Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Agronomy and Crop Sciences
The Hutton Project: Long-Term Agricultural Impacts On Soil Loss And Carbon Dynamics In Eastern South Dakota, Eli Halverson
The Hutton Project: Long-Term Agricultural Impacts On Soil Loss And Carbon Dynamics In Eastern South Dakota, Eli Halverson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Long-term and intensified agricultural land management has resulted in increased rates of soil erosion and has altered much of the carbon cycle at regional and global scales. Anthropogenic degradation of soil resources is a barrier to sustainable production, soil functioning, and ecosystem services. It is difficult to quantify the scope of pedogenic changes due to the lack of legacy data and short temporal scales. This study utilized decades to century-old soil information to quantify historical soil erosion losses and changes in soil carbon pools of eastern South Dakota soils. The results show that soils in the region have been significantly …
Diversifying Cornfields By Interseeding Cover Crops: Practical Implications And The Response Of Invertebrate Communities, Michael Bredeson
Diversifying Cornfields By Interseeding Cover Crops: Practical Implications And The Response Of Invertebrate Communities, Michael Bredeson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The lack of suitable habitat conditions for beneficial organisms in simplified agroecosystems leads to unstable invertebrate communities and overreliance on chemical control of herbivores. It is possible to manage pest populations without agrichemicals by manipulating farmland so that herbivores are impaired by plant-driven bottom-up and enemy-driven top-down antagonisms. Interseeding cover crops between established crop rows is a method used by farmers to improve habitat suitability for natural enemies and hinder host-finding, feeding and movement by herbivores. Here I address three important research gaps related to interseeding cover crops. A calcium carbonate seed coating, used to improve seed-broadcasting efficiency, was tested …