Life Sciences Commons^™

A Study Of Kentucky’S Agricultural Performance Using Shift-Share Analysts, David Neal Cundiff

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In this paper the theory that Kentucky has a comparative advantage in agricultural employment, when compared to the United States, is examined. In order to test this hypothesis, a dynamic shift-share analysis was conducted using the thirteen major economic sector of Kentucky over the period 1970 to 1989. The resulting regional shift components, or competitive components, give support to the theory that a comparative advantage for Kentucky in agriculture does exist. Annual regional shift components, as well as their dynamic counterpart, possess predominately positive values, indicating outperformance by Kentucky’s agricultural sector when compared to the United States economy as a …

Repeatabilities Of Pelvic Area Measurements Between And Within Technicians With Varying Levels Of Experience, Steven Ftizner

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

There has been some concern recently about the ability of technicians to accurately measure and rank prospective replacement heifers and herd bulls for pelvic area. Two studies were conducted to determine the repeatabilities between and within technicians with varying levels of experience in measuring pelvic areas.

In both studies, virgin yearling heifers were measured for pelvic height and width to determine pelvic area. In each study, technicians included a veterinarian with several years experience in reproductive physiology practice and Western Kentucky University students with varying levels of experience in rectal examinations. In the first study , the veterinarian used both …

A Modified Scheme For The Isolation And Enumeration Of Bacteria In Municipal Sewage Sludge, Kelly Ball

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Because of the potential health hazards associated with the use of sludge for agricultural purposes, Dudley et al (1980) published a scheme for the routine analysis of bacteria in municipal sewage sludge. In this study, the Dudley et al scheme (1980) was modified by updating some of the procedures. Aerobically digested sludge generated by the Bowling Green Wastewater Treatment Plant, Bowling Green, Kentucky, was analyzed using the modified scheme. Sludge samples were collected once every two months over a one-year period from October 1989 to August 1990.

Egg yolk-free tryptose sulfite cycloserine agar in conjunction with the revewrse CAMP test …

Wendell Berry’S Cyclic Vision: Traditional Farming As Metaphor, Morris Allen Grubbs

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Although Wendell Berry’s first book, a novel, appeared in 1960, he did not gain significant national attention until the publication of his nonfiction manifesto, The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture, in 1977. Since its publication, Berry has moved increasingly toward the prose of persuasion as he continues to sharpen his argument in support of a practical, continuous harmony between the human economy and Nature. His canon as a whole – the poems, essays, and novels – is an ongoing and thorough exploration of man’s use of and relationship to the land.

Arguing that the health of a culture …

Studies On I) Dry Matter And Nitrogen Disappearance Of Six Soybean Protein Products In Situ And Ii) Contamination Of In Situ Dry Matter And Nitrogen Disappearance With Acid Detergent Fiber, James Coomer

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

In experiment I), dry matter disappearance (DMD) and nitrogen disappearance (ND) of raw soybeans (RAW), solvent extracted soybean meal (SBM), heat treated whole soybeans (HT), mechanically extracted soybean meal (MEX), dry extruded soybeans (DEX), and wet extruded soybeans (TEX), were studied in situ for times of 3, 6, 12 and 24 h of rumen exposure. Five gram, air dry, samples were suspended in the rumen of a lactating Holstein cow fed a total mixed ration twice daily. The percent DMD for 24 h was as follows: RAW-85.9; SBM-56.6; HT-39.0; MEX-40.2; DEX-28.0; TEX-43.3. The greatest DMD was observed with RAW and …

Evaluation Of Fomesafen For Broadleaf Weed Control, In Soybeans (Glycine Max), Ricardo A. Jimenez

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The lack of effective broadleaf weed control represents one of the major factors having detrimental effects on growth and yield of soybeans. Broadleaf weeds are a serious threat to soybean growers in the southeastern United States. A broad range of herbicides is being used in an effort to control broadleaf weeds in soybeans, and research is still being conducted to find new herbicides that can best work for this purpose. This study involved the use of one these herbicides. It was fomesafen, 5-[2-chloro-4-trifluromethyl) phenoxy]-N-(methyl-sulfonyl)-2-nitrobenzamide, which controls a broad spectrum of broadleaf weeds in soybeans.

The experiment was conducted in the …

Adolescent Smoking Status And Socioeconomic Dependence On The Tobacco Crop In Southeastern Kentucky, Gregory Colwell

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of the study was to quantify the relationship between adolescent smoking and economic dependence on the tobacco crop. A survey of 1322 students from a random sample of all secondary schools in four counties in southeastern Kentucky was performed. The survey gathered information concerning smoking behavior and social variables. Chi-square analysis was performed to assess the relationships between these variables in students from families who worked with tobacco and families who did not.

Chi square analysis of female adolescent smoking behavior revealed a significant association between the instances of adolescent smoking and age, friend smoking status and sibling …

Physical Properties Of Tar Sand Tailings That Influence Their Ability To Sustain Plant Growth, Timothy Cole

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The mining of bituminous sandstone rock for the purpose of extracting bitumen has created a need for reclamation. One such mine is located in northern Logan County. Their mining operation involves removing large sections of sandstone, which is impregnated with bitumen, and crushing it to sand-sized material. The sand-sized material is then mixed with organic solvents which extract the bitumen. Once separated, the bitumen is stored for future refinement and the spent sand is stockpiled for later disposal.

The spent sands or waste material are referred to as tar sand tailings. These tailings have particular properties which make reclamation efforts …

The Performance Of Gazania Splendens Cultivars Under Kentucky Conditions, Ellen Sue Justiss

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Gazania splendens is a tender, herbaceous perennial that belongs to the Compositae family. The leaves are green and glabrous above, white tomentose beneath, toothed, simple and/or pinnatifid, 4”-6” long tapering to a winged petiole, lanceolate to obovate-lanceolate, and arranged in a basal clump. The flower heads are large, showy, 2”-3” in diameter, and range in color from white to yellow, orange, pink, purple, ruby, and bronze with a dark ring or spot at the base of most.

Twelve cultivars of Gazania splendens were to be evaluated to determine which would perform the best under Kentucky conditions. A seed germination test …

Evaluation Of S-734 And Bas 9052 For Control Of Johnsongrass (Sorghum Halepense) In Soybeans (Glycine Max), Julio Beingolea Ochoa

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Johnsongrass is one of the more limiting factors in soybean production and is the most serious weed problem in the Southeastern United States. Actually, different herbicides are used in johnsongrass control, and still there are new herbicides which are being tested. Two experimental herbicides for johnsongrass control in soybeans are BAS 9052 and S-734.

The experiments were conducted in 1980 and 1981 with the objective to evaluate the effectiveness of S-734 alone and in combination with mefluidide and BAS 9052, BAS 9052 applied early or late postemergence, trifluralin, alachlor, and fluchloralin for seedling and rhizome johnsongrass control.

In both areas …

Effects Of Row Width And Seeding Rate On Yield And Other Agronomic Characteristics Of Three Soybean Cultivars, Russell Kithcart

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Soybeans have traditionally been grown in rows wide enough to allow mechanical cultivation and to increase lodging resistance. Improved cultivars and herbicides have permitted farmers to obtain yield advantages from narrower rows. The growth response of soybeans to variations in row width and seeding rates depends upon the cultivar and geographic location.

“Williams,” “Mitchell,” and “Essex” cultivars were planted at row widths of 18, 36, 54, and 72cm. at seeding rates of 33, 67, 100 and 134 kg/ha in multi-row plots. Data were collected from each plot for seed yield, lodging, plant height, height of lowest pod, seed and population …

Evaluation Of Herbicides For Suppression Of Rhizome Growth From Johnsongrass (Sorghum Halepense L.) In Corn And Soybeans, John Oakes

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense L.) presents a serious problem in the production of corn and soybeans in Kentucky.

Various rates of the thiocarbamates, dinitroanilines, carbamates, amides, ureas, and triazines were used in association with the crops corn (Zea mays L.) and soybeans (Glycine max L.) to determine the degree of suppression on rhizomatous johnsongrass infesting the previously named crops.

Suppression was determined by selecting areas within each treated plot, counting the number of culms, then harvesting johnsongrass rhizomes. Dry weights of rhizomes were then determined as a measure of rhizome suppression.

Results show that of …

Movement Of Soil Nitrate Through A Pembroke Soil As Affected By Tillage Method And Time Of Nitrogen Application, Noel T. Johnston

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Of all the plant nutrients, nitrogen has been subjected to the most extensive study. The amount of inorganic nitrogen in the soil is small while the quantity needed annually by crops is comparatively large. Of the macronutrients usually applied in commercial fertilizers, nitrogen seems to have the quickest and most pronounced effect on plant growth.

In applying the nitrogen fertilizer for crop use, one must be concerned with placement, form, and availability, and with keeping the fertilizer where it is placed throughout the critical part of the growing season. The nitrogen supply molded by non-leguminous plants is of extreme importance …

Iron Requirement Of Pigs Farrowed In Metal Farrowing Stalls, Rebecca Walker

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Pigs farrowed and reared in metal farrowing stalls were studied to determine the need for iron. Three treatments were studied, namely—T-O (pigs given no iron injection), T-1 (pigs given 1 iron-dextran injection at 2 days of age) and T-2 (pigs given 2 injections of iron-dextran, the first at day 2 and the second at day 7). Hemoglobin levels were analyzed to determine the incorporation of iron in the bloodstream in the form of hemoglobin. Pig weights were used as a measure of production.

The hemoglobin levels did not differ (p>0.1) among the 3 treatments at birth, 4 days, 6 …

Tobacco Farming: The Persistence Of Tradition, Eugene Umberger Jr.

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The culture of tobacco has been associated with the history of Kentucky almost from the beginning and remains to this day a vital force in the state’s economy. In this age of scientific and technological advances – of increasing automation – we find that in tobacco farming, hand labor still figures prominently in the production of a major staple crop. This has resulted in the retention of traditional method, technology and terminology, long since lost in the culture of other crops which lent themselves more easily to mechanization.

The study is divided into three parts. Chapter I deals briefly with …

Yield And Chemical Composition Of Barley Silage, John Henry James

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The potential of Barsoy barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) as a silage crop was studied at Western Kentucky University in 1970-1971. The field study was conducted at two locations. Barley was seeded at the rate of 107.5 kg/ha in a Pembroke silt loam soil at both locations in September, 1970. At the time of planting the soil was fertilized with 7.5, 32.4 and 33.1 kg/ha of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, respectively. Plants at location 2 received an additional 23.7 kg/ha of nitrogen in February, 1971.

Whole barley plants were harvested at weekly intervals from March 11 through June 3 at …

Description And Seasonal Variation In Incidence Of A New Species Of Myxosporidian Parasite (Class Myxosporidea) Of The Bluegill Sunfish, Lepomis Macrochirus Rafineque, In Kentucky, Stephen Bayes Crider

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A new histozoic myxosporidian parasite (Class Mysoxporidea), Myxobolus meglitschi sp. nov., infecting young-of-the-year and yearling bluegill sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus Raf., from Shanty Hollow Lake, Warren County, Kentucky was described. Phenology was investigated from January 20 to December, 1969.

The magnitude of infection varied seasonally in bluegill. Incidence was highest in July and August (43.92) in host populations, declining, but not disappearing from September to December 20, 1969. The infection exhibited a yearly mean incidence of 22.318.

The pattern of distribution of cysts on hosts varied seasonally. During periods of low incidence cysts were confined primarily to a postanal area below …

The Effect Of Two Growth Retardant Chemicals, Cycocel And B-Nine, On Certain Nitrogeneous Components In Barley Seedlings, Linda Kinser

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Certain chemicals are known to inhibit growth in many plant species. These chemicals possess a common trait, the ability to inhibit stem elongation by suppressing the activity of the subapical meristematic region (11). These growth retardants have been extensively studied during the past several years in an effort to determine the biochemical mechanism responsible for reduction in plant height. The characteristic effect of these chemical retardants on the growth pattern has been described as producing plants with shorter, thicker stems and broader, darker green leaves. Tolbert, however, noted that although plants treated with the plant growth retardant, Cycocel, (2-chloroethyltrimethlammoniumchloride) and …

Investigation In The Physiology Of The Spore Formation Of Pseudoples Trifolii (Rostr.) And Petr., Emory S. Crosby

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Plant pathologists have worked to some extent for many years in an attempt to describe the complete physiology of the organism responsible for pepper spot of clover, particularly as found on white clover (Trifolium repens, L.). These works have not been extensive or concentrated and at the present time, no definite conclusions have been reached.

The causal agent of pepper spot of clover is Pseudoples trifolii (Rostr.).

Pseudoples trifolii usually is found parasitizing clover in the early spring and continues throughout the spring until the temperature exceeds thirty degrees centigrade. Elliott established that Pseudoples trifolii will not produce infectious spores …