How The Old Rotation And Cullars Rotation Contribute To Alabama Agriculture
⋅ BY CASSIDY NEMEC ⋅
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
On the campus of Auburn University in East Central Alabama stands two of the oldest cotton experiments in the world. The Old Rotation remains the third-oldest rotational study in the world and oldest in the South, while Cullars Rotation is the oldest soil fertility study in the South.
Today, the Old Rotation and Cullars Rotation is managed by Auburn University Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences, the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station and USDA-ARS National Soil Dynamics Laboratory. Dr. Audrey Gamble, associate professor for soil fertility and soil conservation at Auburn University, has oversight of the rotation studies, and Joseph Burch, research assistant at Auburn University, performs day-to-day management.
Support for both rotational studies is provided by Alabama Wheat and Feed Grains Committee, Alabama Soybean Producers and Alabama Cotton Commission.
The Old Rotation
By the time the late nineteenth century rolled around, much of the arable land was cleared for cotton and corn production in the South. Minimal to no lime or fertilizers were used at that point, and most farmers had been practicing “slash and burn” agriculture, exhausting the fields and moving on to other lands.
Established in 1896, the “Old Rotation” is the oldest continuous cotton experiment in the world and encompasses multiple cropping systems — cotton, corn, soybeans, small grains and winter cover crops all on one acre of sandy loam soil.
J.F. Duggar, a young professor at the then called Agricultural and Mechanical College of Alabama, proposed the theory that “Alabama agriculture would come into its own when her fields are green in winter.” Enter cover crops. He began to experiment on campus, and the Old Rotation he began then is still going strong today.
The purpose of the rotation is to demonstrate and document the value of rotating cotton with other crops and including nitrogen-restoring legumes in the system.
One of the plots has had continuous cotton and no fertilizer since 1896. “One of the most amazing things to me about this is that this plot has been in continuous cotton with no nitrogen for over 125 years, and it still picks about a bale,” Gamble said. “We’ve seen an increase in yields over time. With a legume, we are able to see more of that yield potential.”
Gamble said there is one rotation plot that stands above the rest and has proven to have the highest yield potential over time. “Our highest [yields] are certainly the cotton-corn rotations with the winter legume; they tend to do the best.”
Visit https://agriculture.auburn.edu/research/cses/the-old-rotation/ for more information on The Old Rotation.
The Cullars Rotation
The Cullars Rotation, the world’s second oldest cotton study, was established on campus in 1911. It was named after Mr. J.A. Cullars who farmed the land where the rotation sits with his brother John Alvis.
Professor George Atkinson, a biologist at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Alabama experimented on this site and discovered what they were calling “cotton rust” in the 1800s was indeed a potassium deficiency. As a result, this soil fertility experiment was established as a way to study crop response to added (or subtracted) nutrients, with an emphasis on potassium.
Cullars Rotation was one of 200 on-farm fertility experiments going on in the state of Alabama in the early 1900s.
Today, many are able to see the short- and long-term effects of different fertilization combinations on sandy, Coastal Plain soils in a three-year rotation system of cotton, followed by a winter legume, then corn, then wheat and then soybeans.
“We have a much more difficult time building organic matter in this soil because of the sandiness,” Gamble said. “But it’s also a great place for a fertility experiment because of that.”
She noted geese have been one of their main animal pests, especially in wheat, in recent years. “It’s only been the past few years, but they really mess up the edges of our plots.”
In one of the plots, Gamble said they have started to see yields decrease in cotton and corn in recent years where they had no micronutrients. “When I say micronutrients here, it’s a blend of boron, zinc, molybdenum, iron and manganese.”
Visit https://agriculture.auburn.edu/research/cses/the-cullars-rotation/ for more information on Cullars Rotation.
The Rotations Today
Today, The Old Rotation and Cullars Rotation both stand on Auburn University’s campus and serve as teaching models for professors, students and visitors alike. The yield data is captured for all plots every year and has shown to improve over the past century.
Auburn University has additional plans for the Transformation Garden, a 16-acre field to serve as teaching gardens, a classroom and research facility for future students and visitors. Fruits, vegetables, ornamentals, row crops and more are planned for the site. It will all be maintained and managed by students who are learning to work in this industry.
These rotational studies and future gardens are meant to create learning, research and outreach opportunities, and so far, there has been much success.
Gamble said they have witnessed a lot of teaching and practical application opportunities with the rotations. “Loads of classes come out here, so it’s very nice to have on campus.”