How can our soils remain productive and resilient in the future? What methods protect them from erosion, drought and pollutants? These questions are the focus of the field day "Soil.Knowledge.Action – 30 Years of the Lietzen Field Trial" on September 4, 2025 in Lietzen, Brandenburg. To mark the anniversary of one of the oldest practical trials on reduced tillage, the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) and the Lietzen commandery and partners are inviting you to a varied specialist program.
Lectures, machine demonstrations and interactive stations are dedicated to soil health under the influence of climate change. Farmers, people interested in soil, students, companies and educational institutions dealing with topics such as strip-till, mechanical weed control, humus formation and digital soil mapping are all invited. Visitors with no previous knowledge of agriculture are also very welcome.
Soil in focus: Dialogue between science and practice
In the morning, guests can look forward to a panel discussion with soil expert Prof. Katharina Helming from ZALF, Prof. Frank Ewert, Scientific Director of ZALF and Felix Gerlach, Managing Director of Komturei Lietzen, at Komturei Lietzen. They will discuss how agricultural businesses in Brandenburg can ensure healthy soils in the long term.
"Healthy soil is the foundation of crop production and is crucial for adapting agriculture to climate change," explains Prof. Frank Ewert. "Our research in Lietzen shows that soil cultivation adapted to the location improves the soil structure, humus content and water retention in the long term."
After the panel discussion, experts from the fields of consulting, practice and science will provide concrete insights: for example, how mechanical weed control can help to reduce the use of pesticides in conventional cultivation, or how farms can regulate the water balance in the soil throughout the year with controlled drainage. The HumusClimateNetwork shares recommendations for building up humus in arable soils. Brandenburg farmers will report on their experiences with strip-till and new climate-adapted crops.
Experience knowledge on the trial area
In the afternoon, visitors will head to the long-term trial area, where various soil cultivation methods have been tested for 30 years. Interactive stations await visitors there:
Dr. Kathrin Grahmann from ZALF uses current harvest and soil data to show the effects of 30 years of reduced tillage. This will be supplemented by research results from various ZALF projects, such as soil health monitoring and measurements of soil erosion and water absorption. During the soil profile presentation by Prof. Wilfried Hierold, the participants of the field day will be able to get an idea of the individual soil layers on the test field. The "microstructure atlas" presented illustrates the structure of soils: computer tomography visualizes the pore spaces of differently processed soils. Researchers from the Leibniz Institute of Vegetable and Ornamental Crops (IGZ) and the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB) will be presenting digital methods such as sensor-based soil mapping and site-differentiated, optimized nutrient management for precise fertilization. An information stand of the Innovation Center for Agricultural System Transformation (IAT) will address the question of suitable soil protection for an agriculture with a future in an open dialog format. The citizen science project ECHO Soil raises citizens' awareness of soil health and enables them to contribute to European soil protection projects by collecting data.
Background on the Lietzen field trial
The Lietzen field trial is one of the few long-term trials in Germany to combine scientific data with practical experience from agriculture. Since 1995, it has been investigating the effects of reduced tillage on yields, soil health and the environment. The field day now offers an up-to-date overview of 30 years of results, developments and perspectives.
Event details at a glance:
When: Thursday, September 4, 2025 | 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Where: Lietzen Estate & long-term trial area for reduced tillage
Participation is free of charge, registration is required.
Registration and program
Registration, further information and the program overview can be found at:
https://eveeno.com/feldtaglietzen2025
Note on the text:
This text was created with the help of artificial intelligence. The text has been carefully reviewed and revised with regard to the AI regulations at ZALF. To the handout on dealing with generative AI at ZALF:
https://www.zalf.de/de/aktuelles/downloads/Documents/Imagebroschuere/KI-Handreichung.pdf
About the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) e. V. in Müncheberg, an institution of the Leibniz Association:
The ZALF conducts research into the economically, ecologically and socially sustainable agriculture of the future – together with stakeholders from science, politics and practice.
In order to contribute to overcoming global social challenges such as climate change, food security, biodiversity conservation and resource scarcity, we develop and design cultivation systems in a landscape context that combine the need for crop production with sustainability. To this end, we combine complex landscape data with a unique set of experimental methods, new technologies, computer-aided models and socio-economic approaches.
ZALF research is systems research: from processes in soils, plants and water, to interrelationships at the field and landscape level, to global impacts and consideration of complex interactions between landscape, society and economy. www.zalf.de