Kansas Experiment Research Articles

East Central Kansas Experiment Field: Field Station Weather Reports: 2023 Growing Season

East Central Kansas Experiment Field: Field Station Weather Reports: 2023 Growing Season

Removing Caps for Noneconomic Damages: The Kansas Experiment

In 2019 the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that caps on noneconomic damages in lawsuits of the sort that the state's legislature had put in place were unconstitutional. A preliminary look at the data and the experience of other states suggests that insurance costs will go up in the state. The success and feasibility of proposed legal changes in the state to ameliorate its impact are uncertain.

East Central Kansas Experiment Field Introduction

The research program at the East Central Kansas Experiment Field is designed to keep area crop producers abreast of technological advances in agronomic agriculture. Specific objectives are to (1) identify topperforming varieties and hybrids of wheat, corn, soybean, and grain sorghum; (2) establish the amount of tillage and crop residue cover needed for optimum crop production; (3) evaluate weed and disease control practices using chemical, no chemical, and combination methods; and (4) test fertilizer rates, timing, and application methods for agronomic proficiency and environmental stewardship.

Balanced Nutrition and Crop Production Practices for Closing Grain Sorghum Yield Gaps—North Central Kansas Experiment Field

Balanced Nutrition and Crop Production Practices for Closing Grain Sorghum Yield Gaps—North Central Kansas Experiment Field

Late-Season Nitrogen Fertilizer Application in Soybean

Field experiments were conducted at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field near Scandia, KS, in the summer of 2014 to evaluate effect of late-season nitrogen (N) fertilizer application on modern soybean genotypes under dryland and irrigated environments. The main objective was to determine if the N application late in the season has an agronomical benefit to soybean producers. A unique fertilizer N source (urea) was applied at five N rates (0, 40, 80, 120, and 160 lb N/a) to soybean at the R3 growth stage. Overall soybean yields under dryland conditions ranged from 73 to 89 bu/a, whereas yield variation in the irrigated environment was narrowed and ranged from 90 to 99 bu/a. Application of late-season N fertilizer did not significantly increase soybean yields either under full irrigation or in the dryland environment. Under irrigation, maximum soybean yield was documented at 99 bu/a with the 0-N fertilizer rate, whereas dryland soybean yield was maximized at 89 bu/a with 120 lb N/a.

Selected Spectral Characteristics of Turbulence over an Urbanized Area in the Centre of Łódź, Poland

We present the turbulence spectra and cospectra derived from more than five years of eddy-covariance measurements at two urban sites in Łódź, central Poland. The fast response wind velocity components were obtained using sonic anemometers placed on narrow masts at 37 and 42 m above ground level. The analysis follows Kaimal et al. (Q J R Meteorol Soc 98:563–589, 1972) who established the spectral and cospectral properties of turbulent flow in atmospheric surface layer on the basis of the Kansas experiment. Our results illustrate many features similar to those of Kaimal et al., but some differences are also observed. The velocity (co)spectra from Łódź show a clear inertial subrange with \(-2/3\) slope for spectra and \(-4/3\) slope for cospectra. We found that an appropriate stability function for the non-dimensional dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy calculated from spectra in the inertial subrange differs from that of Kaimal et al., and it can be satisfactorily estimated with the assumption of local equilibrium using standard functions for the non-dimensional shear production. A similar function for the cospectrum corresponds well to Kaimal et al. for unstable and weakly stable conditions. The (co)spectra normalized by their spectral values in the inertial subrange are in general similar to those of Kaimal et al., but they peak at lower frequencies in strongly stable conditions. Moreover, our results do not confirm the existence of a clear “excluded region” at low frequencies for the transition from stable to unstable conditions, for longitudinal and lateral wind components. The empirical models of Kaimal et al. with adjusted parameters fit well to the vertical velocity spectrum and the vertical momentum flux cospectrum. The same type of function should be used for longitudinal and lateral wind spectra because of their sharper peak than occurs for the Kansas data. Finally, it should be stressed that the above relationships are well-defined for averaged values. The results for individual 1-h periods are very scattered and can be significantly different from the generalized functions.

IMPROVING PHOSPHORUS NUTRITION OF CORN

Phosphorus (P) generally occurs in soils as the anions H2PO4- or HPO4-2 depending on soil pH. These anions readily react with soil cations such as calcium, magnesium, iron and aluminum to produce various phosphate compounds of very limited water solubility. Crop recovery of applied phosphate fertilizer can be quite low during the season of application. In addition, the large amounts of crop residue present in no-tillage production systems can lower soil temperature thus reducing root growth and nutrient uptake of plants even on soils not low in available Phosphorus (P). Specialty Fertilizer Products, Leawood, KS has developed and patented a product registered as AVAIL® that is reported to attract and sequester antagonistic cations out of the soil solution leaving more of the applied P in available form for plant uptake. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effectiveness of AVAIL treated P-fertilizer on growth, P-uptake and yield of irrigated corn (Zea mays L.) grown in a no-tillage production system. A 3-year experiment was conducted from 2001-2003 at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field, located near Scandia, KS, on a Crete silt loam soil (fine, montmorillonitic, mesic Pachic Arquistoll). Treatments consisted of three rates of P with or without AVAIL. A no P check plot was also included. When averaged over the years and P rates, the use of AVAIL increased yield of corn by 1.1 Mg ha-1. AVAIL also increased corn dry weight at the six-leaf stage, whole plant P uptake at the six-leaf stage and P concentration at mid-silk. The use of AVAIL proved beneficial in overcoming many of the problems associated with P nutrition in corn. AVAIL consistently increased P uptake and yield in this experiment.

MANAGEMENT OF UREA-CONTAINING FERTILIZERS FOR NO-TILLAGE CORN USING NITROGEN STABILIZERS AND COATED-GRANULE TECHNOLOGY

No-tillage production systems are being used by an increasing number of producers in the Great Plains, however, the large amount of surface residue left on the soil surface can made nitrogen (N) management difficult. There are several products currently available for use with granular urea (46% N) and urea-ammonium nitrate solution (UAN) that have the ability to reduce or eliminated N losses. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of several N-fertilizer additives and a slow-release polymer coated urea product in a no-tillage corn (Zea mays L.) production system. A 3-year field experiment was conducted from 2006–2008 at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field, located near Scandia, KS, on a Crete silt loam soil (fine, montmorillonitic, mesic Pachic Arquistoll). When averaged over the 3-years of the experiment, the treated fertilizer products yielded greater than untreated urea or UAN. This occurred regardless of applied N-rate. The additive treated products along with the time release-polymer coated urea yield the same as ammonium nitrate. There were no significant differences among additive products. If producers wish to broadcast urea-containing N-fertilizer on the soil surface in high-residue production systems there are several N- additive options available that limit N loses and maximize grain yield with reduced environmental risk

Buoyancy effects on the integral lengthscales and mean velocity profile in atmospheric surface layer flows

Within the diabatic atmospheric surface layer (ASL) under quasi-stationary and horizontal homogeneous conditions, the mean velocity profile deviates from its conventional logarithmic shape by a height-dependent universal stability correction function ϕm(ζ) that varies with the stability parameter ζ. The ζ parameter measures the relative importance of mechanical to buoyant production or destruction of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) within the ASL. A link between ϕm(ζ) and the spectrum of turbulence in the ASL was recently proposed by Katul et al. [“Mean velocity profile in a sheared and thermally stratified atmospheric boundary layer,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 268502 (2011)]. By accounting for the stability-dependence of TKE production, Katul et al. were able to recover scalings for ϕm with the anticipated power-law exponents for free convective, slightly unstable, and stable conditions. To obtain coefficients for the ϕm(ζ) curve in good agreement with empirical formulas, they introduced a correction for the variation of the integral lengthscale of vertical velocity with ζ estimated from the Kansas experiment. In the current work, the link between the coefficients in empirical curves for ϕm(ζ) and stability-dependent properties of turbulence in the ASL, including the variation with ζ of the integral lengthscale and the anisotropy of momentum transporting eddies is investigated using data from the Advection Horizontal Array Turbulence Study. The theoretical framework presented by Katul et al. is revised to account explicitly for these effects. It is found that the coefficients in the ϕm(ζ) curve for unstable and near-neutral conditions can be explained by accounting for the stability-dependence of the integral lengthscale and anisotropy of momentum-transporting eddies; however, an explanation for the observed ϕm(ζ) curve for stable conditions remains elusive. The effect of buoyancy on the horizontal and vertical integral lengthscales is also analyzed in detail.

Attached Eddies and Production Spectra in the Atmospheric Logarithmic Layer

We investigate the production components of turbulent spectra within logarithmic layers over flat ground. This assumes that the turbulence giving rise to these spectra consists of active coherent structures (eddies) that are attached to the ground, and whose properties display perfect statistical self-similarity under inner scaling. That is, we take the extreme view that active coherent structures not only contribute to turbulence production spectra but explain the whole of them, so that neither detached eddies nor unstructured motions make any significant contribution. Perfect self-similarityis held to apply only to eddies that are themselves formed totally within the log layer, so the theory applies in the limit of spectra obtained at the hearts of very deep log layers. The model predicts that spectral variance and covariance should become independent of wavenumber at small wavenumbers. This asymptotic behaviour is observed in all neutral spectra from the Kansas experiment. The model also interprets the various positions of the spectral peaks observed at Kansas and in aircraft flights over the sea as consequences of the eddies being aggregated into files aligned with the wind. The observed spectra are therefore consistent with large-scale wedge-like structures being the principal component of active turbulence in the neutral atmospheric surface layer.

Spectral Characteristics and Correction of Long-Term Eddy-Covariance Measurements Over Two Mixed Hardwood Forests in Non-Flat Terrain

We present turbulence spectra and cospectra derived from long-term eddy-covariancemeasurements (nearly 40,000 hourly data over three to four years) and the transferfunctions of closed-path infrared gas analyzers over two mixed hardwood forests inthe mid-western U.S.A. The measurement heights ranged from 1.3 to 2.1 times themean tree height, and peak vegetation area index (VAI) was 3.5 to 4.7; the topographyat both sites deviates from ideal flat terrain. The analysis follows the approach ofKaimal et al. (Quart. J. Roy. Meteorol. Soc. 98, 563–589, 1972) whose results were based upon 15 hours of measurements atthree heights in the Kansas experiment over flatter and smoother terrain. Both thespectral and cospectral constants and stability functions for normalizing and collapsingspectra and cospectra in the inertial subrange were found to be different from those ofKaimal et al. In unstable conditions, we found that an appropriate stabilityfunction for the non-dimensional dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy is of the form Φe(ζ) = (1 - b-ζ)-1/4 - c-ζ, where ζ representsthe non-dimensional stability parameter. In stable conditions, a non-linear functionGxy(ζ) = 1 + bxyζc xy (cxy < 1) was found to benecessary to collapse cospectra in the inertial subrange. The empirical cospectralmodels of Kaimal et al. were modified to fit the somewhat more (neutraland unstable) or less (stable) sharply peaked scalar cospectra observed over forestsusing the appropriate cospectral constants and non-linear stability functions. Theempirical coefficients in the stability functions and in the cospectral models varywith measurement height and seasonal changes in VAI. The seasonal differencesare generally larger at the Morgan Monroe State Forest site (greater peak VAI) andcloser to the canopy. The characteristics of transfer functions of the closed-path infrared gas analysersthrough long-tubes for CO2 and water vapour fluxes were studied empirically. This was done by fitting the ratio between normalized cospectra of CO2 or watervapour fluxes and those of sensible heat to the transfer function of a first-order sensor.The characteristic time constant for CO2 is much smaller than that for water vapour. The time constant for water vapour increases greatly with aging tubes. Three methods were used to estimate the flux attenuations and corrections; from June through August, the attenuations of CO2 fluxes are about 3–4% during the daytime and 6–10% at night on average. For the daytime latent heat flux (QE), the attenuations are foundto vary from less than 10% for newer tubes to over 20% for aged tubes. Correctionsto QE led to increases in the ratio (QH + QE)/(Q* - QG) by about 0.05 to0.19 (QH is sensible heat flux, Q* is net radiation and QG is soil heat flux),and thus are expected to have an important impact on the assessment of energy balanceclosure.

Turbulence Characteristics Of The Stable Boundary Layer Over A Mid-Latitude Glacier. Part Ii: Pure Katabatic Forcing Conditions

Observations obtained over a glacier surface in a predominantlykatabatic flow and with a distinctwind maximum below 13-m height are presented. The data werecollected using a 13-m high profilemast and two sonic anemometers (at about 2.5-m and 10-m heights).The spectra at frequencies belowthat of the turbulence range appear to deviate considerably fromthe curves obtained by Kaimal andco-workers during the 1968 Kansas experiment. The characteristicsof these deviations are compared tothe observations of others in surface-layers disturbed by anykind of large-scale outer-layer (orinactive) turbulence. In our case the disturbances arelikely to be induced by the highmountain ridges that surround the glacier. Moreover, the deviationsobserved in the cospectra seemto result from an, as yet, unspecified interaction between theinactive outer-layer turbulenceand the local surface-layer turbulence. Near the distinctwind maximum turbulence production ceasedwhile turbulence itself did not, probably the result ofturbulence transport from other levels. Consequently, we studied thelocal similarity relations using σw instead of u* as an alternative velocity scale. Wellbelow the wind maximum, and for relatively low stability(0 0.2), and near or above the wind maximum, the boundary-layer structure conforms tothat of z-less stratification suggesting that the eddy sizeis restricted by the local stability ofthe flow. In line with this we observed that the sensibleheat fluxes relate remarkably well to thelocal flow parameters.

Effects of phosphorus application method and rate on furrow‐irrigated ridge‐tilled grain sorghum

Conservation tillage systems, including ridge‐tillage, have become increasing popular with producers in the central Great Plains because of their effectiveness in controlling soil erosion and conserving water. A major disadvantage of the ridge system is that nutrient placement options are limited by lack of any primary tillage options. The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of method of phosphorus (P) placement and rate on irrigated grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] grown in a ridge‐tillage system on a soil low in available P. This experiment was conducted from 1993 to 1995 on a producer's field near the North Central Kansas Experiment Field at Scandia, Kansas on a Carr sandy loam soil (course, loamy, mixed, calcareous, mesic, Typic Udifuvents). Treatments consisted of fertilizer application methods, surface broadcast, single band starter (5 cm to the side and 5 cm below seed), dual band starter (one band on each side of the row), and knifed in the center of the row middle (38 cm from each adjacent row). Each of these treatments was made at either 22 or 44 kg P2O5 ha‐1, and nitrogen (N) also was included at the rate of 13 kg ha‐1. Additional treatments were, a combination of 13 kg N and 44 kg P2O5 ha‐1 applied half broadcast and half as a single band starter, a 1:1 N:P2O5 ratio (44 kg N and 44 kg P2O5 ha‐1) applied as a single band starter, and a 3:1 ratio (134 kg N and 44 kg P2O5 ha‐1) applied as a single band starter. A no‐P check plot also was included. Broadcast and center‐of‐row middle knife applications were made approximately 1 week before planting. After planting, N was balanced on all plots to give a total of 180 kg ha‐1. Applied P treatments improved grain yield and nutrient uptake and consistently shortened the time from emergence to mid‐bloom in all 3 years of the experiment. On this low soil test P soil, treatments that subsurface banded P increased grain yield by 1.27 Mg ha‐1 compared to broadcast treatments. Placing N and P in a single starter band 5 cm to the side and 5 cm below the seed was as effective as placing a band on each side of the row. Knife applying N and P in the center of the row was not as effective as placement beside the row. Single band starter application of N and P in a 1:1 and or 3:1 N:P2O5 ratio consistently increased yields and nutrient uptake and shortened the time to mid‐bloom as compared to the single band starter treatment that provided only 13 kg N ha‐1. Over the 3 years of the study, these 1:1 and 3:1 N:P2O5 ratio starters were clearly superior to an other treatments.

Starter fertilizer effects on grain sorghum hybrids grown on a soil high in residual phosphorus in a no‐tillage environment

Conservation tillage crop production systems have become common in the central Great Plains because they reduce soil erosion and increase water‐use efficiency. The high residue levels associated with no‐tillage systems can cause soils to be cool and wet which can reduce nutrient uptake and growth of crops. Starter fertilizer applications have been effective in improving nutrient uptake even on soils high in available nutrient elements. Resent research indicates that corn (Zea mays L.) hybrids differ in their responses to starter fertilizer. No information is currently available concerning grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] hybrid response to starter fertilizer. The objective of this study was to evaluate grain sorghum hybrid responses to starter fertilizer in a no‐tillage environment on a soil high in available phosphorus (P). This field experiment was conducted from 1995 to 1997 at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field, located near Belleville, on a Crete silt loam soil (fine, montmorillonitic, mesic, Pachic Arguistoll). Treatments consisted of 12 grain sorghum hybrids and two starter fertilizer treatments. Fertilizer treatments were starter fertilizer [34 kg nitrogen (N) and 34 kg P2O5 ha‐1] or no starter fertilizer. Starter fertilizer was applied 5 cm to the side and 5 cm below the seed at planting. Immediately after planting, N was balanced on all plots to give a total of 168 kg N ha‐1. In all three years of the experiment, grain yield, total P uptake (grain plus stover), grain moisture content at harvest, and days to mid‐bloom were affected by a hybrid x starter fertilizer interaction. Starter fertilizer consistently increased yields, reduced harvest grain moisture, improved total P uptake, and reduced the number of days needed from emergence to mid‐bloom of Pioneer 8505, Pioneer 8522Y, Pioneer 8310, Dekalb 40Y, Dekalb 48, Dekalb 51, Dekalb 55, and Northrup King 524, buthadno effect on Pioneer 8699, Dekalb 39Y, Northrup King 383Y, and Northrup King 735. When averaged over the three years, starter fertilizer increased grain yield of responding hybrids (hybrids in which the 3‐year average grain yield was significantly increased by the application of starter fertilizer) by 920 kg ha‐1. In responding hybrids, starter fertilizer reduced grain moisture at harvest by 54 g kg1 and also shortened the period from emergence to mid‐bloom by five days. Starter fertilizer increased V6 stage aboveground dry matter production and N and P uptake of all hybrids tested. Results of this work show that in high residue production systems even on soils high in available P, starter fertilizer can consistently increase yield of some hybrids, whereas other hybrids are not affected.

Corn Hybrid Response to Starter Fertilizer in a No-Tillage, Dryland Environment

A dryland corn (Zea mays L) production system that has gained popularity in Kansas involves planting as early in the spring as possible so that pollination occurs under more favorable moisture and temperature conditions. Cool soils that occur with early planting in high-residue production systems can reduce nutrient uptake. Starter fertilizer applications have been effective in enhancing nutrient uptake even on soils high in available nutrients. Corn hybrids may differ in their response to starter fertilizer. The objective of this study was to evaluate corn hybrid response to starter fertilizer in a notillage, dryland environment. This field experiment was conducted from 1993 to 1995 at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field, located near Belleville, on a Crete silt loam soil (fine, montmorillonitic, mesic Pachic Arguistoll). Treatments consisted of five corn hybrids and two starter fertilizer treatments. Fertilizer treatments were starter fertilizer (30 lb N and 30 lb P 2 O 5 /acre) or no starter fertilizer. Starter fertilizer was applied 2 in. to the side of and 2 in. below the seed at planting. In all 3 yr of the experiment, grain yield, maturity, and total P uptake (grain plus stover at maturity) were affected by a hybrid x starter fertilizer interaction. Starter fertilizer consistently increased yields, reduced the number of thermal units needed from emergence to midsilk, and increased total P uptake of Pioneer 3346, Dekalb 636, and Dekalb 591, but had no effect on ICI 8599 and Pioneer 3563. When averaged over the 3 yr of the experiment, starter fertilizer increased grain yield of responding hybrids (hybrids in which the 3-yr average yield was increased by the use of starter fertilizer) by 13 bu/acre. Starter fertilizer increased V6 stage above ground dry matter production and N and P uptake of all hybrids evaluated. Ear leaf N and P concentrations also were increased by starter fertilizer, regardless of hybrid. Results of this work show that starter fertilizer can increase grain yield and be feasible for some hybrids, whereas yields of other hybrids are not affected.

No-Tillage Grain Sorghum Response to Starter Nitrogen-Phosphorus Combinations

The use of starter fertilizers has become common in conservation-tillage corn (Zea mays L.) production systems, but little attention has been given to starter fertilizer nutrient ratios for no-tilled grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of N:P starter fertilizer ratios on no-tillage grain sorghum production at two planting dates. This field experiment was conducted from 1991 through 1993 at the North Central Kansas Experiment Field, located near Belleville, on a Crete silt loam soil (fine, montmorillioitic, mesic, Pachic, Argiustoll). Treatments included combinations of N and P to supply 0, 10, 30, or 90 Ib N/acre with or without 13 Ib P/acre. An unfertilized check plot and a broadcast treatment receiving 90 Ib N and 13 Ib P/acre (no-starter check) also were included. Planting dates were mid-May and mid-June each year. All starter treatments were applied 2 in. to the side and 2 in. below the seed at planting. Immediately after planting, broadcast surface applications were made to bring the total amount of fertilizer applied on all plots, except the unfertilized check, to 90 Ib N and 13 Ib P/acre. Only the treatments that included either 30 or 90 Ib N/acre with 13 I b P/acre (2.81:1 or 6.92:1 N:P ratios) consistently improved early-season growth, plant tissue P uptake, and yield of grain sorghum over the 90 Ib N and 13 Ib P/acre broadcast treatment. When averaged over the 3 yr, the starter combinations that included either 90 or 90 Ib N with 13 Ib P/acre shortened the time from emergence to mid-bloom and increased yield by 18% over the no-starter check. These yield increases were consistent for both planting dates. Results of this work demonstrate that grain sorghum growth and yield can be improved with starter fertilizer applied in either a 2.31:1 ratio (30 Ib N and 13 Ib P/acre) or 6.92:1 ratio (90 Ib N and 13 Ib P) rather than a 0.77:1 ratio (10 Ib N and 13 Ib P/acre) for grain sorghum grown in the central Great Plains.

Economic Feasibility of Using Composted Manure on Irrigated Grain Sorghum

The economic feasibility of using composted manure from western Kansas feedlots in combination with commercial N in the production of irrigated grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] was evaluated. Effective disposal of large quantities of manure from large scale feedlots has been a concern. Yield data from a west central Kansas experiment station study was used to estimate a quadratic production function where grain sorghum yield is a function of compost and commercial N application rates. Four rates of commercial N (0, 55, 110, and 165 Ib/acre) and five rates of composted feedlot manure (0, 0.9, 1.8, 3.6, and 7.2 tons dry matter per acre) in a factorial arrangement were applied to irrigated grain sorghum [...]

Extended closure model for Kaimal's isopleths

A closure model for the spectral equation of turbulent kinetic energy, in the case of a steady-state and horizontally homogeneous flow in a stably stratified surface boundary layer is developed by use of systematic dimensional analysis. All resulting arbitrary functions that describe transfer mechanisms are subsequently Taylor-expanded in terms of their (small) arguments. This procedure leads to the closure of the system in terms of arbitrary constants which can subsequently be determined by fitting of observational data. The resulting solution is tested through comparison with experimental curves drawn from the Kansas experiment and with a formerly developed model.

Budget analysis of FIFE 1987 sonde data

Mean thermodynamic profiles are presented for the daytime convective boundary layer evolution for three groups of sunny days in late June and early July, August, and October using data from the First International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) Field Experiment (FIFE) 1987 Kansas experiment. Budget models for the mixed layer evolution and the boundary layer rise are used to estimate the boundary layer top entrainment parameter. A value of AR = 0.44±0.21 is found for the mean ratio of the inversion level virtual heat flux to the surface virtual heat flux.

Kaimal's isopleths from a closure model

Kaimal's isopleths for the spectra of the Kansas experiment are derived from a closure model built after Claussen's mechanisms for the spectral transfer of kinetic energy in a steady-state and horizontally homogeneous flow. The connection of the predicted three-dimensional spectrum with the measured one-dimensional one is accomplished via the additional assumption that turbulence in the Kansas experiment was basically isotropic.