2025
Aljohani, M., Lan, L., Daly, H., Verdía Barbará, P., Hu, M., Nisar, S., Ding, S., Hallett, J., Watkins, N., Macalpine, W. J., Rowe, R., Brandt-Talbot, A., Sanford, G., Ralph, J., Mansfield, S. D., D’Agostino, C., Fan, X., & Hardacre, C. (2025). Enhancing hydrogen production from bioenergy crops via photoreforming. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 147(33), 29679–29686. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.5c01871
Bekken, M. A. H., Sanford, G., & Soldat, D. J. (2025). Next steps toward improving estimates of golf course net climate impact—The development of a methodology for individual golf courses to measure soil organic carbon stocks and sequestration. International Turfgrass Society Research Journal, 15(1), 652–661. https://doi.org/10.1002/its2.70014
Judd, T. C., Ruark, M. D., Rui, Y., Sanford, G. R., & Freedman, Z. B. (2025). Mechanisms of soil organic matter persistence vary across time and soil depth in long-term cropping systems of the North Central US. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 393, 109769. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2025.109769
Juice, S. M., Hartman, M. D., von Haden, A. C., Parton, W. J., & Brzostek, E. R. (2025). Modeling plant nutrient acquisition strategies alters projections of carbon and nitrogen dynamics in bioenergy agroecosystems. GCB Bioenergy, 17(6), e70042. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.70042
Min, K., Nuccio, E., Slessarev, E., Kan, M., McFarlane, K. J., Oerter, E., Jurusik, A., Sanford, G., Thelen, K. D., Pett-Ridge, J., & Berhe, A. A. (2025). Deep-rooted perennials alter microbial respiration and chemical composition of carbon in density fractions along soil depth profiles. Geoderma, 455, 117202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2025.117202
Mirabella, J. P., von Haden, A., Sanford, G., Ruark, M., & Zhu-Barker, X. (2025). Fate of synthetic fertilizer nitrogen in a maize system depends on dairy manure type: Insights from an isotopic tracing field study. Biology and Fertility of Soils, 61(8), 1405–1421. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-025-01946-w
Nickodem, C. A., Tran, P. Q., Neeno-Eckwall, E., Congdon, A. G., Sanford, G. R., Silva, E. M., & Hite, J. L. (2025). Soil management strategies drive divergent impacts on pathogens and environmental resistomes. Scientific Reports, 15(1), 43215. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-27157-9
Orfanou, A., Sanford, G. R., Jackson, R. D., Ruark, M. D., Gratton, C., Pavlou, D., Mourtzinis, S., Conley, S. P., & Kucharik, C. J. (2025). Adapting an agroecosystem model to account for cover crop management in the Midwest USA. Smart Agricultural Technology, 11, 100930. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atech.2025.100930
2024
Bybee-Finley, K. A., Muller, K., White, K. E., Cavigelli, M. A., Han, E., Schomberg, H. H., Snapp, S., Viens, F., Correndo, A. A., Deiss, L., Fonteyne, S., Garcia Y Garcia, A., Gaudin, A. C. M., Hooker, D. C., Janovicek, K., Jin, V., Johnson, G., Karsten, H., Liebman, M., … Bowles, T. M. (2024). Rotational complexity increases cropping system output under poorer growing conditions. One Earth, 7(9), 1638–1654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2024.07.008
Dietz, C. L., Jackson, R. D., Ruark, M. D., & Sanford, G. R. (2024). Author Correction: Soil carbon maintained by perennial grasslands over 30 years but lost in field crop systems in a temperate Mollisol. Communications Earth & Environment, 5(1), 655. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01770-4
Dietz, C. L., Jackson, R. D., Ruark, M. D., & Sanford, G. R. (2024). Soil carbon maintained by perennial grasslands over 30 years but lost in field crop systems in a temperate Mollisol. Communications Earth & Environment, 5(1), 360. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-024-01500-w
Raffeld, A. M., Bradford, M. A., Jackson, R. D., Rath, D., Sanford, G. R., Tautges, N., & Oldfield, E. E. (2024). The importance of accounting method and sampling depth to estimate changes in soil carbon stocks. Carbon Balance and Management, 19(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13021-024-00249-1
von Haden, A. C., Sanford, G. R., Cates, A. M., & Jackson, R. D. (2024). Paired resampling to detect field-level soil organic carbon stock change. Comment on “Testing the feasibility of quantifying change in agricultural soil carbon stocks through empirical sampling” by Bradford et al. Geoderma, 448, 116959. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2024.116959
2023
Jayawardena, D. M., Robertson, G. P., Sanford, G. R., & Thelen, K. D. (2023). Comparative productivity of six bioenergy cropping systems on marginal lands in the Great Lakes Region, United States. Agronomy Journal, 115(5), 2451–2468. https://doi.org/10.1002/agj2.21416
Liptzin, D., Rieke, E. L., Cappellazzi, S. B., Bean, G. M., Cope, M., Greub, K. L. H., Norris, C. E., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Tavarez, O. B., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Gracia, A. B., Brainard, D. C., Brennan, J. R., Reyes, D. B., Bruhjell, D., Carlyle, C. N., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2023). An evaluation of nitrogen indicators for soil health in long‐term agricultural experiments. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 87(4), 868–884. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20558
2022
Bagnall, D. K., Morgan, C. L. S., Bean, G. M., Liptzin, D., Cappellazzi, S. B., Cope, M., Greub, K. L. H., Rieke, E. L., Norris, C. E., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Tavarez, O. B., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Gracia, A. B., Brainard, D. C., Brennan, J. R., Reyes, D. B., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2022). Selecting soil hydraulic properties as indicators of soil health: Measurement response to management and site characteristics. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 86(5), 1206–1226. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20428
Bagnall, D. K., Morgan, C. L. S., Cope, M., Bean, G. M., Cappellazzi, S., Greub, K., Liptzin, D., Norris, C. L., Rieke, E., Tracy, P., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Bañuelos Tavarez, O., Bary, A., Baumhardt, R. L., Borbón Gracia, A., Brainard, D., Brennan, J., Briones Reyes, D., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2022). Carbon‐sensitive pedotransfer functions for plant available water. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 86(3), 612–629. https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20395
Liptzin, D., Norris, C. E., Cappellazzi, S. B., Bean, G. M., Cope, M., Greub, K. L. H., Rieke, E. L., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Bañuelos Tavarez, O., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Borbón Gracia, A., Brainard, D. C., Brennan, J. R., Briones Reyes, D., Bruhjell, D., Carlyle, C. N., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2022). An evaluation of carbon indicators of soil health in long-term agricultural experiments. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 172, 108708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2022.108708
Potter, T. S., Vereecke, L., Lankau, R. A., Sanford, G. R., Silva, E. M., & Ruark, M. D. (2022). Long-term management drives divergence in soil microbial biomass, richness, and composition among upper Midwest, USA cropping systems. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 325, 107718. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2021.107718
Rieke, E. L., Bagnall, D. K., Morgan, C. L. S., Flynn, K. D., Howe, J. A., Greub, K. L. H., Mac Bean, G., Cappellazzi, S. B., Cope, M., Liptzin, D., Norris, C. E., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Bañuelos Tavarez, O., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Borbón Gracia, A., Brainard, D. C., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2022). Evaluation of aggregate stability methods for soil health. Geoderma, 428, 116156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2022.116156
Rieke, E. L., Cappellazzi, S. B., Cope, M., Liptzin, D., Mac Bean, G., Greub, K. L. H., Norris, C. E., Tracy, P. W., Aberle, E., Ashworth, A., Bañuelos Tavarez, O., Bary, A. I., Baumhardt, R. L., Borbón Gracia, A., Brainard, D. C., Brennan, J. R., Briones Reyes, D., Bruhjell, D., Carlyle, C. N., … Honeycutt, C. W. (2022). Linking soil microbial community structure to potential carbon mineralization: A continental scale assessment of reduced tillage. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 168, 108618. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2022.108618
Rui, Y., Jackson, R. D., Cotrufo, M. F., Sanford, G. R., Spiesman, B. J., Deiss, L., Culman, S. W., Liang, C., & Ruark, M. D. (2022). Persistent soil carbon enhanced in Mollisols by well-managed grasslands but not annual grain or dairy forage cropping systems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(7), e2118931119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2118931119
Rui, Y., Jackson, R. D., Cotrufo, M. F., Sanford, G. R., Spiesman, B. J., Deiss, L., Culman, S. W., Liang, C., & Ruark, M. D. (2022). Reply to Chen et al.: Soil organic carbon stocks and persistence of surface 30 cm of Mollisols. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(28), e2204140119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2204140119
Rui, Y., Jackson, R. D., Cotrufo, M. F., Sanford, G. R., Spiesman, B. J., Deiss, L., Culman, S. W., Liang, C., & Ruark, M. D. (2022). Reply to Lajtha and Silva: Agriculture and soil carbon persistence of grassland-derived Mollisols. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(30), e2204142119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2204142119
Sanford, G. R., Jackson, R. D., Rui, Y., & Kucharik, C. J. (2022). Land use-land cover gradient demonstrates the importance of perennial grasslands with intact soils for building soil carbon in the fertile Mollisols of the North Central US. Geoderma, 418, 115854. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2022.115854
2021
Rivero, M. J., Evans, A. C. O., Berndt, A., Cartmill, A., Dowsey, A., Farruggia, A., Mignolet, C., Enriquez-Hidalgo, D., Chadwick, D., McCracken, D. I., Busch, D., Pereyra, F., Martin, G. B., Sanford, G. R., Sheridan, H., Wright, I., Brunet, L., Eisler, M. C., Lopez-Villalobos, N., … Lee, M. R. F. (2021). Taking the steps toward sustainable livestock: Our multidisciplinary global farm platform journey. Animal Frontiers, 11(5), 52–58. https://doi.org/10.1093/af/vfab048
Sanford, G. R., Jackson, R. D., Booth, E. G., Hedtcke, J. L., & Picasso, V. (2021). Perenniality and diversity drive output stability and resilience in a 26-year cropping systems experiment. Field Crops Research, 263, 108071. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2021.108071
2020
Rui, Y., Sanford, G. R., Hedtcke, J. L., & Ruark, M. D. (2020). Legacy effects of liquid dairy manure in grain production systems. Agricultural Systems, 181, 102825. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2020.102825
Wang, S., Sanford, G. R., Robertson, G. P., Jackson, R. D., & Thelen, K. D. (2020). Perennial bioenergy crop yield and quality response to nitrogen fertilization. BioEnergy Research, 13(1), 157–166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12155-019-10072-z
Zhang, Y., Serate, J., Xie, D., Gajbhiye, S., Kulzer, P., Sanford, G., Russell, J. D., McGee, M., Foster, C., Coon, J. J., Landick, R., & Sato, T. K. (2020). Production of hydrolysates from unmilled AFEX-pretreated switchgrass and comparative fermentation with Zymomonas mobilis. Bioresource Technology Reports, 11, 100517. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biteb.2020.100517
2019
Szymanski, L. M., Sanford, G. R., Heckman, K. A., Jackson, R. D., & Marín-Spiotta, E. (2019). Conversion to bioenergy crops alters the amount and age of microbially-respired soil carbon. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 128, 35–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2018.08.025
2018
Cates, A. M., Sanford, G. R., Good, L. W., & Jackson, R. D. (2018). What do we know about cover crop efficacy in the North Central United States? Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 73(6), 2. https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.73.6.153A
Ong, R. G., Shinde, S., Da Costa Sousa, L., & Sanford, G. R. (2018). Pre-senescence harvest of switchgrass inhibits xylose utilization by engineered yeast. Frontiers in Energy Research, 6, 52. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2018.00052
Zhang, Y., Oates, L. G., Serate, J., Xie, D., Pohlmann, E., Bukhman, Y. V., Karlen, S. D., Young, M. K., Higbee, A., Eilert, D., Sanford, G. R., Piotrowski, J. S., Cavalier, D., Ralph, J., Coon, J. J., Sato, T. K., & Ong, R. G. (2018). Diverse lignocellulosic feedstocks can achieve high field‐scale ethanol yields while providing flexibility for the biorefinery and landscape‐level environmental benefits. GCB Bioenergy, 10(11), 825–840. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.12533
2017
Osterholz, W. R., Rinot, O., Shaviv, A., Linker, R., Liebman, M., Sanford, G., Strock, J., & Castellano, M. J. (2017). Predicting gross nitrogen mineralization and potentially mineralizable nitrogen using soil organic matter properties. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 81(5), 1115–1126. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2017.02.0055
Sanford, G. R., Oates, L. G., Roley, S. S., Duncan, D. S., Jackson, R. D., Robertson, G. P., & Thelen, K. D. (2017). Biomass production a stronger driver of cellulosic ethanol yield than biomass quality. Agronomy Journal, 109(5), 1911–1922. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj2016.08.0454
2016
Hossard, L., Archer, D. W., Bertrand, M., Colnenne‐David, C., Debaeke, P., Ernfors, M., Jeuffroy, M., Munier‐Jolain, N., Nilsson, C., Sanford, G. R., Snapp, S. S., Jensen, E. S., & Makowski, D. (2016). A meta‐analysis of maize and wheat yields in low‐input vs. Conventional and organic systems. Agronomy Journal, 108(3), 1155–1167. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj2015.0512
Liang, C., Kao-Kniffin, J., Sanford, G. R., Wickings, K., Balser, T. C., & Jackson, R. D. (2016). Microorganisms and their residues under restored perennial grassland communities of varying diversity. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 103, 192–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2016.08.002
Oates, L. G., Duncan, D. S., Sanford, G. R., Liang, C., & Jackson, R. D. (2016). Bioenergy cropping systems that incorporate native grasses stimulate growth of plant-associated soil microbes in the absence of nitrogen fertilization. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 233, 396–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2016.09.008
Ong, R. G., Higbee, A., Bottoms, S., Dickinson, Q., Xie, D., Smith, S. A., Serate, J., Pohlmann, E., Jones, A. D., Coon, J. J., Sato, T. K., Sanford, G. R., Eilert, D., Oates, L. G., Piotrowski, J. S., Bates, D. M., Cavalier, D., & Zhang, Y. (2016). Inhibition of microbial biofuel production in drought-stressed switchgrass hydrolysate. Biotechnology for Biofuels, 9(1), 237. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13068-016-0657-0
Sanford, G. R., Oates, L. G., Jasrotia, P., Thelen, K. D., Robertson, G. P., & Jackson, R. D. (2016). Comparative productivity of alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central USA. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 216, 344–355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2015.10.018
Skevas, T., Swinton, S. M., Tanner, S., Sanford, G., & Thelen, K. D. (2016). Investment risk in bioenergy crops. GCB Bioenergy, 8(6), 1162–1177. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.12320
2015
Sanford, G. R., Hedtcke, J. L., & Jackson, R. D. (2015). The Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial: 26 years of research in agricultural sustainability. In S. Peacock, B. Smith, E. Stockdale, & C. Watson (Eds.), Aspects of Applied Biology 128: Valuing long-term sites and experiments for agriculture and ecology (pp. 249–251). https://www.aab.org.uk/product/aspects-128-valuing-long-term-sites-and-experiments-for-agriculture-and-ecology/
Sanford, G. S., Oates, Lawrence G., Jasrotia, P., Thelen, K. D., Robertson, GP, & Jackson, Randall D. (2015). Comparative productivity of maize, switchgrass, Miscanthus, poplar, prairie, and other cellulosic bioenergy crops in the North Central US. In V. Carlton, R. Halford, N. Karp, K. Lindegaard, I. Shield, & P. Thornley (Eds.), Aspects of Applied Biology 131: Biomass and Energy Crops V (pp. 19–23). https://www.aab.org.uk/product/aspects-131-biomass-and-energy-crops-v/
Serate, J., Xie, D., Pohlmann, E., Donald, C., Shabani, M., Hinchman, L., Higbee, A., Mcgee, M., La Reau, A., Klinger, G. E., Li, S., Myers, C. L., Boone, C., Bates, D. M., Cavalier, D., Eilert, D., Oates, L. G., Sanford, G., Sato, T. K., … Zhang, Y. (2015). Controlling microbial contamination during hydrolysis of AFEX-pretreated corn stover and switchgrass: Effects on hydrolysate composition, microbial response and fermentation. Biotechnology for Biofuels, 8(1), 180. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13068-015-0356-2
2014
Hedtcke, J. L., Sanford, G. R., Hadley, K. E., & Thelen, K. D. (2014). Maximizing Land Use during Switchgrass Establishment in the North Central United States. Agronomy Journal, 106(2), 596–604. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj2013.0410
Sanford, G. R. (2014). Perennial grasslands are essential for long term SOC storage in the Mollisols of the North Central USA. In A. E. Hartemink & K. McSweeney (Eds.), Soil Carbon (pp. 281–288). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-04084-4_29
2013 and earlier
Sanford, G. R., & Kucharik, C. J. (2013). Effect of methodological consideration on soil carbon parameter estimates obtained via the acid hydrolysis-incubation method. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 67, 295–305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2013.09.002
Sanford, G. R., Posner, J. L., Jackson, R. D., Kucharik, C. J., Hedtcke, J. L., & Lin, T.-L. (2012). Soil carbon lost from Mollisols of the North Central U.S.A. with 20 years of agricultural best management practices. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 162, 68–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2012.08.011
Liang, C., Sanford, G. R., Jackson, R. D., & Balser, T. C. (2011). Potential legacy effects of biofuel cropping systems on soil microbial communities in southern Wisconsin, USA. Agricultural Sciences, 02(02), 131–137. https://doi.org/10.4236/as.2011.22019
Sanford, G. R., Cook, A. R., Posner, J. L., Hedtcke, J. L., Hall, J. A., & Baldock, J. O. (2009). Linking Wisconsin dairy and grain farms via manure transfer for corn production. Agronomy Journal, 101(1), 167–174. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj2008.0126
Sanford, G. R., Posner, J. L., & Hadley, G. L. (2009). Economics of hauling dairy slurry and its value in Wisconsin corn grain systems. Journal of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, 3(1), 1–10.
Sanford, G., Posner, J., Schuler, R., & Baldock, J. (2008). Effect of dairy slurry application on soil compaction and corn (Zea mays L.) yield in Southern Wisconsin. Soil and Tillage Research, 100(1–2), 42–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2008.04.003