Three years of experiments were conducted to help increase profit margins for apple growers, cope with new regulations on pesticide use, and deal with increased pesticide resistance by major apple pests and diseases.

A tree shelterbeit comprised of four rows of hybrid poplars was established near Ogden, Iowa in 1992 to evaluate shelterbeit characteristics and impacts on soil water content and crop growth andyieid. Major emphasis was on testing crops of corn and soybeans. The first three years saw little effects from the shelterbeit, and data from these years will be used to develop a baseline for future measurements. In the fourth and fifth years, corn yield patterns suggested that the shelterbeit increases yields in the zone leeward from the shelterbeit. Soybeans have not shown a response to the presence of the shelterbeit.

Weed competition and economics are two common barriers to Iowa farmers' investing in tree plantings. This project examined seven weed control strategies and investigated productivity of small grain/forage combinations raised with trees in an effort to suggest management options that would encourage tree planting in the state.

Yield data for corn (eight years) and soybeans (six years) were collected and analyzed to determine the impacts of a hybrid poplar shelterbelt on crop production on a central Iowa farm.

Shelterbelts have the potential to influence growth and yield from various cropping systems. On-farm tests were conducted to determine how shelterbelts interacted with corn, corn/soybean, and strip intercropping.

The midwestern landscape, which formerly consisted of prairies, wetlands, and forests, is now primarily devoted to agricultural purposes. Unfortunately, the resulting large-scale agricultural production has also produced nonpoint source (NPS) pollution of water, alteration of waterways, and disruption of wildlife habitat. NPS pollution, whether by sediment, fertilizers, or pesticides, is a problem nationwide. The agricultural community has addressed this problem by increasing soil conservation efforts and improving chemical application practices. One Best Management Practice (BMP) is the use of riparian (streamside) vegetative filter strips on watersheds prone to such pollution. Most such filter strips to date consist primarily of cool-season grasses.