Flowering raceme dactylis glomerata a valuable forage crop for livestock Flowering raceme dactylis glomerata a valuable forage crop for livestock

FFAR Seeding Solutions Grant Evaluates the Benefits of Converting Row Crops to Perennial Forage Systems

Lubbock, TX

  • Agroecosystems

Perennial forage includes grasses and legumes that thrive for multiple years and develop persistent root systems that stabilize the soil and provide environmental benefits like enhanced biodiversity and improved water quality. The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) awarded Texas A&M AgriLife a $996,165 Seeding Solutions grant to develop best management practices that sustainably convert row crop production to perennial forage systems and enhance producer resiliency in the Texas High Plains. Cactus Feeders and Texas A&M AgriLife provided matching funds and in-kind support for a total $1,992,231 investment.

The Texas High Plains, a semi-arid environment that encompasses over 25,000 square miles of land, receives minimal rainfall each year and contains limited surface water. Widespread irrigation implementation to produce popular crops like corn, sorghum, wheat and cotton has further reduced groundwater availability in the region.

Texas A&M AgriLife researchers are working directly with agricultural producers to examine the effects of converting row crop acres to perennial pastures to support beef cattle grazing in the Texas High Plains. As part of this research, large portions of row crop farms are transitioning into cool- and warm- season perennial forages that will be used in rotational grazing programs for beef cattle. This project will provide Texas High Plains and other semi-arid producers with an alternative production system for beef cattle that places less strain on limited groundwater resources while keeping land in active agricultural use.

In response to producer questions, a multi-disciplinary research team is using techniques like remote sensing, life cycle assessments and ecosystem models to quantify perennial systems’ environmental and economic impacts on water conservation, soil health, greenhouse gas emissions, carbon capture and storage, and climate implications compared to conventional row crop production.

Changing climate patterns like severe drought coupled with unsustainable groundwater withdrawal could threaten future agricultural productivity in semi-arid environments like the High Plains. Transitioning more land into perennial forage systems for cattle grazing has the potential to offer the region climate change adaptation solutions while prioritizing producer resiliency and profitability. Allison Thomson
Scientific Program Director
Sustaining Vibrant Agroecosystems

This project will generate local data in the High Plains that can be used in databases to improve the accuracy of regional climate and economic model predictions.

For decades farmers have been altering irrigation strategies to conserve groundwater resources. This project takes a different approach by combining both annual and perennial systems to conserve the remaining groundwater resources. We are working directly with Cactus Feeders and producers to enhance the longevity of agriculture in the High Plains of Texas. Dr. Katie Lewis
The principal investigator of this project and a professor at Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Texas Tech University.

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Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research

The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) builds public-private partnerships to fund bold research addressing big food and agriculture challenges. FFAR was established in the 2014 Farm Bill to increase public agriculture research investments, fill knowledge gaps and complement the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s research agenda. FFAR’s model matches federal funding from Congress with private funding, delivering a powerful return on taxpayer investment. Through collaboration and partnerships, FFAR advances actionable science benefiting farmers, consumers and the environment.

Connect: @FoundationFAR 

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