The Feasibility of Subsurface Drainage in Northwest Minnesota

Gary Sands, Assistant Professor
Changxing Jin, Research Associate
Bradley Hansen, Assistant Scientist
Jochum Wiersma, Assistant Professor and Small Grains Specialist, Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Zach Fore, Extension Cropping Systems Specialist, Northwestern Minnesota
Hans Kandel, Extension Educator, Red Lake County

Funding Source

Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (Rapid Agricultural Response Fund); Wheat Research and Promotion Council; Prinsco, Inc.; Field Drainage, Inc.; University of Minnesota Extension Service; University of Minnesota Northwest Research and Outreach Center

Objective

Determine the crop response, hydrologic, water quality, and agronomic impacts of subsurface drainage for wheat, soybeans, and sugarbeets in northwest Minnesota.

Need or Impact

Catastrophic crop losses have been recorded in many years during the past decade in the Red River of the North river basin. In a region where there has been a traditional reliance on surface drainage alone, producers are increasingly interested in the potential of subsurface drainage to help manage water. Questions regarding the efficacy and economic value of such systems are prevalent.

Project Status

Three years of crop and soils response data have been collected at two sites in Polk County with plans for continued monitoring. Results show significant, beneficial wheat and sugarbeet responses to subsurface drainage. Drainage systems have also demonstrated increased soil warming in the spring.