Positions

Research Areas research areas

Overview

  • In general, my research tends to focus on the interface between agriculture and plant community and ecosystem ecology. My interests include weed ecology and management, the role of diversity in agroecosystem function, plant invasions, community assembly theory, trophic interactions, and implications of land-use and climate change. The overall goal of my research is to better understand the ecological interactions that underpin agricultural production systems so as to improve the economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture.
  • Selected Publications

    Academic Article

    Year Title
    2024 Another step on the transgene-facilitated herbicide treadmill.Pest Management Science.  80:4145-4149. 2024
    2024 Water Stress Influences Phytoestrogen Levels in Red Clover (Trifolium pratense) but Not Kura Clover (T. ambiguum).Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.  72:10247-10256. 2024
    2023 Quantifying the roles of intraspecific and interspecific diversification strategies in forage cropping systemsField Crops Research.  302:109036-109036. 2023
    2023 Frequent defoliation of perennial legume-grass bicultures alters soil carbon dynamicsPlant and Soil: international journal on plant-soil relationships.  490:423-434. 2023
    2023 Relative uptake of organic and inorganic nitrogen by common weed speciesWeed Science.  71:470-477. 2023
    2023 Short‐term responses of soil carbon, nitrogen, and microbial biomass to cover crop mixtures and monoculturesAgrosystems, Geosciences & Environment.  6. 2023
    2023 Effects of soil amendments on hairy vetch no‐till interseeded into a hayfieldAgronomy Journal.  115:887-895. 2023
    2023 Tillage and pesticide seed treatments have distinct effects on soil microbial diversity and functionSoil Biology and Biochemistry.  176:108860-108860. 2023
    2022 Clarifying the evidence for microbial- and plant-derived soil organic matter, and the path toward a more quantitative understanding.Global Change Biology.  28:7167-7185. 2022
    2022 Soil microbial communities vary in composition and functional strategy across soil aggregate size class regardless of tillageElementa.  10. 2022
    2022 Climate consequences of temperate forest conversion to open pasture or silvopastureAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  333:Not-Available. 2022
    2022 Early-season plant cover supports more effective pest control than insecticide applications.Ecological Applications.  32:e2598. 2022
    2022 Cereal rye mulch biomass and crop density affect weed suppression and community assembly in no-till planted soybeanEcosphere.  13. 2022
    2022 Tarping Cover Crops Facilitates Organic No-till Cabbage Production and Suppresses WeedsHortscience.  57:508-515. 2022
    2022 Evaluating warm-season annual forages to fill summer forage gaps in short-season climatesCrop, Forage and Turfgrass Management.  8. 2022
    2022 Identifying optimal early‐season harvest timing in annual fall foragesCrop, Forage and Turfgrass Management.  8. 2022
    2022 Seed size variability has implications for achieving cover cropping goalsAGRICULTURAL & ENVIRONMENTAL LETTERS.  7. 2022
    2021 Weed germinable seedbanks of rice-wheat systems in the Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains: Do tillage and edaphic factors explain community variation?Weed Research.  61:475-485. 2021
    2021 Small-Grain Cover Crops Have Limited Effect on Neonicotinoid Contamination from Seed Coatings.Environmental Science and Technology (Washington).  55:4679-4687. 2021
    2021 Winter annual forage mass-nutritive value trade-offs are affected by harvest timingCrop, Forage and Turfgrass Management.  7. 2021
    2020 Confronting Barriers to Cropping System DiversificationFRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS.  4. 2020
    2020 Resident and stakeholder perceptions of ecosystem services associated with agricultural landscapes in New HampshireEcosystem Services: science, policy and pratice.  45:101153-101153. 2020
    2020 Soil-Mediated Effects on Weed-Crop Competition: Elucidating the Role of Annual and Perennial Intercrop Diversity LegaciesAgronomy.  10:1373-1373. 2020
    2020 Forest conversion to silvopasture and open pasture: effects on soil hydraulic propertiesAgroforestry Systems.  94:869-879. 2020
    2020 Influence of forest-to-silvopasture conversion and drought on components of evapotranspirationAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  295:Not-Available. 2020
    2020 Investigating tarps to facilitate organic no-till cabbage production with high-residue cover cropsRenewable Agriculture and Food Systems.  35:227-233. 2020
    2020 Rapid and distinct responses of particulate and mineral-associated organic nitrogen to conservation tillage and cover cropsGeoderma.  359:114001-114001. 2020
    2020 Are Cover Crop Mixtures Better at Suppressing Weeds than Cover Crop Monocultures?Weed Science.  68:186-194. 2020
    2020 Effects of expanding functional trait diversity on productivity and stability in cultivar mixtures of perennial ryegrassAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  287:106691-106691. 2020
    2019 Weed Community Structure and Soybean Yields in a Long-Term Organic Cropping Systems ExperimentWeed Science.  67:673-681. 2019
    2019 Substrate quality and concentration control decomposition and microbial strategies in a model soil systemBiogeochemistry: an international journal.  144:47-59. 2019
    2019 Forage productivity and profitability in newly-established open pasture, silvopasture, and thinned forest production systemsAgroforestry Systems.  93:51-65. 2019
    2018 Manganese limitation as a mechanism for reduced decomposition in soils under atmospheric nitrogen depositionSoil Biology and Biochemistry.  127:252-263. 2018
    2018 Ecosystem services and land sparing potential of urban and peri-urban agriculture: A reviewRenewable Agriculture and Food Systems.  33:481-494. 2018
    2018 Evidence for multi-trophic effects of pesticide seed treatments on non-targeted soil faunaSoil Biology and Biochemistry.  125:144-155. 2018
    2018 Minerals in the rhizosphere: overlooked mediators of soil nitrogen availability to plants and microbesBiogeochemistry: an international journal.  139:103-122. 2018
    2018 A regionally-adapted implementation of conservation agriculture delivers rapid improvements to soil properties associated with crop yield stability.Scientific Reports.  8:8467. 2018
    2018 Environmental Correlates with Germinable Weed Seedbanks on Organic Farms Across Northern New EnglandWeed Science.  66:78-93. 2018
    2017 How do weeds differ in their response to the timing of tillage? A study of 61 species across the northeastern United StatesAnnals of Applied Biology.  171:340-352. 2017
    2017 Disentangling the Effects of Tillage Timing and Weather on Weed Community AssemblyAgriculture (Basel).  7:66-66. 2017
    2017 Soil and understory plant dynamics during conversion of forest to silvopasture, open pasture, and woodlotAgroforestry Systems.  91:729-739. 2017
    2017 Timing of Tillage as a Driver of Weed CommunitiesWeed Science.  65:504-514. 2017
    2017 Agriculture in 2050: Recalibrating Targets for Sustainable IntensificationBioscience.  67:385-390. 2017
    2017 Another viewWeed Science.  65:203-205. 2017
    2017 Balancing multiple objectives in organic feed and forage cropping systemsAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  239:219-227. 2017
    2017 Reconciling opposing soil processes in row-crop agroecosystems via soil functional zone managementAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  236:99-107. 2017
    2016 The Eco-Evolutionary Imperative: Revisiting Weed Management in the Midst of an Herbicide Resistance CrisisSustainability.  8:1297-1297. 2016
    2016 Enhanced control of soil nitrogen cycling through soil functional zone managementCrops and Soils.  49:42-45. 2016
    2016 Precision control of soil nitrogen cycling via soil functional zone managementAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  231:291-295. 2016
    2016 Cover crop and tillage intensities alter ground-dwelling arthropod communities during the transition to organic productionRenewable Agriculture and Food Systems.  31:361-374. 2016
    2016 A comparison of soil hydrothermal properties in zonal and uniform tillage systems across the US Corn BeltGeoderma.  273:12-19. 2016
    2016 Influence of pesticide seed treatments on rhizosphere fungal and bacterial communities and leaf fungal endophyte communities in maize and soybeanApplied Soil Ecology.  102:61-69. 2016
    2016 Evidence for indirect effects of pesticide seed treatments on weed seed banks in maize and soybeanAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  216:269-273. 2016
    2016 In-Season and Carry-Over Effects of Cover Crops on Productivity and Weed SuppressionAgronomy Journal.  108:1624-1635. 2016
    2016 Soil Functional Zone Management: A Vehicle for Enhancing Production and Soil Ecosystem Services in Row-Crop Agroecosystems.Frontiers in Plant Science.  7:65. 2016
    2016 Soil Water Holding Capacity Mitigates Downside Risk and Volatility in US Rainfed Maize: Time to Invest in Soil Organic Matter?PLoS One.  11:e0160974. 2016
    2015 A succession-energy framework for reducing non-target impacts of annual crop productionAgricultural Systems.  133:14-21. 2015
    2015 Effects of Living Mulch and Fertilizer on the Performance of Broccoli in PlasticultureHortscience.  50:218-224. 2015
    2015 Performance of High Tunnel Tomato Cultivars in Northern New EnglandHorttechnology.  25:139-146. 2015
    2015 Cover-Crop Species as Distinct Biotic Filters in Weed Community AssemblyWeed Science.  63:282-295. 2015
    2015 Designing cropping systems for ecosystem servicesThe Ecology of Agricultural Landscapes: Long Term Research on the Path to Sustainability. Oxford Univ. Press, New York.  378-408. 2015
    2015 Plant Community Dynamics in Agricultural and Successional FieldsThe Ecology of Agricultural Ecosystems: Longterm Research on the Path to Sustainability. Oxford University Press, New York, New York, USA.  158-187. 2015
    2014 A Scale-Explicit Framework for Conceptualizing the Environmental Impacts of Agricultural Land Use ChangesSustainability.  6:8432-8451. 2014
    2014 Cultivar diversity as a means of ecologically intensifying dry matter production in a perennial forage standEcosphere.  5:1-12. 2014
    2014 Multivariate relationships influencing crop yields during the transition to organic managementAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  189:119-126. 2014
    2014 Soil seed bank community structure of pastures and hayfields on an organic farmCanadian Journal of Plant Science.  94:621-631. 2014
    2014 Cultivar diversity as a means of ecologically intensifying dry matter production in a perennial forage standEcosphere.  5:1-12. 2014
    2014 Effects of Soil Amendments on the Abundance of a Parasitic Weed, Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor) in Hay FieldsWeed Science.  62:118-124. 2014
    2014 Increased productivity of a cover crop mixture is not associated with enhanced agroecosystem services.PLoS One.  9:e97351. 2014
    2014 Structural Equation Modeling Facilitates Transdisciplinary Research on Agriculture and Climate ChangeCrop Science: a journal serving the international community of crop scientists.  54:475-483. 2014
    2013 The biological basis for nitrogen management in agroecosystemsMicrobial Ecology in Sustainable Agroecosystems.  113-132. 2013
    2012 Integrated strategies for managing agricultural weeds: making cropping systems less susceptible to weed colonization and establishmentMontana State University Extension2012
    2012 Navigating a Critical Juncture for Sustainable Weed ManagementBioscience.  62:75-84. 2012
    2011 Dynamics of photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and estimates in coastal northern CaliforniaTheoretical and Applied Climatology.  105:107-118. 2011
    2011 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D)-resistant crops and the potential for evolution of 2,4-D-resistant weeds.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of USA.  108:E37. 2011
    2011 Assessing and Visualizing Agricultural Management Practices: A Multivariable Hands-On Approach for Education and ExtensionWeed Technology.  25:680-687. 2011
    2011 Direct and Indirect Impacts of Weed Management Practices on Soil QualitySoil Management: Building a Stable Base for Agriculture.  275-286. 2011
    2011 Yield and Net Returns during the Transition to Organic Feed Grain ProductionAgronomy Journal.  103:51-59. 2011
    2010 Management Filters and Species Traits: Weed Community Assembly in Long-Term Organic and Conventional SystemsWeed Science.  58:265-277. 2010
    2010 A new hypothesis for the functional role of diversity in mediating resource pools and weed-crop competition in agroecosystemsWeed Research.  50:37-48. 2010
    2010 Spider plots: a tool for participatory extension learningJournal of Extension.  48:5TOT8-5TOT8. 2010
    2009 Weed-crop competition relationships differ between organic and conventional cropping systemsWeed Research.  49:572-580. 2009
    2009 Effects of Initial Seed-Bank Density on Weed Seedling Emergence during the Transition to an Organic Feed-Grain Crop RotationWeed Science.  57:533-540. 2009
    2009 Weed Science Research and Funding: A Call to ActionWeed Science.  57:442-448. 2009
    2008 Effects of Crop Diversity on Agroecosystem Function: Crop Yield ResponseEcosystems.  11:355-366. 2008
    2008 Diversity and abundance of earthworms across an agricultural land-use intensity gradientSoil and Tillage Research.  100:83-88. 2008
    2007 Temporal Yield Variability under Conventional and Alternative Management SystemsAgronomy Journal.  99:1629-1634. 2007
    2007 Assembly of weed communities along a crop diversity gradientJournal of Applied Ecology.  44:1046-1056. 2007
    2007 Competitiveness of herbicide-resistant and herbicide-susceptible kochia (Kochia scoparia [L.] Schrad.) under contrasting management practisesWeed Biology and Management.  7:115-119. 2007
    2007 Wild Oat (Avena fatua) Seed Bank Dynamics in Transition to Organic Wheat Production SystemsWeed Science.  55:212-217. 2007
    2007 Impact of agricultural management on carabid communities and weed seed predationAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  118:49-54. 2007
    2006 Rapid change in the germinable fraction of the weed seed bank in crop rotationsWeed Science.  54:1094-1100. 2006
    2006 Lessons from agriculture may improve the management of invasive plants in wildland systemsFrontiers in Ecology and the Environment.  4:428-434. 2006
    2006 Timing of tillage is an important filter on the assembly of weed communitiesWeed Science.  54:705-712. 2006
    2006 Plant-Provided Food for Carnivorous Insects: a Protective Mutualism and Its ApplicationsEnvironmental Entomology.  35:1137-1137. 2006
    2006 Weed community and corn yield variability in diverse management systems.Weed Science.  54:106-113. 2006
    2005 Earthworms and weed seed distribution in annual cropsAgriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.  108:363-367. 2005
    2002 Incorporating ecology into agricultureTrends in Ecology and Evolution.  17:490-491. 2002
    2002 Incorporating ecology into agriculture (Book review)Trends in Ecology and Evolution.  17:490-491. 2002
    High Seeding Rates and Low Soil Nitrogen Environments Optimize Weed Suppression and Profitability in Organic No-Till Planted SoybeanFrontiers in Agronomy.  3.
    Improving Weed Management Based on the Timing of Emergence Peaks: A Case Study of Problematic Weeds in Northeast USAFrontiers in Agronomy.  4.
    Legacy Effects of Contrasting Long-Term Integrated Weed Management SystemsFrontiers in Agronomy.  3.

    Chapter

    Year Title
    2018 Weed Control Through Crop Plant Manipulations.  73-96. 2018
    2017 A Disturbance-based Framework for Understanding Weed Community Assembly in Agroecosystems: Challenges and Opportunities for Agroecological Weed Management.  127-154. 2017
    2012 The biological basis for nitrogen management in agroecosystems.  131-150. 2012

    Principal Investigator On

  • Growing in the right direction  awarded by US Department of Agriculture 2024 - 2028
  • Increasing resiliency to chang  awarded by Pennsylvania State University 2022 - 2025
  • Increasing resiliency to change winters in the Northeast: understanding effects on perennial forage and weed community dynamics  awarded by Pennsylvania State University 2022 - 2025
  • Enhancing the Sustainability of US Cropping Systems Through Cover Crops and an Innovative Information and Technology Network  awarded by North Carolina State University 2019 - 2024
  • US Cropping Systems  awarded by North Carolina State University 2019 - 2024
  • Expanding No-Till Organic Vegetable Production Through the Combination of High-Residue Cover Crops  awarded by University of Vermont 2018 - 2021
  • No-Till Organic Vegetable Prod  awarded by University of Vermont 2018 - 2021
  • Building Resilience in the NE  awarded by Cornell University 2016 - 2021
  • Building Resilience in the Northeast through Double Cropping and Diverse Forage Crop Mixtures  awarded by Cornell University 2016 - 2021
  • Collateral Protection: Quantifying and Mitigating Impacts of Seed Treatments on Weeds and Their Natural Enemies  awarded by US DA, Department of Agriculture 2017 - 2021
  • Getting from here to there  awarded by US Department of Agriculture 2015 - 2020
  • Getting from here to there: Protecting and Promoting Ecosystem Services During the Conversion of Forests to Fields in New England  awarded by US DA, Department of Agriculture 2015 - 2020
  • Pesky Weeds and Patchy Resources: Understanding the Role of Soil Spatial Heterogeneity and Root Foraging in Mediating Interspecific Competition  awarded by US DA, Department of Agriculture 2015 - 2018
  • Uncovering the Belowground Drivers of Weed-Crop Competition for Improved Weed Management  awarded by US DA, Department of Agriculture 2013 - 2018
  • Rewiring the Network: Structural and Functional Responses of Soil Faunal Food Webs to Pesticide Seed Treatments  awarded by University of Vermont 2013 - 2016
  • Precision Zonal Management Systems for Resilient Cereal Yields and Ecosystem Services under Variable Climates  awarded by Pennsylvania State University 2012 - 2016
  • Feasibility of Integrating Annual Feed Grains into Established Organic Pasture  awarded by University of Vermont 2012 - 2014
  • Development of an Ecologically-Based Agricultural Land-Use Assessment Framework for the Blue Hills Foundation Hayfields  awarded by Blue Hills Foundation Inc 2012
  • Teaching Activities

  • Agroecology Taught course
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course
  • Doctoral Research Taught course
  • Doctoral Research Taught course
  • Interdisciplinary Research Taught course
  • Special Topics Taught course
  • Work Experience Taught course
  • Work Experience Taught course
  • Doctoral Research Taught course 2024
  • Interdisciplinary Research Taught course 2024
  • Work Experience Taught course 2024
  • Agroecology Taught course 2023
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2023
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2023
  • Doctoral Research Taught course 2023
  • Work Experience Taught course 2023
  • Doctoral Research Taught course 2022
  • Interdisciplinary Research Taught course 2022
  • Spc Top/Cover Crop Ecol&Mgmt Taught course 2022
  • Work Experience Taught course 2022
  • Agroecology Taught course 2022
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2022
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2022
  • Doctoral Research Taught course 2022
  • Work Experience Taught course 2022
  • Interdisciplinary Research Taught course 2021
  • Spc Top/Cover Crop Ecol&Mgmt Taught course 2021
  • Work Experience Taught course 2021
  • Investigations Taught course 2021
  • Work Experience Taught course 2021
  • Agroecology Taught course 2021
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2021
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2021
  • Work Experience Taught course 2021
  • Work Experience Taught course 2020 - 2021
  • Agroecology Taught course 2020
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2020
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2020
  • Work Experience Taught course 2020
  • Work Experience Taught course 2019
  • Agroecology Taught course 2019
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2019
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2019
  • Inv/Cover Crop Termination Taught course 2017
  • Investigations Taught course 2017
  • Agroecology Taught course 2017
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2017
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2017
  • Agroecology Taught course 2016
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2016
  • Field Experience Taught course 2015
  • Field Experience Taught course 2015
  • Investigations Taught course 2015
  • Agroecology Taught course 2015
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2015
  • Investigations Taught course 2015
  • Field Experience Taught course 2014
  • Field Experience Taught course 2014
  • Investigations Taught course 2014
  • Agroecology Taught course 2014
  • Analysis of Ecological Data Taught course 2014
  • Investigations Taught course 2014
  • Education And Training

  • B.S. Biology, University of New Mexico
  • Ph.D. Plant Biology; Ecology, Evolutionary Biology & Behavior, Michigan State University
  • Full Name

  • Richard Smith