Established in 2003 110 Acres
The Cache Junction Farm is among our newest facilities. Established in 2003, it is the site of commercial crop production, including alfalfa and grass hay used to feed university animals, seed peas for a seed company, as well as wheat and pinto beans.
Research underway at the Cache Junction Farm includes entomology studies of cereal leaf beetle and other pests, weed control experiments and barley variety trials. USDA Agricultural Research Service scientists are also using space at the farm for bee research and alfalfa trials. Research is also taking place above the farm as water engineers test methods of aerial mapping and ground imaging and the USU-affiliated Space Dynamics Laboratory operates a ground-based LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) instrument to study the atmosphere.
As water demands increase, and available irrigation water supplies stay constant or decline in Utah, barley production systems will need to adapt to earlier maturity and to make use of winter precipitation and early spring moisture.
Plant breeding is a long-term research project. Because both biotic and abiotic stresses differ markedly between geographical areas, genotype by environment interactions can be exploited to develop cultivars.
One of the biggest and most complex problems facing society today is the issue of invasive plants. While the general public may not view invasive plants as a threat or even a problem, their importance is well documented scientifically.
The long-term goal of this project is to improve the profitability of Utah livestock producers, reduce the negative environmental impact of ruminant production and increase the food security of residents of Utah and the northern Mountain West.
As the atmosphere warms over much of the globe, precipitation events are predicted to become fewer but larger. This increasing precipitation intensity is expected to be a major driver of changes in terrestrial ecosystems in the coming decades.
Feeding cattle in feedlots is efficient, but problematic because feed yards produce concentrated ammonia emissions and animals are routinely treated with antibiotics and hormones that can contaminate the environment.
The goal of this project is to improve the economic and environmental sustainability of beef production in Utah and the Mountain West region. This work addresses concerns that beef consumers have about the welfare of cattle finished in feedlots.
