Richard E. Farrell

Soil Science

Director, Prairie Environmental Agronomy Research Laboratory (PEARL)

I am a native Rhode Islander (a state roughly 200-times smaller than Saskatchewan) and was educated at the University of Rhode Island and Iowa State University. Though I grew up in the city, I have been interested in soil science since I was 13 and a friend of mine jokingly suggested doing a science project on soils because “there’s nothing alive in soils” . . . . oh, was he wrong! So, I did my project on “Soils and Soil Conservation”, and managed to win 2nd prize in the local science fair—though one of the judges said that the study of soils wasn’t real science . . . . oh, was he wrong! So, here I am many years later, still studying what I love at one of the best Soil Science Departments in North America.

Sustainable development of our soil resources is the foundation on which agricultural production is based, and is crucial to ensuring future food security. One key issue facing farmers in Saskatchewan and across the globe is climate change—and the role that agricultural soils can play in helping to mitigate against further increases in global mean temperature. Successful greenhouse gas mitigation and adaptation programs require both reliable inventories of current emissions and the ability to forecast management-induced changes on these emissions.

My research addresses both of these requirements by addressing the impacts of agricultural management on GHG emissions from integrated agricultural landscapes and the development of advanced fertilizer management strategies. The centerpiece of this research is the Prairie Environmental Agronomy Research Laboratory (PEARL), of which I am co-lead scientist. The PEARL supports research aimed at developing innovative solutions to the problems facing today’s producers by identifying strategies that enhance, maintain, or re-establish agroecosystem capacity and integrity while providing definable environmental benefits; e.g., mitigating nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions and promoting carbon sequestration.

Ph.D., Iowa State University, 1985, Department of Agronomy, Soil Chemistry

M.Sc., Iowa State University, 1979, Department of Agronomy, Soil Chemistry

B.Sc., University of Rhode Island, 1975, Department of Natural Resources Science, Resource Development

Liu L., Knight J.D., Lemke, R.L. & Farrell, R.E. (2024). Quantifying the contribution of above- and below-ground residues of chickpea, faba bean, lentil, field pea, and wheat to the nitrogen nutrition of a subsequent wheat crop. Field Crops Research 313, 109412, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science  /article/pii/S0378429024001655

Wagner-Riddle, C., Congreves, K.A., Brown, S.E., Helgason, W.D., & Farrell, R.E. (2024). Overwinter and spring thaw nitrous oxide fluxes in a northern Prairie cropland are limited but a significant proportion of annual emissions. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 38, e2023GB008051. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GB008051

David E. Pelster, Jean-Pascal Matteau, Richard Farrell, and Guillermo Hernandez Ramirez (2024). Tillage effects on growing season nitrous oxide emissions in Canadian cropland soils. Canadian Journal of Soil Science. 104(1): 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjss-2023-0075

Heuchan, S.M., C. Wagner-Riddle, K.R. Baral, K.A. Congreves, R.E. Farrell, S. Jordan, & H.A.L. Henry (2023). Cover crops increase belowground N retention substantially in corn cropping systems: results from a ¹⁵N residue swapping experiment. Plant and Soil. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-023-06196-z.

Lemke, R.L., P.V.F. Machado, A.W. Alemu, V.S. Baron, R.E. Farrell, A.D. Iwassa, B.C. Liang, & J.J. Schoenau (2023). Pastures under dry climate can be cold spots for soil nitrous oxide emissions from grazing animal excreta. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 357: 108684. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2023.108684

Wu, Qianyi, Kate A. Congreves, & Richard E. Farrell (2023). Microwave-assisted citrate extraction (MaCE) as an alternative to autoclave citrate extraction (ACE) of a soil protein fraction. Canadian Journal of Soil Science. 103:684–688. dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjss-2023-0016

Bramble, D.E., Gouveia, G.A., Rammnarine, R. & Farrell, R.E. (2021). Organic residue and agricultural lime interactions on CO₂ emissions from two contrasting soils: implications for carbon management in acid soils. Journal of Soils and Sediments. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-020-02736-7

Liu L., Knight J.D., Lemke, R.L. & Farrell, R.E. (2021). Type of pulse crop included in a 2-year rotation with wheat affects total N₂O loss and intensity. Biology & Fertility of Soils 57: 699-713, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-021-01562-4

Machado, P.V.F., Farrell, R.E., Deen, W., Voroney, R.P., Congreves, K.A. & Wagner-Riddle, C. (2021). Contribution of crop residue, soil, and fertilizer nitrogen to nitrous oxide emissions varies with long-term crop rotation and tillage. Science of the Total Environment 767 (May 2021) 145107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145107

Machado, P.V.F., Farrell, R.E., Bell, G., Taveira, C.J., Congreves, K.A., Voroney, R.P., Deen, W. & Wagner-Riddle, C. (2021). Crop residues contribute minimally to spring-thaw nitrous oxide emissions under contrasting tillage and crop rotations. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 152 (2021) 108057. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2020.108057

2022 Fellow of the Canadian Society of Soil Science

2019 Editor’s Citation for Excellence, Reviewer, Journal of Environmental Quality

Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture – Agriculture Development Fund (ADF)

Canadian Agriculture Partnership (CAP)

Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF)

Canola AgriScience Cluster: Alberta Canola, SaskCanola, Manitoba Canola Growers, & Canola Council of Canada

Canadian Barley Research Coalition: Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission, Alberta Grains and the Manitoba Crop Alliance

Canada Foundation for Innovation – John R. Evans Leaders Fund

Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada

SLSC 826  Physical, Chemical, and Biological Characterization of Soils

SLSC 990  Soil Science Seminar