Development of a Farmer-Friendly Tool for Predicting Soil Organic Matter and Ecosystem Services in Ohio Soils.

Farmers are aware that soil organic matter (SOM) remains the foundation upon which productive (and sustainable) agricultural systems are built. New markets have emerged for crop residue as bio-energy feedstock, and this poses challenges for farmers attempting to weigh potential economic benefits of selling corn stover against the risk lowering soil organic matter. A spreadsheet-based computer tool is needed to help farmers (and farm advisors) make decisions that affect SOM. This study involves development of a spreadsheet-based decision tool to more accurately predict long term changes in SOM based on specific crop rotations, yields, tillage systems, cover crops, manure application, residue removal and other practices. A SOM calculator was developed by Shedekar et al. (2012) for predicting SOM changes in agricultural soils in Michigan. The SOM calculator is further modified for Ohio conditions, and expanded to include prediction of ecosystem services and overall soil health indicators. The user-friendly tool will calculate and predict total, active and passive soil organic matter, and nitrogen and phosphorus availability as well as CO2 emissions and/or sequestration due to SOM changes. These parameters will further be used to derive indicators for overall soil health and ecosystem services. The tool will allow producers to select practices that conserve or build soil organic matter and visualize their effectiveness over several years in future.