Research Project
The TWS OJ is also financing a research project, supervised by Jana Rose at Hamburg University of Technology in cooperation with IG gesunder Boden e.V. and the Department of Ecological Agricultural Sciences at the University of Kassel.
The aim of the research is to evaluate the practices implemented by the farmers as part of their contractual cooperation with the TWS OJ. The goal is to understand how these practices influence key soil properties—particularly erodibility and water infiltration capacity.
The key practices being studied are:
- Reduced tillage vs. deep tillage
- Cover crop use vs. no cover crop use
- Inoculation (Seed coating) with microorganisms and soil fungi vs. no seed coating
The image below shows the layout of the research site, which includes 32 (18x9 m) plots, each featuring a different combination of these three practices.
To evaluate the impact of these practices, the following tests are conducted directly in the field:
- Double ring infiltration
- Rainfall simulator
- Extended spade diagnosis
- Aggregate stability (aggregates method and quick method)
- Bulk density
- Penetration resistance
Curious to see how the practices are applied and to learn how these tests are performed in the field?
Take a virtual tour of the project site by exploring the interactive image below! Start by clicking the Audio button in the top left corner to hear where you are and what you can discover in each scene.