Consider using on-farm research to improve farm profitability – Ohio Ag Net

By Elizabeth Hawkins, Dara Barclay and John Fulton

The 2024 season has begun and you may be spending some of your time in the tractor thinking about how to get the most out of this harvest. On-farm research is one of the best tools to help you improve your profitability and now is a great time to plan experiments to understand how you can improve your results. Local trials can provide valuable farm-level information to use for future decision-making, and conducting an informative, high-quality experiment may be easier than you think. Here are some quick tips for successful on-farm research:

1. Think carefully about the question you want to answer. It’s important to have a clear vision of what you want to learn to ensure you plan the right treatments to compare and the right data to collect throughout the season.
2. Select treatments that compare the most important management practices to know. Simple is often best, as trying to compare too many factors at once can make it difficult to determine the most important change at the end of the season.
3. Use a reliable trial plan to ensure your results are reliable for decision making. While a side-by-side comparison is easy to try, you can learn more by replicating and randomizing your treatment strips across the field. This approach will help protect against erroneous conclusions due to terrain variability and make your results more useful for future decision-making.
4. Take notes and collect data throughout the season. Additional information about crop populations, plant health, or the presence of diseases can help you understand the yield differences you are seeing.

The OSU eFields program provides the opportunity to work and learn with Extension specialists and educators. You can go to efields.osu.edu to view past reports to get more information about your operation and find essay ideas. If you are interested in collaborating this season, contact the eFields team at [email protected].

Dr. Elizabeth Hawkins is a field specialist for Ohio State University Extension and can be reached at [email protected]. Dara Barclay is the eFields and eBarns program manager for Extension, Agriculture and Natural Resources at Ohio State University. Dr. John Fulton is a professor in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Ohio State University and can be contacted at [email protected].