Research and Education Grant Examples

Reduced and modified tillage systems offer environmental and economic benefits, and adoption by vegetable farmers is gaining momentum. With climate changes, soil water management will likely emerge as another key component in farm profitability, and the project manager will use on-farm and experiment station research, workshops, and field demonstrations to explore tillage systems that improve water management and soil quality while reducing labor, fuel costs, and the risk of Phytophthora capsici infestation. As a result, 500 growers will attend training events and field days, 60 who are new to reduced tillage will conduct on-farm trials, and 40 will adopt reduced tillage on at least 20 percent of their land for a total of 2000 acres. This will result in a 30 percent drop in labor, fuel, and field preparation costs and increase crop yields by 20 percent in fields infested with Phytophthora capsici.