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Manganese Oxides in Treatment System Could Be Mixed Blessing

Mick Kulikowski

Control room for soil warming.

Sep 16, 2025

Warming Temps Alone Fail to Trigger Increased CO2 Levels From Soil

Higher temperatures combined with added carbon – and added nutrients – led to higher carbon dioxide levels released from the soil. 
Prairie strip growing in wheat at the LTER Main Cropping Systems Experiment.

Sep 8, 2025

Suite of Models Shows Some Positive Effects of Climate-Smart Ag Practices

No-till farming, cover-crop utilization and residue retention can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a study using a suite of models. 
Picture of corn plant against the sky.

Aug 28, 2024

Diverse Crop Rotations Reduce Risk of Crop Loss Under Poor Growing Conditions

This post was written by Autumn Canady at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are responding to the increasingly uncertain climate. The warmer and more unpredictable weather has been a source of instability on U.S. farms. ARS agroecologists turned to history for a solution to… 
Photo of tobacco plants with and without pollen.

Sep 15, 2023

No Pollen, No Seeds: Genome Editing Technique Yields Useful Traits

Tweaks to the mitochondrial genome hold the potential for better hybrid seed production or to introduce seedless fruits. 
Tractor at a cover crop conference in North Carolina.

Mar 21, 2023

Study: Cover Crops Help Mitigate Farmer Losses

Results suggest cover crops can keep soil drier and healthier, allowing Midwestern farmers to plant cash crops after flooding. 
Truck roars past grain silos and wet fields in Pasquotank County.

Aug 15, 2022

No-Till Farming Study Shows Benefit to Midwestern Land Values

Analysis quantifies monetary land value benefits of environmentally friendly practice. 
A portrait of Jacob Jones, Jacob Jones, director of the STEPS Center and professor of materials science and engineering at NC State

Sep 9, 2021

New NSF Center Will Advance Phosphorus Sustainability

A new interdisciplinary center will advance ambitious goals to reduce phosphorus dependence — with the support of a five-year, $25 million grant. 
Soybean plants in the field.

Jul 9, 2021

Elevated Warming, Ozone Have Detrimental Effects on Plant Roots, Promote Soil Carbon Loss

Soybean plant roots weaken when placed under climate change stresses, a new study shows. 
Photo of rice grains.

Mar 12, 2021

Farm-Level Study Shows Rising Temperatures Hurt Rice Yields

Long-term study in the Philippines tracks the effects of warming temperatures on yields of a staple crop – rice. 
Scanning electron micrographs of a manganese oxidizing fungus (Fusarium sp.) isolated from the treatment system. Manganese oxides produced by these organisms are potentially useful in environmental remediation systems. Image courtesy of Terrence Gardner, NC State University.

Jan 19, 2017

Manganese Oxides in Treatment System Could Be Mixed Blessing

Bad news or good news? Black sludge grows in water-treatment plant, but can it be used to clean up metal pollutants?