Teagasc, Johnstown Castle
Environment Soils and Land Use is a research department in Teagasc based at Johnstown Castle, County Wexford, Ireland. We are the home of traditional soil survey in Ireland, where it all began in 1953. Situated on 400 hectares that include Johnstown Castle, gardens and lakes, our research facilities include research farms and forestry with 250 ha under conventional dairy, beef and organic beef systems alongside our laboratories and office building. We are a thriving research facility with over 140 staff comprised of farm, admin, laboratory and field technical staff, research scientists and postdoctoral and Ph.D. students representing over 20 nationalities.
Research
Our research provides the evidence base for sustainable agricultural systems and informs policy and practice in Ireland and the EU. We have expertise and research projects across thematic areas of Soil Health, Agronomy, Water Quality, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Farmland Biodiversity and Carbon Farming and Nutrient Use Efficiency. This work is support by our on-campus laboratory facilities at the National Agricultural Sustainability Research and Innovation Centre (NASRIC). Our laboratories support soil analysis for chemical, physical and biological properties, innovations in soil spectroscopy and proximal sensing, crop analysis, gaseous emissions monitoring, water quality analysis and farmland ecology.
Learn more about the National Agricultural Sustainability Research and Innovation Centre
National Agricultural Sustainability Research and Innovation Centre (NASRIC)
We contribute to major research programmes and collaborative networks that connect scientific research with agricultural practice, environmental monitoring and policy development. These include:
- Agricultural Catchments Programme, research into agricultural pressures on water quality and the effectiveness of mitigation measures.
- Signpost Programme, supporting the development and assessment of more sustainable farming practices.
- NASCO Network, research and monitoring supporting the assessment of carbon stocks and carbon sequestration.
Read more about our Environment, Soils & Land Use Research
Meet our research team
Our team includes specialists in soil health, soil microbiology, soil carbon sequestration, soil hydrology, water quality, nutrient efficiency, gaseous emissions, agronomy, farmland biodiversity, carbon modelling, land use and environmental modelling.
Luis Lopez-Sangil at the Johnstown Castle Open Day
