Postdoctoral Research
Associates – Soil Health and Soil Organic Carbon/Nitrogen dynamics
We are looking for two postdoctoral scholars interested in soil health and soil carbon sequestration in arid and semiarid agroecosystems to join the Agroecology and Soil Management Research Group at the New Mexico State University. The work location will be at the Agricultural Science Center, Clovis, NM, with occasional travel to Las Cruces Campus and other Agricultural Science Centers across the state. The first candidate will assist with field and laboratory activities on research projects related to dryland cropping system intensification, tillage, and nutrient management projects, with a special focus on soil organic carbon and nitrogen dynamics, greenhouse gas emissions, and associated biogeochemical processes. The second candidate will focus on soil health assessment and management in irrigated crop and forage production systems and linking soil health with key agroecosystem functions (crop yield, carbon sequestration, erosion control, water conservation, etc.). The incumbent is expected to be enthusiastic to learn and assist in designing experiments, collecting soil and plant samples from on-station and on-farm plots, analyzing various soil/plant properties, running statistical analyses, and writing manuscripts. They are also expected to have excellent oral and written communication skills and the capability to work independently as well as in a collaborative environment. Utilizing research equipment such as Giddings and other soil probes, laboratory equipment including a C/N analyzer, and in-field greenhouse gas measurement and other soil health parameters would be a plus. If you are interested, don’t hesitate to contact Dr. Rajan Ghimire (rghimire@nmsu.edu) with your interest letter, CV, and list of three potential referees. Both positions are available immediately. The full announcement is available here
March 2020
Cover Crops Study Featured in ASA-CSSA-SSSA Science News
The Southern High Plains of the United States have low annual rainfall. When it does rain, though, intense storms can cause severe soil erosion. Strong winds also strip away valuable topsoil. Usually grown during seasons when primary crops aren’t cultivated, cover crops can include legumes such as pea and hairy vetch, or grassy crops like oats and barley. Cover crops do more than just cover fields between growing seasons. They help soils retain rainwater and reduce erosion from wind and water. Our study shows that cover crops can increase soil health in a semi-arid region of New Mexico. For the complete story, go to https://www.agronomy.org/news/cover-crops-can-benefit-hot-dry-soils
Pramod Acharya joins Cropping Systems and Soil Management Program from Summer 2019. He recently graduated from Eastern New Mexico University with MS in biology. He plans to work on the forage systems project.
Cropping Systems and Soil Management Program is featured in the first issue of ACES Magazine https://aces.nmsu.edu/about/documents/aces_magazine_ sp19.pdf. and May 25 issue of Las Cruces Sun https://www.lcsun-news.com/story/news/local/2019/05/25/nmsu-researchers-test-new-water-conservation-practices/1237988001/.
February 2019
Babu Ram Khanal, Assistant Professor at the Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal successfully completed his four-month visit with us. Congratulations Babu! Hope our collaboration will continue.