Forecasting and Assessing Cropping Systems (FACTS).

In June 2016 we launched a publically available web platform (http://crops.extension.iastate.edu/facts/) to provide real-time information and forecasts on weather, end of season corn and soybean yields, in season multi-layer soil water and nitrogen dynamics, phenology, and heat stress for 20 replicated combinations of crops (corn and soybean) x management practices (early vs late planting; tile drained vs undrained soils) located at six sites across Iowa. FACTS uses a combination of process-based dynamic models that includes the APSIM cropping systems software, two weather models (NDFD, CFS), high-resolution ground-truth soil-crop-weather measurements from the fields to validate model predictions and advanced statistical/web tools to disseminate the results. The overall objective of this project is three-fold: a) to provide quantitative estimates and scenario analysis during the season to help farmers make informed decisions, b) quantify 2016 yield gaps and perform an integrated assessment of production, economic and environmental performance of the studied cropping systems to inform 2017 management decisions and c) improve the science behind predictive tools. As of August 2016 FACTS has more than 1,500 users and over 5,000 page views.