Long term effects of conservation agriculture in United States

Keywords: Conservation agriculture, climate extremes, yield stability
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 2/25/2022 09:40 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/25/2022 11:00 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 4

Abstract

A significant fraction of crops in the United States and globally are grown using conservation
agriculture (CA) practices. CA minimizes soil disturbance, maintains soil cover, and diversifies
crop types. CA can improve water and nutrient use efficiency, potentially improving yields and
reducing environmental damage. Agricultural productivity in the United States is severely
affected by heat stress and drought, impacts which are expected to become worse as the world
warms. While a significant portion of cropland in the United States is farmed using CA practices,
the long-term effects of CA on crop yields, yield stability, and crop sensitivity to climate
extremes have not been quantified. Here we evaluate the performance of CA using county level
crop yield data, specifically assessing how yield stability and sensitivity to heat and moisture
extremes depends on the prevalence of CA for major US crops.