and conventional agricultural systems at a county level
Abstract: In Holmes and Wayne Counties, Ohio, respectively, one-half and one-fourth of the farms belong to the Amish, an agrarian culture whose traditional agriculture has been remarkably successful. In an…
Age Of Maturity And Life Span In Herbaceous, Polycarpic Perennials
Abstract: A review of age of maturity in herbaceous, polycarpic perennials found that the most common year of earliest maturity for wild and cultivated conditions was the second year of…
Diversity and abundance of arbuscular-mycorrhizal fungus spores in tropical forest and pasture
As Neotropical forests are increasingly converted to agriculture (especially pastures), little is known about the impacts on microbial biodiversity. To assess such impacts, I compared spore abundance and diversity of…
Potential conservation of biomass in the production of synthetic organics
Abstract: Hydrocarbon intermediates typical of the chemical industry are an inefficient route for the production of synthetic organics from biomass. This is demonstrated by stoichiometric calculations of mass losses of…
Variation in Illinois bundleflower (Desmanthus illioensis (Michaux) MacMillan): A potential perennial grain legume
Abstract: Illinois bundleflower, Desmanthus illinoensis (Michaux) MacMillan, is an herbaceous perennial legume native to the central and southeastern USA. It has been identified as a potential perennial grain legume. To…
Developing high seed yielding perennial polycultures as a mimic of mid-grass prairie
Abstract: Over the past two decades, work at The Land Institute has aimed to develop sustainable farming as a functional mimic of mid-grass prairie. Ecological studies of unploughed prairie suggested…
From genomes to ecosystems to human communities
Abstract: Genomes can be regarded as miniature ecosystems which display many of the same characteristics as that of a prairie or forest ecosystem. Human communities may likewise have characteristics common…
Composition of prairie plant communities on productive versus unproductive sites in wet and dry years
The diverse community structure and different types of resource use by plant species contribute to the persistence and resilience of the prairie ecosystem. Download PDF