Horticulture Commons^™

Implementing Landscape Design Principles To Improve Green Spaces And Promote Ecotherapy On A College Campus, Jessica Hutchinson

Honors College

As students in Maine are subject to harsh winters and a disconnectedness due to the pandemic, the creation of an ecotherapy focused garden may benefit the community at the University of Maine. Mental health is a rising concern within the United States, where anxiety has been the most frequent in students at 62.7% from a survey conducted by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (Son et al., 2020). Ecotherapy is the practice of holistic psychology where healing is derived from interactions with the surrounding ecosystem (Summers and Vivian, 2018). Through literature review and gardening, this creative project provides a green …

Evaluating The Current Weed Community In Wild Blueberry Fields And Ipm Strategies For Spreading Dogbane (Apocynum Androsaemifolium), Anthony G. Ayers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium) is Maine’s third largest crop (USDA 2020 a). From 2017 – 2019 the three seasons yield average was 27,200 tons were harvested from 19,500 acres for a value of $22,468,000 (USDA 2020 c). Lowbush blueberries are managed on a two-year cycle. Every other year, lowbush blueberry fields are pruned to the ground either through the use of a tractor mounted flail mower or a prescribed burn (Yarborough 2009). Pruning is a necessary part of managing lowbush blueberries as the second-year growth produces the highest yield but steadily declines in subsequent years (Drummond et al. …

Submist As An Effective Method For The Rooting Of Herbaceous And Woody Ornamental Plants By Stem Cuttings, Olivia Sanchez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The primary method of vegetative propagation by stem cutting is to insert leafy cuttings into a solid soilless media and place the cuttings in an environment that provides moist, humid conditions to the foliage through fog or overhead intermittent mist. These systems reduce water loss through transpiration by reducing leaf temperature and provide moisture to the rooting media. However, excess water, both on the media and on the leaves can result in an increase incident of diseases. To alleviate some of these issues, research has found stem cuttings can be rooted in sub-mist systems that apply water solely to the …

Consumer Acceptance And Phytonutrient Assessment Of Cold Hardy, Locally Grown Plums, Amber L. Elwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Prunus salicina, Japanese plums, and Prunus domestica, European plums, are naturally rich in fiber, minerals, vitamins and phytonutrients. Consuming plums can increase overall fruit intake and can be incorporated into part of a healthy diet. Through local plum production, harvesting can be completed without the need for cross-country shipping, which can increase overall acceptability and nutritional quality of the fruit. Furthermore, the increase in local production can help to boost Maine’s economy and creates a market for new plum product production.

The first objective of this study was to determine consumer acceptance of locally grown plum cultivars at a …

Flower Visitation In Relation To Pollen And Nectar Nutrition: Implications For Pollinator Habitat And Conservation, Megan E. Leach

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pollination of both wild and crop plants is at a crossroads; honey bee populations are experiencing losses at a higher rate than ever before, and some native bee species are declining in abundance to the point of being listed as endangered species. A few examples of these threats include pesticide exposure, habitat loss, and climate change. In response to bee population declines, conservation efforts have been initiated to increase habitat quality for bees by planting pollinator reservoirs or gardens. Plants provide nutrition to bees in the form of pollen and nectar. Several studies have shown links between higher nutritional quality …

Propagation Of The Native North American Shrub Lonicera Villosa And Trait Comparisons With Nonnative Congeneric Taxa, Darren J. Hayes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The honeysuckles, or Lonicera, represent a circumboreally-distributed genus in the Caprifoliaceae family. A diverse assortment of vines, lianas, and shrubs comprise the genus, and honeysuckles have long been a staple of the horticultural industry, prized for their robustness as much as their sweet-scented flowers and colorful fruits. However, many cultivated honeysuckles of Eurasian origin have proven invasive outside of their native range, displacing native species and reducing overall diversity and ecosystem health. Planting of Eurasian Lonicera taxa is now often discouraged or banned throughout much of North America. Conversely, native North American Lonicera species are often sparsely distributed and …

Optimizing Fertilizer And Compost Rates In Organic Reduced Till Agriculture, Nicholas W. Rowley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Interest in reduced tillage systems has been increasing and advanced by a need to practice agriculture in a sustainable way to limit environmental degradation. The focus on preserving soil integrity has become commonplace in all scales of agriculture. Recently trends in agricultural production have given rise to numerous small farms centered on local and sustainable farming. In turn, this has led to a growing desire to implement conservation tillage into these systems.

In 2015 and 2016 a collaborative effort between the University of Maine at the Maine Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station: Highmoor Farm and Cornell University at the Homer …

Reducing Tillage In Small-Scale Permanent Bed Organic Vegetable Production Systems, Jeremiah D. Vallotton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The response of field-grown vegetable crops to reduced tillage and mulching in permanent beds was evaluated through measuring crop yields, weed pressure, earthworm counts, and soil basal respiration. Two vegetable crops (“Bush Delicata” squash and “Farao” cabbage) were started in April and May of 2016 and 2017 respectively, transplanted in late June, and harvested on 15-Sep-2016 and 25-Aug-2017. Fruit number and weight of squash, and head weight and feeding damage of cabbage were measured. These results suggest that intensive tillage (8” rototill every year) can be successfully reduced to alternating years of shallow (2”) rototilling and a less intensive form …

Maine Home Garden News Oct 2016, Kate Garland

Garden & Yard

• October is the month to . . .
• Fall tool care
• Merrymeeting Gleaners
• Growing garlic
• Making better baked goods

Propagation And Container Production Of The Amelanchier Spicata Complex, Gregory J. Melcher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Amelanchier is a genus in the Rosaceae containing shrubs and trees indigenous to North America that possess traits valued by the horticulture industry. Amelanchier spicata (dwarf serviceberry), a heterogeneous complex of hybrids indigenous to eastern North America, has agricultural and ornamental merit with notable characteristics. White blossoms emerge in early spring, edible pomes ripen in the summer, and vibrant, orange foliage occurs in the fall. I investigated phenological and physiological factors influencing adventitious rooting of stem cuttings, the effects of nitrogen source on the development of seedlings grown in container culture, and phenotypic variation among seedlings of A. spicata from …

Wild Tulips, Lynne M. Holland

Garden & Yard

Staff picks for Maine Home Garden News plant of the month. Wild tulips, the flower that created Tulipmainia

The Enhancement Of Wild Bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) For Pollination Security, Eric M. Venturini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The acreage of pollinator-dependent crops continues to expand across the globe. Simultaneously, honey bee hives – an annually rented commodity that growers rely on – are more expensive every year and in some cases, scarce. In response, pollinator-dependent growers seek alternative pollinators. One approach is installing bee pasture on farms, a strategy that enables systems-based farmers to become in-situ farm-scale habitat managers. This thesis first presents a review of the literature on bee pasture plantings and provides a brief overview of some methods for assessing their impacts on the pollinator community. There are three major gaps in current bee pasture …

Production Of Heuchera And Coleus, Katherine Fisher Garland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

According to the USD A ERS, 2008 receipts from greenhouse and nursery sales ranked fourth among agricultural commodities in Maine and seventh in the nation. Greenhouse and nursery plant production relies on the availability of quality water for irrigation and, often involves the use of supplemental lighting to enhance the quality and growth of the plants being produced. Increasing energy costs and more frequent water shortages associated with changing demographics, water use legislation, and climate factors have inspired growers to consider more sustainable approaches to utilizing resources such as water and energy. Precise, crop-specific water and light recommendations are essential …

Revegetating Blackwoods Campground, Acadia National Park: Emphasis On Natural Regeneration Of Red Spruce And Balsam Fir, Cristin O'Brien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Blackwoods Campground in Acadia National Park has a declining vegetative understory, characterized by a lack of tree seedling recruitment and shrub populations. This project was embarked upon to identify limiting factors to tree seedling establishment and shrub survival. From these studies, management plans will be developed for revegetating the campground understory. To better understand the factors that inhibit successful seedling establishment, we investigated the effects of varying soil moisture levels on seed germination, seedling survival and seedling dry mass accumulation for red spruce and balsam fir. We also studied the effect of organic layer depth on seedling growth for both …

B849: Drought-Tolerant Small Trees For Maine Landscapes, Reeser C. Manley

Bulletins

This publication describes five species that have proven to be reliably cold hardy in Orono (USDA Zone 5a) and that meet many, if not all, of the criteria for exceptional landscape trees. In addition, these five species are currently uncommon in Maine landscapes and thus represent potentially new products and new opportunities for the Maine landscape and nursery industries: Acer miyabei, Miyabe Maple; Acer triflorum, Three-flower Maple; Cercis canadensis, Eastern Redbud; Maackia amurensis, Amur Maackia; Prunus sargentii, Sargent Cherry.

Mr430: An Evaluation Of Turfgrass Species And Varieties: Tall Fescue, Alan R. Langille, Annamarie Pennucci

Miscellaneous Reports

Originating in Europe, Tall fescue (Festuca anundinacea Schreb.) is a coarse-textured grass, which is characterized by a bunch-type growth habit. Tall fescue possesses a deeper, coarser and more extensive root system than the other cool- season species giving this grass excellent drought tolerance. It is propagated by seed, with an establishment rate that is more rapid than Kentucky bluegrass, but slower than perennial ryegrass. In conclusion, the improved tall fescue varieties performed surprisingly well at the Littlefield Garden at the University of Maine. Based upon this performance, this species should be given consideration as a cool-season turf species in …

Mr415: Why Not Tame The Wild Blueberry, Walter Litten, John M. Smagula

Miscellaneous Reports

A discussion of two studies of different methods of propagating lowbush blueberry plants. These methods could be used for introducing blueberry plants into existing fields to improve field cover, or to start a blueberry field from scratch.

1995 Csrees Reports, Alfred A. Bushway, Therese M. Work, Huanli Zhang, Raoul Pelletier, Rodney J. Bushway, Brian Perkins, Mary Ellen Camire, Michael Dougherty, H Y. Forsythe Jr, Judith A. Collins, Frank A. Drummond, Constance S. Stubbs, Paul E. Capiello, John M. Smagula, Youzhi Chen, Scott Dunham, Walter Litten, David E. Yarborough, Timothy M. Hess, John Jemison

Wild Blueberry Research Reports

The 1995 edition of the CSREES Reports was prepared for the Maine Wild Blueberry Commission and the University of Maine Wild Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include:

1. Factors Affecting the Quality of IQF Blueberries

2. Preventing the Bleeding of Blueberry Fruit in Bakery Products

3. Removing Water from Blueberries Before Freezing

4. Determination of Pesticide Residue Levels in Freshly Harvested and Processed Lowbush Blueberries

5. Industrial Ingredients from Cull Blueberries

6. Application of Heat as a Method of Controlling Secondary Pest Insects on Lowbush Blueberries

7. The Phenology and …

Tb156: Woody Landscape Plant Cold-Hardiness Ratings, Paul E. Cappiello, Lyle E. Littlefield

Technical Bulletins

The Lyle E. Littlefield Ornamentals Trial Garden has served as an excellent choice for testing winter survival of landscape plants. It is located on approximately 5 hectares of land comprising the highest elevation and windiest site on Marsh Island. The site is in USDA hardiness zone 4a. The soil is highly variable, ranging from a fine sandy loam to marine clay, with many stones throughout. In general, most plants are cultivated in beds mulched with mixed soft wood bark from a local mill. Plants receive supplemental irrigation during the first two seasons after planting, and thereafter irrigation is supplied only …

Woody Plants On The University Of Maine Campus, Lyle Littlefield

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This investigation centers around the identification and location of the various woody plants on the University of Maine campus. The trees and shrubs having special interest to a horticulturist are given the greater emphasis, but plants other than these have been included so as to make the study useful to any person having an interest in woody plant material. Included in the listing are 425 species and varieties of woody plants, which are represented by 134- genera, and 49 families.

The campus has a good representation of woody plants which would be useful to the trained horticulturist, botanist, forester, or …

Woody Plant Materials Suitable For Landscape Planting In Maine, Roger Clapp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this study has been to determine the full range of woody plant materials suitable for landscape planting in Maine. Essentially, the survival of a perennial plant out-of-doors in this State is determined by its hardiness. It is desirable not only to know that a particular plant exists or is hardy at a given place, but also to know over what area the plant may reasonably be expected to be thrifty. This immediately suggests dividing the State into climatic or plant zones. Such a zoning of the State is undertaken in this paper and the plant material is …