In a step toward advancing sustainable agriculture, Clemson University has launched a pioneering research initiative to enhance water use efficiency and crop productivity across the southeastern U.S.
The project is led Qiong Su, assistant professor and Water Resources Program Team member in Clemson’s Department of Agricultural Sciences. Co-investigators are Jeffrey Adelberg, a horticulture professor in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, and Raghupathy Karthikeyan, Newman Endowed Chair Professor of Natural Resources Engineering and a professor in the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
Backed by the USDA’s Research Capacity Fund (Hatch), this 5-year initiative addresses challenges farmers face in the region, including water scarcity, extreme weather events and saltwater intrusion. The project will deliver science-based, regionally tailored tools to support irrigation scheduling, crop planning and long-term field management.
At the core of the project is a multiscale modeling framework (MMF). This framework pulls together many types of information, like current and predicted weather, satellite and drone images, soil details, crop performance and results from both greenhouse experiments and field tests. The MMF uses artificial intelligence and process-based models, such as crop and hydrologic models, to help make sense of all this data.
The goal is to turn complex information into clear, useful advice for farmers, decision-makers and even everyday consumers.
Three core objectives drive the research
This project has three primary objectives:
- Deliver high-resolution weather forecasts tailored to South Carolina’s agricultural needs.
- Improve current evapotranspiration (ET) models to better reflect regional growing conditions and account for salt stress.
- Develop a powerful modeling system to guide crop selection, irrigation management and field operations.
Precision weather forecasting
Farmers in the Southeast face unpredictable weather events, such as heat stress, flash droughts and heavy rainfall. Reliable, site-specific forecasts are crucial to minimizing risk and protecting crop yields.
The team will deliver high-resolution weather forecasts tailored to South Carolina, including short-term (1–2 week) weather forecasts to support irrigation scheduling and seasonal forecasts (up to 5 months) to guide crop management.
Improved evapotranspiration (ET) models
Evapotranspiration (ET) measures how much water crops lose through evaporation and transpiration. Existing models often assume ideal conditions and fail to account for stressors such as drought, salinity and heat.
The researchers will refine ET models to reflect real-world growing conditions, particularly in coastal areas using brackish water. These refinements will help farmers better manage irrigation while protecting soil and crop health.
Crop and irrigation management tools
The MMF will integrate genotype, environmental and management data, such as planting date and irrigation, to support better crop selection and field operations. The team will generate high-resolution crop suitability maps, yield predictive models and user-friendly tools to help farmers manage their fields more effectively.
The MMF will help answer critical agricultural questions, such as: Which crops are best suited to my land? How can I maximize profits from my crops? How can I manage water sustainably?
Across the Southeast, producers are already adjusting their practices: testing different crop varieties that can better withstand environmental variability, adjusting planting schedules and fine-tuning their fertilizer and water applications.
“Farmers are doing everything they can to have sustainable production,” Su said. “But the question is—can these adaptations keep pace with the growing complexity of environmental and operational challenges? That’s where science must step in.”
This research is not just academic.
Su emphasized. “It’s something farmers can access and use in real time. We’re working to translate complex science into simple, usable solutions.”
The project begins Oct. 1. The researchers expect their findings to contribute significantly to agricultural sustainability, economic resilience and environmental stewardship beyond state lines.
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