Field Day Lietzen 2025
/ Lietzen
This year's Field Day is all about soil health and sustainable soil management in light of the challenges posed by climate change. On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Lietzen practice trial, the ZALF network and the Komturei Lietzen, together with partners from science, advisory services, and practice, invite you to a diverse technical program featuring demonstrations, presentations, and discussions. The Field Day is aimed at farmers, students, and companies interested in topics such as soil health in climate change, reduced tillage (e.g., strip-till), mechanical weed control, and methods of soil diagnostics.
When: Thursday, September 4, 2025, 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Where: Komturei Lietzen & Long-term trial field on reduced tillage
Program
Find additional materials provided by our speakers and exhibitors here:
Controlled Drainage: Preparing for Summer with Winter Rain:
Download
Potentials and Approaches for Building Humus in Arable Soils:
Download
The Key to Precise Fertilization: High-Resolution Soil Texture:
3D Soil Texture Maps IGZ Soil Types IGZ Soil Type Maps IGZ
Structure Atlas and Soil Life:
Soil Life Soil Structure Code Structure Atlas
For 30 years, ZALF has been researching reduced soil tillage in Lietzen, Brandenburg. During the presentation of results marking the long-term experiment's anniversary, one thing became clear: solutions are rarely obvious—every cropping system has its pros and cons for the farmer. Carefully weighing these factors remains an ongoing task.
(by Johanna Michel)
The Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) carries out one of the longest practical experiments on reduced soil tillage in eastern Brandenburg. To celebrate the 30th anniversary, the institute presented the key findings onsite in Lietzen. Their research demonstrates just how complex the search for the best farming methods is—and that the right answer can vary not only from farm to farm, but also from year to year.
The main focus is on soil health, a universally recognized priority. Frank Ewert, ZALF’s Scientific Director, emphasized the complexity behind this term. Soil health involves not only yield and production foundations but also functions such as carbon and nutrient storage, water retention, and purification (e.g., filtering nitrate or antibiotics). Biodiversity also plays a vital role, since soil is a habitat for micro-, meso-, and macrofauna, and farm practices directly affect surrounding ecosystems.
Against this background, the problem of soil degradation is significant. Besides farming methods that strongly impact the soil, long-term trends of climate warming contribute to degradation. According to Ewert, farmers are now much more affected by dry years. With its sandy soils, Brandenburg is facing production conditions that make farming increasingly difficult.
“Brandenburg has become a borderline location,” noted the ZALF director. In Lusatia, there are already semi-arid areas—dry regions with high evaporation rates and increasing risk of drought-driven desertification, which is a troubling development.
30 years without a plough
From its 30-year field trial in Lietzen, ZALF has gained insights on how reduced soil tillage can help farmers adapt to challenging conditions. It is one of very few long-term studies on the topic in Germany. Since 1995, the site has investigated the effects of reduced tillage on yields, soil health, and the environment.
(To read the full article, please click here.)
