The last two years the Carrington Research Extension Center has experienced each end of the spectrum in regards to precipitation influences on crop growth. In 2013, we were extremely dry and received very little rain throughout the growing season which caused significant gains in our irrigated variety trials, most significantly on corn and soybeans. This year however, consistent rainfall throughout the growing season helped minimize moisture stress on all of our crops and we have not experienced any significant differences in our irrigated yields compared to our dryland. Irrigation management remains a top research priority here at the CREC and we continue to work to identify better methods for properly managing our water use through irrigation.

Table 1. Rainfall Received at the CREC                          Table 2. Irrigation Applied at the CREC

Look for more information on irrigation management and influences on various crop inputs in the upcoming 2014 Annual Report. Contact Justin Berg at 701-652-2951 or justin.t.berg@ndsu.edu for more information on irrigation management here at the CREC.