- About FARMS
- FARMS is an environmental matching
program developed at Montana
State University. It helps farm and ranch managers
locate agricultural research centers with growing
conditions similar to their own. Subsequently, this
information allows them to identify the best adapted
crops based on the environmental conditions of any farm
or ranch. Additional information can be obtained by
contacting the appropriate research center. Previously
some managers have used information from the closest
research center, not realizing that the environmental
conditions there may be different from conditions they
manage. Recommendations from other sources could be
better. FARMS help managers select adapted technology. It
help scientists find places where research is conducted
under similar or contrasting conditions.
- FARMS data represent 15 environmental factors, 122
research centers and 72 research
programs in the Great Plains and Pacific Northwest.
FARMS will match any farm or ranch with the most similar
field research centers in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas,
Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma,
Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, Wyoming,
Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
Environmental Factors FARMS
allows you to match your farm or ranch with the most
similar research center based on any combination of the
following 15 environmental factors:
- Number of days per year with
temperature 0 deg. F or below.
- Number of days per year with
temperature 32 deg. F or below.
- Number of days per year with
temperature 90 deg. F or above.
- Mean annual maximum air
temperature.
- Mean annual minimum air
temperature.
- Date of first freeze in fall.
- Date of last freeze in spring.
- Thornthwaite potential
evapotranspiration.
- Mean annual precipitation.
- Mean April through July
precipitation.
- Average annual snowfall (inches).
- Elevation in feet.
- Soil series name.
- A-horizon soil textural class.
- Location (legal description or
latitude and longitude).
Research Centers - The 122 research centers represented in
the FARMS program conduct a total of 72 different
research programs. Research programs include crops such
as forages (e.g., alfalfa), oil seeds (e.g., canola),
small grains (e.g., wheat), horticultural (e.g., small
fruits) and pulse (e.g., lentils); and other programs
such as cropping systems, livestock management, pest
management and soil resources.
System Requirements
- FARMS requires 1.5MB of hard drive space
and Microsoft Windows 3.1. To run Windows you must have a
386 or better microprocessor, 4MB of RAM, a mouse and a
VGA graphics card and monitor. FARMS requires 2MB
available extended (XMS) memory to run.
More Information
- Please direct orders, questions or
comments to Christine SommersAustin, FARMS coordinator,
Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences,
Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana, 59717, (406)
994-6034
This page was last updated on July 2, 2001.