Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial

The Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial (WICST) was the vision of Dr. Joshua Posner. Founded in 1989, WICST was established in response to farmer demand for long-term research about low-input agriculture. Josh and others felt there was an urgent need to address questions of agricultural sustainability in Wisconsin by “honest brokers” investigating both the benefits and limitations of alternative production strategies. From its inception, researchers at WICST explored questions about whether Midwestern agricultural systems were capable of being highly productive and profitable while conserving natural resources and providing ecosystem services such as clean water and healthy soils. To this end, WICST is a large-scale (24 ha), randomized, and replicated experiment on highly productive prairie-derived soils (Mollisols) that compares alternative approaches to grain and forage production typical of the upper Midwest USA. For the first decade, WICST was replicated in two sites, Arlington and Lakeland. The Lakeland site was discontinued in 2002 and the Arlington site continues today.

Producer relevance

The experiment represents cash-grain, dairy forage, and mixed crop-animal production systems, as well as perennial grasslands of various compositions and management, including burning and grazing. Both the breadth of the WICST systems (representative of much of the Northcentral US), along with the experiments large size (0.3 ha plots) and reliance on full scale agricultural equipment, provide a “real world” depth to experimental data increasing its value and relevance to farmers and land managers.

Expected benefits

Experimental treatments were selected to be: Agroecological, Carbon-building, Cost-effective, Labor-saving, Use fewer external inputs, No-tillage, Reduced-tillage, Soil health-building.

Local stressors

The expected climate change-related stressors in the area are: Atmospheric conditions (e.g., short-lived climate pollutants, dust), Droughts, Heat, Increased incidence of pests, Seasonal temperature changes, Shifting rainfall patterns.