Morrow Plots: A Historic Overview

"The wealth of Illinois is in her soil, and her strength lies in its intelligent development." -Andrew Sloan Draper, President, University of Illinois, 1894-1904

Identification of Time/ Major Theme

Nine years after the founding of the Illinois Industrial University, a.k.a. the University of Illinois, in 1876 the Morrow Plots were founded. The Morrow Plots are the oldest continuous experimental agricultural test plot in the western hemisphere. They are also the home of the longest term continuous corn plot in the world (The morrow plots:…, 2007). The plots are the second oldest agricultural research field in the world, predated only by the Rothamsted Field in England, which was founded in 1843. Its soul purpose was to learn how soil fertility influenced yield. In 1968, the site was designated a National Historical Landmark by the Federal Government (The morrow plots…, 2001).

Location

Located in the heart of the university’s campus, only three out of the original ten plots are still in place today, due to the expanding university. In the beginning, each plot was one half of an acre. Now, there are only three plots that total six-tenths of an acre. Starting from the north end were plots one and two (The morrow plots:…, 2007). In 1895, these plots were lost for the construction of the Observatory that stands today. The other five plots were seeded back to the lawn in 1903 (The morrow plots…, 2001). According to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences website, Mumford Hall was founded in 1924. So in 1924, the once five research plots then converted to a grass lawn, Mumford Hall was built and stands there today (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

History of Foundation/ Influences on Creator

It is in strong debate on who actually started the Morrow Plots. One source indicates that the idea came from C.W. Silver. Silver was an agricultural chemist who visited the Rothamsted Field in England while he was on his way to Germany to study for an advanced degree. When he got back to the U.S., he wrote to the campus newspaper telling of what he saw at the Rothamsted Field. In his letter to the newspaper, he concluded with a proposed layout for a long-term field study on corn in Urbana. At that time there was considerable controversy in the agricultural “industry” over the need for fertilizer in the soil. One leader of the USDA stated that due to the fertile soil of central Illinois or the Midwest for that matter, no fertilizer would be needed as long as there is a crop rotation system in place (The morrow plots…, 2001). Also at that time, the U.S. was 100 years old and the state’s average corn yield was 30 bushels per acre. The farm wages were $15 a month and corn was selling for 30 cents per bushel. Less than 40 million people lived in the U.S and more than two-third of that population were rural/farmers and only 388 students attended the Illinois Industrial University (The morrow plots:…, 2007). Manly Miles from Michigan State was hired as the Professor of Agriculture in 1875. Miles was acknowledged at the time as one of the best agriculture professors in the country. His hiring coincided with the resigning of C.W. Silvers. On June 10, 1876, Miles wrote a letter to the Prairie Farmer telling about a long-term corn test plot that he had started. After six months of working at the U of I, Miles resigned due to differences with higher up faculty. The first study on the plots was dubbed the “Experiment 23 Rotation Study.” No Crop yield data was recorded until 1888. So, all in all, Professors Silver and Miles both contributed to the founding of the Morrow plots and they are named after George E. Morrow. Morrow was the university’s Dean of Agriculture at the time of the founding of the plots (The morrow plots:…, 2001).

History of Crops in Current Existing Plots

Starting at the north end of the plot is plot 3. This plot has been planted in corn for every year since 1876. The middle plot, or plot 4, was in a two-year corn-oats rotation from 1876 to 1968 when soybeans took the place of oats and is still there today. The south plot, plot 5, was originally in a six year rotation of corn-corn-oats-meadow-meadow-meadow but was changed in 1901 to just a three year rotation of corn-oats-clover. Then in 1953, it was changed one last time to a corn-oats-alfalfa rotation which is what it is today (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

History of Fertilizer in Morrow Plots/Structural Modifications

No fertilizers or soil treatments were added to the plots until 1904. By that time, the plots were 29 years old, and many lessons had been learned. Among these lessons were two very important ones: the high fertility of the lush prairie soil could be depleted with cropping and the depletion could be delayed by the use of crop rotations. So it was that year that a mixture of manure, lime and phosphorus (MLP) were added to one half of each plot, the other half remained untreated (The morrow plots:…, 2007). The first addition of the fertilizer was in response to the decreases in crop yields that had occurred in all rotational sequences. Fifty years later, plot 3, unfertilized continuous corn plot, was yielding an average of 25 bushels per acre and the fertilized corn in the three year rotation plot, plot 5, was yielding an average of over 100 bushels (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

In 1937, hybrid corn was first introduced to the test plots. Even though this introduction was beneficial in the increased yields along with the fertilizer, it did not help the yields of the non-fertilized soils. The unfertilized portions of the plots were just too low in nutrients that they were unable to take full advantage of this breakthrough development (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

By 1955, the majority of farmers were using these fertilizer techniques from the plot research as a part of their farming practices. However, there was great concern whether or not unfertilized soil had been permanently damaged. So, as a result of this concern, the technique of adding limestone, nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (LNPK) were introduced to the plots (The morrow plots…, 2001). The LNPK was added to a plot that had received no prior treatment and to a plot that had prior treatments of MLP. On the plots that had been previously treated with MLP, after the addition of LNPK, corn yields increased. On the previously unfertilized plots, the new treatment more than doubled the previous yields from 29 bushels per acre to 113 bushels. This increase in yield showed how fast soil fertility can increase with the addition of fertilizer (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

In 1967, the Morrow Plots saw another modification due to the rapidly changing technology and agricultural industry. These modifications included addition of more plant populations and another section of each plot was treated with higher levels of LNPK. The result: 200-bushel corn by the 1980’s. Also, in 1968 was the introduction of soybeans into the two-crop rotation with corn. With the addition of limestone and fertilizer, soybeans increased yield from 35 bushels per acre to 48 bushels (The morrow plots:…, 2007).

Overview of Interpretations of the Era/Issues

During the 1800’s, between the time of the American Revolution and the Civil War, was considered to be the age of the farmer in the United States. Agrarianism was a common way of thinking for most people of that time. Agrarianism is a social and political philosophy that stresses the viewpoint that farming leads to a fuller, more pure, and happier way of life. It also stresses that farmers are the purest form of life and they are superior over all other walks of life. At that time, virtually all policy makers recognized agriculture as the key component to American economy. Also at that time farmers were becoming more scientific in order to improve their businesses. They subscribed to magazines and got involved in agricultural societies to aid in the progression of their farms. Before the Civil War, farmers were society’s heroes because they (society) depended on farmers to feed the nation. Tomas Jefferson stated, “Those who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God, if ever he had chosen people, whose breasts he has made his peculiar deposit for substantial and genuine virtue (Danbom, 2006).”

As the Civil War came about, the popular perception of agriculture was still that of agrarianism. Agrarianism was the main driving factor for the progression of agriculture through science and technology. This is indicative in the development of government policies and institutions during this time period. In 1862, Congress formed the United States Department of Agriculture. This action symbolized the recognition of the potential for agricultural science and it also symbolized the economic and social status of agriculture. Also in 1862, was the passing of the Morrill Land-Grant College Act. This act was passed due to the increasing commercialization and technological advancement of agriculture. The Morrill Act provided thirty thousand acres of government land for each state’s senators and representatives to be used to construct and support at least one college specializing in the instruction of agriculture and mechanic arts. This act indicated two important things. It was an expression of agrarian romanticism and it reflected the reality that agriculture was becoming a more refined industry (Danbom, 2006). From this act, the University of Illinois was founded in 1867. Also, in order to advance a more scientific agricultural industry, the Morrow Plots were founded in 1876.

As the century rolled on into the late 19th century, the nation was growing. While the rural population was growing, the urban population was growing faster. With this boom in urban life, the views of agrarianism were vanishing quickly. No longer was the popular farmer an iconic figure of society, but was viewed as a shrewd figure with little intelligence. Such words were developed, derogatory of farmers, due to the sentiment s of urban dwellers as hicks, yokel, and rube. This negative view of agriculture and farmers in general was the motivation for universities to make farming a more scientific endeavor practiced by educated professionals. By this time the University of Illinois was in the process of making that happen by teaching new techniques in farming and studying new ways to improve productivity (Danbom, 2006). This was another reason for the foundation of both the university and the Morrow Plots. And, as time went on the university would shape the way agriculture is today.

Current Perceptions of Agriculture

In effort to see if urban perceptions of agriculture and rural perceptions were different, as they were in the late 19th century, I interviewed people from both a non-agricultural background and people from an agricultural background. My findings were somewhat shocking. I found that, from the people that I talked to, their opinions were relatively similar. All of the urban “suspects”, responded to opinion deriving questions in a positive attitude toward agriculture and farmers. This is highly unlike the urban opinions of the late 19th century and more like the agrarian viewpoints. Both rural and urban interviewees thought that farming was an important part of society, advanced education was a must for the advances in practices and technologies, and all but one person knew what the Morrow Plots were.

Critique/Conclusions

So, based on the interviews, one must ask themselves: Did the goals of the founders of the University of Illinois and the people of that time become a reality of today? These goals being of course the advancement of agriculture by making it more scientific and making farmers educated professionals. I would say yes due to the fact that farming has advanced beyond all comprehension of the founders of scientific agriculture and the current opinion of agriculture has been restored to a positive social status. The Morrow Plots were a big factor in the progression of farming and its research from its founding to current day are being practiced on farm operations all across the globe. If it were not for the founding of the University of Illinois and the Morrow Plots, agriculture would not be as successful as it is today.

References

Danbom, David B. (2006). Born in the country. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Department of Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (2007). The morrow plots: A century of learning. Retrieved October 11, 2007, from The Morrow Plots, Department of Crop Sciences, University of Illinois, at Urbana Champaign Web site: http://www.cropsci.uiuc.edu/research/rdc/urbana/morrow.cfm

College of ACES University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2001). The morrow plots: A land mark for agriculture.

--Matt McCoy, Palestine, IL