Agronomy

Agronomy is a branch of agricultural science that deals with the study of crops and the soils in which they grow. Agronomists work to develop methods that will improve the use of soil and increase the production of food and fiber crops. They conduct research in crop rotation, irrigation and drainage, plant breeding, soil classification, soil fertility, weed control, and other areas.

Agriculture
Agriculture is the science, art, or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other products.

At right are farm buildings with trees surrounded by fields on a fair weather day.

Theoretical agronomy
Def. the "science of utilizing plants, animals and soils for food, fuel, feed, and fiber and more" is called agronomy.

Soils
"In soil, estimates are that 80 to 99% of the microorganisms remain unidentified (1)."

"The soil at the Arlington site is a Plano silt-loam. The 20-cm-deep A horizon is a silt-loam and contains 4.4% organic matter. The loess mantel is >1.25 m deep. Four 2.5-cm-diameter soil cores were taken from the top 10 cm of a clover-grass pasture at the Arlington Agricultural Research Station. The soil samples were immediately placed on dry ice, mixed, and then stored at -70°C prior to DNA extraction. Soil analysis was done by the Soil Testing Laboratory of the University of Wisconsin—Madison as described by Schulte et al. (40). The soil sample contained 13% sand, 70% silt, 17% clay, 4.4% organic matter, 0.3% total N, 400 ppm of K+, and 98 ppm of P. The soil pH was 6.5. The site is well drained, with groundwater more than 25 m below the surface. Two-thirds of the 79-cm annual rainfall occurs from April to October. The site has an average of 165 frost-free days."

Hypotheses

 * 1) Laser aligning of fields can produce drainage close to ideal for the locale and climate.