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Assessment Of Historical Climate Variability In Maine With Implications For Future Agricultural Productivity And Adaptation, Carly Frank

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Climate change is a wicked problem with global impacts, one of which being the sustainability of the existing global food system. As temperatures and variability in precipitation are projected to increase, the challenges to agriculture are expected to intensify. This thesis examines the Maine historical climate record over the growing season, in combination with future projections, to assess how conditions have changed and will change with agricultural implications. In this analysis, relevant climatic variables are analyzed, and agriculture-significant measures are derived for Maine’s three climate divisions using four decades of daily and monthly gridded datasets. In addition, this thesis explores …

Maine Farmers' Perspectives: Barriers And Optimism To Providing Food To Feed Maine People, A Qualitative Study Using Focus Groups, Kelly Ann Ilseman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Maine has a history and tradition of agriculture in the state. Some growth in the number of farms in recent years has been due to youth entering agriculture, and in the development of small, diverse farms. There is also public interest in purchasing fresh, local foods. This study was done in conjunction with a University of Maine Cooperative Extension study that assessed Maine farmer’s views of the future of farming in Maine. The farmers (n=189) participated in one of twelve focus groups held across the state and represented a broad sector of Maine agriculture, including vegetable and fruit growers, beef …

Apple Varieties In Maine, Frederick Charles Bradford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following pages represent an effort to trace the causes of the changing procession of varieties of apples grown in Maine. To this end the history of fruit growing in Maine has been carefully studied, largely through the Agricultural Reports from 1850 to 1909 and the columns of the Maine Farmer from 1838 to 1875. The inquiry has been confined as rigidly as possible to this state, outside sources being referred to only for sake of comparison. Rather incidentally, soil influences, modifications due to climate, etc., have been considered.

Naturally, since the inquiry was limited to printed record, nothing new …