Agricultural field trials can provide crucial information that helps scientists and farmers optimize production and reduce environmental impacts. The Data-Intensive Farm Management Project, housed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, works with farmers to conduct large-scale scientific experiments using precision agriculture. The goal is to generate real-world data that can help farmers make efficient management decisions and increase profits.

“Almost all agronomic science is conducted on very small university plots, so it’s hard to transfer the implications to large fields. Our team has created easy-to-use software and other resources so farmers and crop consultants can run big trials on entire fields. This means they can make decisions based on data that come from their own fields,” said David Bullock, director of DIFM and professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at U. of I.

Farmers can sign up online to participate in the project. DIFM staff will then work with the farmers and their consultants on developing experimental designs to test management practices such as application input rates. DIFM provides specialized software that uses GPS technology to automatically calculate variable rates and disperse fertilizer as the farmer drives through the field. The research team will analyze the data and discuss the results and management implications.

Neal Nelson has participated in DIFM since 2017. He runs Nelson Family Farms in western Illinois along with his father, Doug, raising no-till soybeans and non-GMO corn.

“With varying soil types throughout the Edwards River valley, we utilize precision farming for variable rate planting, split applications of nitrogen, cover crops, and data collection in several trials each year,” he said.

Nelson works with Bullock, DIFM Project Coordinator Carli Jones, and Field Trial Supervisor Bob Dunker on his field trials. Precision agronomy advisor Megan Dwyer of Ag Authority, Inc. serves as a liaison between the U. of I. team and Nelson for trial implementation and data transfer.

“Currently, we begin to put a trial in place in early spring by outlining various seed populations and nitrogen rates based on what we learned the previous crop year. We have also been in talks with DIFM personnel about other potential studies including cover crops and nitrogen use,” Nelson said.

DIFM staff develops a seeding prescription and nitrogen rate trial and provides the information for the farming equipment. The Nelsons plant and fertilize the corn fields according to the DIFM rates and harvest all acres with a calibrated yield monitor that is verified by their grain cart scale for every bushel. The information is then given to the DIFM team for data analysis.

Nelson said the cooperation with DIFM has yielded multiple benefits.

“Right away we learned that often the best economical return was lower seeding and nitrogen rates. While that doesn't always hold true, it has been a general trend that has helped us feel more comfortable in lowering populations in both corn and soybean fields for our operation as well as hold steady with the nitrogen programs we had in place. This has been confirmed with our precision ag analysis on our non-trial corn and soybean fields during the same time period,” he stated.

“My hope for the DIFM study is that it can help develop updated nitrogen use guidelines for farmers across the country. In collaboration with other universities in the U.S. and abroad, the DIFM team is gathering information that can help farmers be successful stewards of the land while increasing their bottom line.”

DIFM has been working since 2016 with funding from the USDA National Institute for Food and Agriculture and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Innovation Grants (CIG) On-Farm Trials program. The DIFM project has conducted on-farm field trials in states across the U.S. and in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, and South Africa.

“The DIFM is having both economic and environmental effects in U.S. agriculture and abroad. We’re learning from data from farmers’ own fields, and we’re able to give them advice on how to manage those fields, sometimes with environmental benefits, such as reducing nitrogen runoff,” Bullock said.