Kellogg Biological Station Long-term Ecological Research Program

The KBS LTER is part of a national network of LTER sites established by the National Science Foundation in 1980. KBS joined the Network in 1988 to provide science-based information on how to make farming both good for the environment and profitable for farmers. Using this experiment, KBS scientists are addressing questions such as:

• How does tillage affect soil quality?
• How do beneficial insects like ladybugs help farmers grow healthy crops?
• How does change agriculture affect climate change?
• How can we manage the land to produce food AND improve the environment?

While the lifespan of most agricultural research projects is only a few years, KBS LTER research has been going on for over twenty years! Long-term research is important to really understand how crops respond to rare events, for example droughts and insect pest outbreaks. It also allows scientists to study processes that take a long time to play out, such as changes in soil quality and tree growth. We’re excited to share with you how we do our research and some of what we have learned over the last 20 years!