Credits: past and present staff involved in eRA

The e-RA database was initially developed by Jackie Potts, Andy Caiger, Kevin Crowley, Sharon Brown, Paul Verrier, Christine Thomas, Roger Payne and Joe Perry, with funding from the Lawes Agricultural Trust and the Leverhulme Trust. Alan Todd and Gill Tuck subsequently prepared and curated the data, with Bill Moore responsible for the software and database application development.

e-RA has further been considerably developed as part of the Long-Term Experiments National Capability (2017-2023) and since 2023 as part of the the National Bioscience Research Infrastructure (NBRI). This current website and data portal specifically, has been developed by the e-RA Team* consisting of the e-RA Curators, Software & Web Developer under management of the Agroinformatics Project Leader. The e-RA team* are part of the RLTE-NBRI team**.

The data made available through this portal by the e-RA team are at the end of a sequence of providers starting with the LTE manager, the Farm Staff, the Sample Collectors, the Sample Processors and Statisticians. The data and the website are a window into the Rothamsted Research Long-Term Experiments and associated data, and is the result of decades of work by many science and non-science staff and others. The list of past staff is not complete, there are many generations of past staff who have been involved in the Rothamsted long-term experiments, we are indebted to them all but have been unable to find and list all who have contributed.

Data Curation

  • *Margaret Glendining - e-RA Curator, website content, data management and curation (2008 - Current)
  • *Sarah Perryman - e-RA Curator, website content, data management and curation (2012 - Current)
  • Claudia Underwood (2008 - 2012)
  • Gill Tuck (2005 - 2008)

Software and Web Development

  • *Nathalie Castells (2006 - Current)
  • Oliver Winfield (- Current)
  • Ian Mattinson
  • Rob Higginbotham
  • Trevor Pocock
  • Bill Moore (2005 - 2010)
  • Jackie Potts
  • Andy Caiger
  • Kevin Crowley
  • Sharon Brown
  • Christine Thomas
  • Paul Verrier
  • Gavin Harrison
  • Roger Payne
  • Joe Perry

e-RA Project Management Team

  • *Richard Ostler - Project Leader and Head of Agroinformatics (2017 - Current)
  • Chris Rawlings (- 2017)
  • Malcolm Hawkesford (- 2017)

Long-term Experiments (LTE) Manager

  • **Andy Gregory (2022 - Current)
  • Andy Macdonald (2009 - 2022)
  • Paul Poulton (- 2008)

LTE Principal Investigator

  • **Andy Gregory (2022 - Current)
  • Andy Macdonald (2017 - 2022)
  • Keith Goulding (2003 - 2017)
  • David Powlson (1993 - 2003)

Placement Students

  • Matheus Menim Zimmermann, Reading University Internship (2023)
  • Fergus Blyth, MSci student, University of Glasgow (2022-2023)
  • June Kimori, Reading University (2022)
  • Daniel Philcox, Reading University (2022)

Volunteers

  • Pamela Doran (2023 - current) e-RAdoc historical document preparation
  • Kirsten Reilly (2022 - current) e-RAdoc historical document preparation
  • Peter Reilly (2022 - current) e-RAdoc historical document preparation
  • Ellen Farnham (2019) Broadbalk data entry and analysis

Visiting Workers

  • Rodger White (2020 - current)

Emeritus

  • Paul Poulton (current)
  • John Jenkyn (current)
  • Roger Plumb (current)

Data Preparation and Statistics

  • **Suzanne Clark (2018 - Current)
  • Rodger White (2009 - 2018)
  • Alan Todd (1974 - 2009)

Data Entry

  • Valerie Mitchell (- 2018)
  • Vera Wiltsher (- 2014)
  • Denise Legg (past)
  • Michelle Farnham (2014)
  • Ben Charlston (2009)

Data provision

Meteorological Stations

  • **Tony Scott (2007 - Current)
  • Dave Yeoman ( - 2007 - Woburn and Rothamsted)
  • John Croft - Met Observer (past)
  • Bob Norrish (past)
  • Denise Legg (past)
  • Chris Hall (past)
  • Paul Hargreaves (past)
  • Tim Hall (1990s)
  • Helen Martin (past)
  • Alan Thornhill (past)
  • Aiming Qi (past)
  • Phil Styles (past)
  • Andrew Hunt (past)

Crop and soil sample collection and processing

Crop/Vegetation data
  • **Emily Greene (2022 - Current)
  • **Chris Hall (2007 - Current)
  • **Tony Scott (Park Grass vegetation surveys 2010 - Current)
  • Jon Storkey (Park Grass vegetation surveys 2010 - Current)
  • Maureen Birdsey (Park Grass vegetation Survey - past)
  • Mariana Marczyova ((Park Grass vegetation survey - past)
  • Richard Hull (Broadbalk weed surveys - Current)
  • Andy Macdonald (2008 - 2022)
  • Paul Poulton (1980 - 2008)
  • Steve Freeman (2013 - 2020)
  • Holly Addis (2020 - 2022)
  • Phil Cundill (past-2005)
Soils
  • **Emily Greene (2022 - Current)
  • Andy Gregory (2016 - Current)
  • Chris Hall (2007 - Current, Park Grass)
  • Andy Macdonald (2008 - 2022)
  • Paul Poulton (1980 - 2008)
  • **Tony Scott (2008 - Current)
  • Steve Freeman (2013 - 2020)
  • Mariana Marczyova (2008 - 2013)
  • Holly Addis (2020 - 2022)
  • Michelle Farnham (2020 and 2021)

Crop, soil, and environmental water analyses conducted by the Rothamsted Research Analytical Chemistry Facility - Harpenden

Soil and Plant material:
  • Exchangeable Cations Extraction by Andrew Osborne and ICP-OES Analysis by Mark Durenkamp and Chloe Garwood
  • Olsen P Extraction by Ruth Skilton / Andrew Osborne and Colourimetric Analysis by Wendy Wilmer
  • pH in water Analysis by Chloe Garwood / Andrew Osborne
  • Total N and C Combustion Analysis by Ruth Skilton
  • Major and Trace element Determination Digestion by Chloe Garwood and ICP-OES Analysis by Mark Durenkamp and Chloe Garwood
  • TOC (Tinsley) - Analysis by Wendy Wilmer
  • Inorganic carbon - Analysis by Jo Carter / Andrew Osborne
Drainage water:
  • Major and Trace element Determination ICP-OES Analysis by Mark Durenkamp and Chloe Garwood
  • Anion Determination (NO3-N,NH4-N,Cl,PO4-P and TSN) Colourimetric Segmented Continuous Flow Analysis by Wendy Wilmer
  • TOC (UV wet chemistry TOC and catalytic combustion TOC) Analysis by Wendy Wilmer
Farm Yard Manure:
  • Kjeldahl Total N ( - 2021) Extraction by Melanie Brookman and Colourimetric Analysis by Wendy Wilmer
  • Combustion total N (2024 -) by Jo Carter and Ruth Skilton

Retired/past staff who conducted analyses:

  • Melanie Brookman 2013 - 2022 (Olsen P, Exchangeable Cations, pH, IC)
  • Adrian Crosland 1990 - 2017 (ICP-OES Determinations)
  • Xiaoyun Zhou 2001 - 2019 (Total N and C and Digestion)
  • Kerria Rowan 2019 - 2020 (Total N and C + Digestion)
  • Maureen Birdsey 1990 - 2000 for LTE work (Digestion Lab)
  • Jeanne Day 1990 - 2002 (Total N and C and Digestion Lab)
  • Ursula Donnellan 2008 - 2013 (Olsen P, Exch Cat, pH)
  • Anne Duffy 2007 - 2007 (Olsen P, Exchangeable Cations, pH)
  • Sadia Beg 2003/4 - 2007 (Olsen P, Exchangeable Cations, pH)
  • Daniel Hampshire 1990s - 2003/4 (Olsen P, Exchangeable Cations, pH, Total N and C).

Farm staff

Harpenden:
  • Helen Hague - Farm Manager (2022 - Current)
  • Chris Mackay - Assistant Farm Manager (2010 - Current)
  • Tim Hall - Classical Trials Specialist  / Arable Operator (1990 - current)
  • Matthew Parr - Arable Operator
  • Josh Ross - Field Trials Technician
  • Charlotte Morris - Junior Field trials Technician
  • Martin Gardner - Field trials Technician / Agricultural engineer
  • Sam Scutter - Field Trials Technician / Agricultural engineer
  • Leonardo Pessolato Piacenti - Farm Data Administrator, Data Management FarmOS
  • Fred Ledbury - Farm & Field trials Technician
  • Steven Goward - Farm Manager (past)
  • Gary Talbot - Farm Manager (past)
  • Colin Peters - Farm Manager (past)
  • Ian Barker - Farm Manager (past)
  • Roger Moffit - Farm Manager (past)
  • Chris Hall - Field Trials Technician (1987-2007)
  • Michael Rogers - Head Recorder (past)
  • Keith Sykes - Recorder (past)
  • Pete Tuck - Head of Trials (-2010)
  • Tim Parfitt - Head of Trials (2010 -)
  • Harry Henderson - Feild Trials Technician (1990s)
  • Nick Chichester-Miles - Feild Trials Technician (2007 - )
Brooms Barn:
  • Mark Gardner - Brooms Barn Farm & Field Trials Manager, LSRE
  • Samuil Dye - Brooms Barn Farm & Field Trials Technician, LSRE
Woburn:
  • Tim Parfitt - Woburn Farm Manager (past)
  • Andy Hunt - Woburn Farm Manager (1990s-)
  • Phil Styles - Woburn Farm Manager (-1990s)
  • Andrew Hunt - Woburn Recorder (past)
  • Phil Styles - Woburn Recorder (past)
  • David Turnel - Woburn recorder (previously Field Experiments)

Last updated 11th January 2024. We welcome notification of others who have contributed and should be added to this page of credits.

For further information and assistance, please contact the e-RA curators, Sarah Perryman and Margaret Glendining using the e-RA email address: era@rothamsted.ac.uk