Agricultural Diversity
Today, over a third of global ice-free land is devoted to agricultural production. These agricultural landscapes are increasingly simplified and intensively managed. This project examines the role of diversification–of crops, but also of people and practices–in boosting agricultural production, ecological integrity, and agricultural resilience. This project is funded by USDA NIFA Grant 2020-67019-31157.
Publications
- Burchfield, E., Crossley, M., Nelson, K. (2024). Rotational complexity across US counties is currently insufficient to observe yield gains in major crops. 19(4). Environmental Research Letters.
- Nelson, K., Burchfield, E. (2023) Defining features of diverse and productive agricultural systems: An archetype analysis of U.S. agricultural counties. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2023.1081079
- Spangler, K., Burchfield, E., Radel, C., Jackson-Smith, D., Johnson, R. (2022). Crop diversification in Idaho’s Magic Valley: the present and the imaginary. Agronomy for Sustainable Development. 42 (99). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-022-00833-0.
- Spangler, K., Schumacher, B., Bean, B., Burchfield, E. (2022). Path dependencies in US agriculture: Regional factors of diversification. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 333, 107957. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2022.107957
- Nelson, K., Burchfield, E. (2021) Landscape complexity and US crop production. Nature Food. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-021-00281-1
- Burchfield, E., Nelson, K. (2021) Agricultural yield geographies in the United States. Environmental Research Letters. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abe88d
- Spangler, K., Burchfield, E., Schumacher, B. (2019) Past and current dynamics of US agricultural land use and policy. In press at Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems.
- Burchfield, E., Nelson, K., Spangler, K. (2019). The impact of agricultural diversification on U.S. crop production. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 285 106615. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.106615. Preprint available here
