Nematode-based fertilizer use efficiency model for sustainable soil health assessment
A cross-disciplinary framework using nematode community analysis to assess desirable and undesirable ecosystem services simultaneously. The Fertilizer Use Efficiency (FUE) model identifies best-to-worst case soil health scenarios and complementary treatments needed for sustainable outcomes in soybean production and other cropping systems.
Overview
This solution offers a nematode community-based Fertilizer Use Efficiency (FUE) model that provides an integrated framework for assessing soil health by simultaneously evaluating desirable and undesirable ecosystem services. The model addresses two critical bottlenecks in sustainable soil health: the lack of integration frameworks for collectively assessing ecosystem service footprints and the absence of biophysiochemical markers that identify efficient soil health conditions from a single soil core.
By visualizing relationships between ecosystem services such as biomass production, crop yield, and soil physiochemistry with both harmful plant-parasitic nematodes and beneficial free-living nematodes, the model identifies best-to-worst case scenarios. This enables farmers, agronomists, and researchers to pinpoint where complementary treatments are needed to achieve efficient and sustainable soil health outcomes that meet both environmental and economic expectations.
Technical specifications
Key features:
- Cross-disciplinary visualization linking ecosystem services with nematode community composition
- Simultaneous assessment of beneficial free-living and harmful plant-parasitic nematodes in the same soil environment
- Identification of best-to-worst case scenarios for soil health management
- Framework for determining complementary treatment needs based on nematode community indicators
- Applicable to conventional till and no-till cropping systems, including Roundup Ready soybean production
- Potential integration with nematicide efficacy testing for targeted soil health interventions
The model leverages nematodes as ideal model organisms because beneficial and harmful species occupy the same soil environment yet require management practices that produce opposite trajectories, making them powerful indicators of integrated soil health conditions.
Technology readiness level
The hypothesis has been validated through development of the nematode community-based FUE model. Future validation plans include applying the model to test the effects of selected BCS nematicides on desirable and undesirable ecosystem services in conventional till and no-till Roundup Ready soybean production systems. This next phase aims to demonstrate the model's utility for identifying sustainable soil health outcomes and guiding targeted nematicide applications across diverse tillage practices.
About Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a major public land‑grant research university with a comprehensive academic portfolio and a large research enterprise. Industry partners engage through an on‑campus U.S. Department of Energy national user facility and shared core laboratories with user access. The university provides a chemical process scale‑up pilot plant on Michigan’s lakeshore, a research and technology park, and a Grand Rapids health innovation campus linking researchers with clinical partners. A statewide extension network supports field deployment and workforce training across Michigan’s manufacturing corridor. Research is backed by competitive federal funding from NSF, NIH, DOE, USDA, and DoD, while dedicated tech transfer and corporate engagement teams—supported by an affiliated research foundation—accelerate IP, licensing, startups, and sponsored research.
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