Browsing by Author "Miller, Perry"

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Aboveground and belowground responses to cyanobacterial biofertilizer supplement in a semi-arid, perennial bioenergy cropping system
(Wiley, 2021-08) Goemann, Hannah M.; Gay, Justin D.; Mueller, Rebecca C.; Brookshire, E. N. Jack; Miller, Perry; Poulter, Benjamin; Peyton, Brent M.
The need for sustainable agricultural practices to meet the food, feed, and fuel demands of a growing global population while reducing detrimental environmental impacts has driven research in multi‐faceted approaches to agricultural sustainability. Perennial cropping systems and microbial biofertilizer supplements are two emerging strategies to increase agricultural sustainability that are studied in tandem for the first time in this study. During the establishment phase of a perennial switchgrass stand in SW Montana, USA, we supplemented synthetic fertilization with a nitrogen‐fixing cyanobacterial biofertilizer (CBF) and were able to maintain aboveground crop productivity in comparison to a synthetic only (urea) fertilizer treatment. Soil chemical analysis conducted at the end of the growing season revealed that late‐season nitrogen availability in CBF‐supplemented field plots increased relative to urea‐only plots. High‐throughput sequencing of bacterial/archaeal and fungal communities suggested fine‐scale responses of the microbial community and sensitivity to fertilization among arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Planctomycetes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Given their critical role in plant productivity and soil nutrient cycling, soil microbiome monitoring is vital to understand the impacts of implementation of alternative agricultural practices on soil health.
Lentil nitrogen fixation response to fertilizer and inoculant in the northern Great Plains
(Wiley, 2023-08) Baber, Kaleb; Jones, Clain; Miller, Perry; Lamb, Peggy; Atencio, Sydney
Lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus) production in the semiarid northern Great Plains of the United States has increased dramatically over the past two decades. Lentil in rotation provides agroecosystem benefits of more efficient water use, pest cycle disruption, and biological nitrogen (N) fixation. Increasing N fixation could alleviate soil acidification and groundwater impairment, decrease N fertilizer costs, and increase lentil seed yield. Despite widespread farmer adoption of lentil in the region, little is known about the benefits of fertilizer or inoculant type on N fixation. The aim of this study was to determine how nutrients (potassium (K), sulfur (S), and foliar-applied micronutrients) and rhizobial inoculant types (seed-coat powder and granular) influence N fixation of lentil. The study was conducted at two field sites in Montana from 2019 to 2021. Fixed N amounts were calculated using both an N difference approach and 15N natural abundance method. N fixation was highly responsive to climatic conditions and soil characteristics. The amount of N fixed did not respond to K fertilization, likely because soil test K levels were sufficient. In a moderately dry year at a site with low soil sulfate-S, fertilizer application of 5.6 kg S ha−1 increased N fixed by 40%. Inoculated lentil fixed more N than uninoculated lentil in two site-years, but there were no differences in N fixed between inoculant types. Inoculation response was not related to field cropping histories with legumes. The study shows that S fertilization and rhizobial inoculation have potential to increase lentil N fixation amounts in the northern Great Plains.