Investigating Potential for Dryland Winter Squash Production for Food Systems Resiliency in the Northern Great Plains

Commodities

• Vegetables: cucurbits

Practices

• Crop Production: drought tolerance, intercropping, irrigation, nutrient cycling, nutrient management, seed saving, water management, winter storage
• Education and Training: demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, networking, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research, youth education
• Farm Business Management: labor/employment
• Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity
• Pest Management: cultivation, mulches - living, mulching - plastic, weed ecology
• Production Systems: agroecosystems, dryland farming, organic agriculture
• Soil Management: nutrient mineralization, organic matter, soil analysis, soil chemistry, soil microbiology, soil physics, soil quality/health
• Sustainable Communities: food sovereignty, local and regional food systems, partnerships, public participation, social capital, social networks, other

Semi-arid, northern climate regions face complex challenges for food production and access due to water limitations, a short growing season, and rural food insecurity. This project will address the need to adapt to increasingly variable precipitation patterns in the Northern Great Plains region through reduced irrigation, weed management and nutrient management strategies while ensuring continued production of nutrient-dense storage crops to support food security, producer livelihoods and a resilient food system. Through two replicated experimental trials and on-farm, participatory research using winter squash as the model crop, we aim to quantify how reduced to no irrigation and different mulching strategies affect the yield and physiological response of squash plants, soil nutrient cycling, and tradeoffs such as weed pressure. This project will take place during the growing seasons of 2025 and 2026. We will form a network of producers, food system stakeholders, technical assistant providers and researchers engaging in dryland farming for technical support, knowledge sharing and facilitated co-learning.

Research Objectives

Objective 1. Quantify plant-water-soil nutrient dynamics across reduced irrigation and mulch treatments 

Objective 2: Characterize plant physiological response to irrigation and mulching treatments, including fruit yield and quality, and tradeoffs including weed pressure. 

Objective 3: Coordinate field trials through on-farm participatory research to engage farmers in research design and outcomes 

Objective 4: Evaluate producers’ practices, motivations and attitudes toward dry farming winter squash and identify opportunities and barriers to producer adoption of dry farming winter squash. 

Educational Objectives

Objective 1: Engage farmers in collaborative learning about dry farming and reduced irrigation strategies for winter squash production and disseminate findings to the producer community. 

Objective 2: Engage community members in education around dryland farming winter squash in Montana and disseminate findings to the public.