Environmental Sciences Commons^™

Cover Crop Mixtures For The Western Corn Belt: Opportunities For Increased Productivity And Stability, Samuel E. Wortman, Charles A. Francis, John L. Lindquist

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Achieving agronomic and environmental benefits associated with cover crops oft en depends on reliable establishment of a highly productive cover crop community. The objective of this study was to determine if cover crop mixtures can increase productivity and stability compared to single species cover crops, and to identify those components most active in contributing to or detracting from mixture productivity. A rainfed field experiment was conducted near Mead, Nebraska, United States, in 2010 and 2011. Eight individual cover crop species (in either the Brassicaceae [mustard] or Fabaceae [legume] family) and four mixtures of these species (two, four, six, and eight …

Effectiveness Of Grass Filters In Reducing Phosphorus And Sediment Runoff, Ahmed Al-Wadaey, Charles S. Wortmann, Thomas G. Franti, Charles A. Shapiro, Dean E. Eisenhauer

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Surface water contamination can often be reduced by passing runoff water through perennial grass filters. Research was conducted in 2006 to 2008 to evaluate the size of cool season grass filters consisting primarily of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb) with some orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata L.) relative to drainage area size in reducing runoff sediment and phosphorus (P). The soil was Pohocco silt loam Typic Eutrochrepts with a median slope of 5.5%. The grass filters occupying 1.1 and 4.3% of the plot area were compared with no filter with four replications. The filters were planted in the V-shaped …

Agriculture And Food In Crisis: Conflict, Resistance, And Renewal [Book Review], Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Edited by Fred Magdoff and Brian Tokar. 2010. Monthly Review Press, New York, New York, United States. 348 p. Paperback, cloth US$ 75.00, paper US$ 18.95, ISBN-13 978-1-58367-226-6.

That doubling of food production over the next four decades will be needed to adequately nourish our human population is not news, but the incredible steps essential to achieve that goal and their political and social implications are less well reported. In this series of 16 essays edited by Fred Magdoff and Brian Tokar, several thoughtful specialists in global food issues explore the historical, biological, economic, energy, political and social dimensions of …

Cultivating A Movement: Excerpts From An Oral History Of Organic Farming And Sustainable Agriculture On California’S Central Coast [Book Review], Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Edited by I. Reti and S. Rabkin, 2011. University of California, Santa Cruz, Library, Santa Cruz, California, United States. 299 p., US$19.95, ISBN 9-780972-33431, paper.

Often the most compelling evidence for success of organic farming comes from the personal stories of farmers. Coupled with reports on the application of science in organics, the practical knowledge of people in the field provides a rich foundation for the ongoing growth of this intriguing sector of the food system. This collection of interviews by the staff of the Regional History Project is one unique activity of the University of California, Santa Cruz library, …