Digital Commons Network^™

Tropical Grassland Ecosystems And Climate Change, C. R. Babu, Vivek Kr. Choudhary, Vijay Kumar

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grasses are unique group of flowering plants that form the foundation for the trophic structure in terrestrial communities. The grasses are found in every conceivable habitat where plants can thrive – from sea to deserts and from wetlands to peaks of highest mountains. The grasses form a distinct biome – a major ecological formation in the global classification of vegetation.

Recent Trends In Breeding Of Tropical Grass And Forage Species, J. S. Sandhu, Dinesh Kumar, Vijay Kumar Yadav, Tejveer Singh, R. P. Sah, Auji Radhakrishna

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Germplasm enrichment in major tropical grasses and their characterization for emerging environmental challenges have been major focussed area in the recent past. Breeding efforts in tropical grasses are still limited to few selected species viz. Panicum spp, Cenchrus spp, Pennisetum spp and Bracharia spp and all other grasses use of land races for varietal development through selection have been major source of improvement. The pace of breeding efforts in the tropical grasses have been slowed because of many inherent characteristics viz. apomixis, poor seed set, high photo and thermo sensitivity often creating problem in designing and implementing an effective breeding …

Sustainability, Biodiversity And Environmental Issues: A Global Perspective For Livestock Production, David L. Michalk

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

To meet world food demand through the 21st century, agricultural production needs to increase, but this needs to be done sustainably through increasing efficiency, optimising sufficiency and achieving consistency, such that resource use is optimised, waste reduced and environmental benefits gained. These strategies need to be developed against changing food patterns, especially a decline in per capita consumption of cereals and an increase in meat consumption as household incomes increase. Grasslands are collectively the larger group of land-based ecosystems on the planet. Their values are not always recognised, often being seen as ‘reserves’ for exploitation for urban expansion, …

Grassland And Livestock Production: The East African Case, David Miano Mwangi

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grasslands cover over 26% of the world land mass and about 80% of the agricultural area. They are the source of a livelihood for about 1 million people in the developing countries. Livestock contributes 40% of the global value of agricultural outputs. Approximately 60% of rural households keep livestock. In East Africa there are a number of grasslands. The most extensive of these are the Acacia based Savanna grasslands. Others include the sudd flooded grasslands of South Sudan and the Miobo woodlands of Tanzania. More than 60% of the livestock and wildlife in this region are found on these grasslands. …

Tropical Grasslands--Trends, Perspectives And Future Prospects, Panjab Singh

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

This paper attempts a rapid summary of the present day state of tropical grassland and livestock based production systems globally, especially in tropics, in relation to recent trends, future assessment, grassland rehabilitation and management strategies, future perspectives of grassland science and development including policy imperatives.

About Sponsors, National Organizing Committee, International Grassland Congress

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

School Gardens: Cultivating A Child’S Nutritional Habits, Environmental Knowledge, And Sustainability Practices, Jeffrey Meltzer

Honors Theses

School gardens have existed since the late nineteenth century and today are becoming increasingly popular in many parts of the world, including where I studied in Maine and Australia (AUS). Multiple organizations support school gardens in Maine, including the Maine School Garden Network, which has over 125 registered school gardens. In AUS, the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation primarily supports the school garden movement and has over 800 registered school gardens. While many researchers have studied school gardens, few have compared two countries, focused on environmental sustainability, or investigated Maine in particular. This thesis combines information from literature reviews, and …

Nitrogen Management Of Forages In Relation To Gaseous Emissions – New Approaches And Considerations, Shabtai Bittman, Derek Hunt

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Forages have a high N demand, a long growing season, and an effective root system all contributing to effective nutrient capture. However forages are restrictive in methods available for mitigating gaseous losses both as NH₃ and as N₂O, due to both practical and cost considerations. Strategies are needed to address the challenges of both N efficiency and N losses. Agronomic techniques in long term experiments can enhance estimates of N loss pathways and N efficiency, and demonstrate the importance of integrated multinutrient approaches. The dual manure stream concept divides manure into a thin fraction suitable as an …

Impact Of Market Forces On Product Quality And Grassland Condition, David L. Michalk, Jianping Wu, Warwick B. Badgery, David R. Kemp

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Meeting demands for livestock products which are predicted to more than double during the next 20 years, is central to the challenge of feeding the world sustainably. Smallholders will play a key role in achieving global security in animal protein. However, this requires a shift from subsistence to market-oriented farming where production efficiency not the number of livestock is the key focus with the aim of producing ‘more from less’. For grassland-based ruminant production, reducing stocking rate from current unsustainable levels under subsistence management is an essential first step to producing more production and profit from fewer animals. This is …

Stakeholders Integration For Sustainable Use Of Temperate Forage/Livestock Agriculture, Garry D. Lacefield, Don Ball

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Forage/livestock production is complex, and best management options are often site-specific, but some concepts have broad application. The intent of this article is to provide an overview of research-based management approaches that the authors believe are necessary to ensure the sustainability of forage/livestock farms. This overview discussion is needed because livestock agriculture is changing, thus creating both challenges and opportunities for producers. In the last 30 years, beef numbers in the USA have declined by 20%, but production per cow has more than doubled, resulting in increased total production on less land with fewer animals. Similar statistics exist for the …

Socio-Cultural Factors Challenging Development Interventions In Cattle Production In The Remote Areas Of Vietnam, Duong-Nam Ha, Pham-Van Hung, Tran-The Cuong, Ninh-Xuan Trung, Tran-Van Long, Laurie Bonney, Peter A. Lane, Guillaume Duteurtre, Stephen Ives

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The northwest highlands of Vietnam are characterized by high altitude, low infrastructure, and low population densities composed of a wide diversity of different ethnic groups. Their socio-cultural characteristics strongly influence their lifestyle and production systems, including agricultural activities. The majority of these people have suffered from slow economic development, with the highest poverty rate in the country. This is a real need for plausible interventions where behavioral changes of smallholders throughout local value chains would be a critical foundation. Our project implemented in this context of development in the Northwest highlands of Vietnam aims to understand the role of socio-cultural …

Conservation Of Grassland Plant Genetic Resources Through People Participation, D. R. Malaviya, Ajoy K. Roy, P. Kaushal

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Agrobiodiversity provides the foundation of all food and feed production. Hence, need of the time is to collect, evaluate and utilize the biodiversity globally available. Indian sub-continent is one of the world’s mega centers of crop origins. India possesses 166 species of agri-horticultural crops and 324 species of wild relatives. India is reported to have five grass covers identified. There have been almost nil human interference in terms of selection pressure; hence, the biodiversity is well conserved in these grazing lands. There is need of a system approach to understanding biodiversity that moves significantly beyond taxonomy and species observations. In …

Breeding Strategies To Improve Fodder Legumes With Special Emphasis On Clover And Medics, Ajoy K. Roy, D. R. Malaviya, P. Kaushal

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

In India, Forage has a unique integration of agriculture and animal industry in diversified rich cultural environment. Greater part of rural economy in India relies much upon mixed farming system, a well-knit combination of crop production and livestock rearing. In India, grazing-based livestock husbandry plays an important role in the rural economy as around 50% of animals depend on grazing. Pasturelands over an area of 12 Mha constitute the main grazing resources that are available. Nearly 30 pastoral communities in hilly or arid/semi-arid regions in northern and western parts of India, depend on grazing-based livestock production. Nomadic pastoralism, a traditional …

Front Matter [23rd International Grassland Congress Proceedings], National Organizing Committee, International Grassland Congress

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Model And Sensor-Based Recommendation Approaches For In-Season Nitrogen Management In Corn, L. J. Thompson, R. B. Ferguson, N. Kitchen, D. W. Frazen, M. Mamo, H. Yang, J. S. Schepers

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen management for corn (Zea mays L.) may be improved by applying a portion of N in-season. This investigation was conducted to evaluate crop modeling (Maize-N) and active crop canopy sensing approaches for recommending in-season N fertilizer rates. These approaches were evaluated during 2012–2013 on 11 field sites, in Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota. Nitrogen management also included a no-N treatment (check) and a non-limiting N reference (all at planting). Nitrogen management treatments were assessed for two hybrids and at low and high seeding rates, arranged in a randomized complete block design. In 9 of 11 site-years, the sensor-based …

Front Matter [Preface And List Of Contributors], National Organizing Committee, International Grassland Congress

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Promising Forage Options To Enhance Livestock Production In Mediterranean Climate Agricultural Systems, Serkan Ates, Hayley C. Norman, Hichem Ben Salem, Bradley Nutt, Harun Cicek

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The increasing demand for food, fibre and animal products inevitably requires intensifying agricultural production worldwide. This can present a number of environmental and farming systems challenges in Mediterranean climate areas of the world. Developments of novel strategies, employing ecologically sound intensification practices, are crucial to enhance production in the Mediterranean agropastoral production systems. In this paper, we have discussed forage based systems that improve productivity, profitability, environmental quality and resilience of the farming systems. Key opportunities include better use and integration of diverse genetic resources, new agronomic techniques and the utilization of perennial forage plants that are adapted to land …

Grazing Management Options For Maintaining Optimum Pasture Composition And Utilization, Glen E. Aiken

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Global demand for meat and dairy products will continue to increase over the 21st century, however, the global forage-based livestock industry will be challenged in meeting production goals with minimal impact of the environment. Sustainable production of grazing livestock will depend on the use of carefully planned grazing management strategies. Development of a grazing management plan involves making two decisions: determining the livestock density at which pastures are stocked and settling on the method used to graze the pastures. Stocking rate indirectly affects output per animal and per hectare through its direct effect on forage mass and pasture composition. A …

Management Of Pasture Soils: Biochar Stability, Carbon Storage Potential And Its Effect On Production And Quality, Bhupinder Pal Singh, Yunying Fang, Mark Boersma, Damian Collins, Lukas Van Zwieten, Lynne M. Macdonald

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The use of biochar has been proposed as a stable carbon (C) amendment with long-term carbon (C) storage potential in agricultural soils while improving primary productivity. However, this concept has not been widely tested in contrasting soils under temperate pasture systems. To address this knowledge gap, a ¹³C-labelled biochar, produced from Eucalyptus saligna biomass by slow pyrolysis (450° C; d¹³C -36.7‰) was surface (0"10 cm) applied in C₃ dominated, annual temperate pasture systems across Arenosol, Cambisol and Ferralsol. The results show that only 2% of the applied biochar-C was mineralised in a relatively clay- and C-poor …

Grassland Renovation And Consequences For Nutrient Management, Johannes Isselstein, Manfred Kayser

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Sward degradation is a serious threat to the functioning of grassland and the provision of ecosystem services. Renovation measures are frequently applied in order to restore degraded swards. However, the success is highly variable and substantial tradeoffs are often found following renovation such as among agronomic and environmental services. Starting from a general classification of renovation measures the paper investigates the processes induced by renovation that lead to a change of the vegetation and that affect carbon and nitrogen fluxes. These processes are strongly interrelated and dependent on site, climate and management condition as well as on the time scale. …

Potential For Crop Production Increase In Argentina Through Closure Of Existing Yield Gaps, Fernando Aramburu Merlos, Juan Pablo Monzon, Jorge L. Mercau, Miguel Taboada, Fernando H. Andrade, Antonio J. Hall, Esteban Jobbagy, Kenneth Cassman, Patricio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Favorable climate and soils for rainfed crop production, together with a relatively low population density,results in 70–90% of Argentina grain production being exported. No assessment to date has tried to estimate the potential for extra grain production for soybean, wheat and maize, which account for 78%of total harvested area, by yield gap closure on existing cropland area and its impact at a global scale.The objectives of this paper are (i) to estimate how much additional grain could be produced without expanding crop area by closing yield gaps in Argentina, (ii) to investigate how this production and yield gaps varies across …

Plants Coping Abiotic And Biotic Stresses: A Tale Of Diligent Management, Hatem Rouached, Sikander Pal, Shimon Rachmilevitch, Marc Libault, Lam-Son Phan Tran

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Plants unlike other living forms are sessile thereby facing severe biotic and abiotic stresses. Plants have evolved different efficient defence responses which thrive upon a number of intrinsic factors, such as genotypic and phenotypic constitutions and developmental circumstances, and extrinsic factors like severity and duration of the stresses. Stress management uses molecular and biochemical level controls, the competence, and speed, at which a stress signal is perceived and transmitted to generate stress signal molecules and activate stress-protective mechanisms. A well-concerted action of the plants’ competence at morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular strata regulates numerous adaptive responses to biotic and abiotic …

Importance Of Livestock Production From Grasslands For National And Local Food And Nutritional Security In Developing Countries, Iain A. Wright

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grazing lands cover more than a quarter of the world’s land surface, often on land that is unsuitable for other forms of use. Despite the perception that productivity is inherently low, the contribution of grasslands in food security in developing countries is significant. However the challenges of spatial and temporal variability of primary productivity need to be managed and mobility of livestock is key to this. Appropriate land management and governance arrangements are essential for facilitating this mobility and for creating the circumstances in which technical options for reducing variability and risk in livestock keeping can be deployed and to …

Selection And Basis For 2,4-D (2,4-Dicholorphenoxyacetic Acid) Tolerance In Red Clover (Trifolium Pratense), Tara L. B. Lewis

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

A red clover (Trifolium pratense) population (UK), from a cross between the cultivar Kenland and a 2,4-D tolerant population (Florida), was recurrently selected for 2,4-D tolerance with evaluations after the 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th selection cycles. All UK populations were more 2,4-D tolerant than Kenland. The 2,4-D tolerance following the 6^th selection cycle was similar to the Florida population and tolerance was increased following 7 and 8 cycles of selection by removing plants showing 2,4-D injury and doubling the rate of 2,4-D used for selection.

Yield and forage quality were evaluated in …

Nutrient Availability And Dynamics Of Compost Bedded Pack Dairy Barn Waste, Leslie Hammond

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Increased adoption of compost bedded pack dairy barns (CBP), a relatively new housing and manure handling strategy, warrants study to facilitate proper use of CBP waste as a soil amendment. This study: 1) characterized in situ nutrient content and availability of CBP waste in terms of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P); 2) examined the decomposition of surface-applied CBP waste compared to an alternative processed solid waste amendment; 3) examined nutrient dynamics of incorporated CBP waste in high and low soil test phosphorus (STP) environments. Quick anaerobic mineralization assays revealed that bed management affects nutrient content and availability of CBP waste. …

Production, Persistence And Diversity Of Species In Temperate Grasslands, Meredith L. Mitchell, Brendan P. Christy

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Temperate grassland areas are considered to be semi-arid, with rainfall typically between 250 and 500 mm, much of it occurring in the late spring and early summer. Grazing plays an important role in all these grasslands with impacts on diversity and persistence. Against this assumption that seasonal productivity would be more uniform within a pasture that was diverse, the research suggested that species rich pastures were less stable, because this species richness was composed of non-perennial, volunteer and weed species. This paper explores the concept that systems diversity of temperate grassland does not always equate to production. In these systems …

Using Various Lactic Acid Bacteria Strains During Forage Conservation Towards Fermentation, Storage, Nutritive Value And Safety Improvement, Jonas Jatkauskas, Vilma Vrotniakiene

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Many research efforts have been devoted to find ways how to produce silages with maximum nutritive value, good fermentation and low mould and yeast counts. While there are different objectives in using silage additives, the main objectives are to improve fermentation and reduce dry matter loss, and to prevent secondary fermentation at feed out time. This paper presents our most significant and recent investigations on forage inoculation before ensiling that have a potential for beneficial application on grassland and ruminant nutrition.

Traditional Livestock Production And Growth Opportunities In India, S. M. Deb

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Livestock and animal health development projects need to be based on an understanding of livestock production systems because different systems need different approaches particularly in view of degradation of environment combined with population pressure. In India, the livestock production system is primarily traditional, consisting of mixed-farming and pastoral systems, therefore, development of marginal and smallholder mixed farms must aim at intensification of the total production system. Resource-poor farming systems may aim at the improved management of the various livestock species in backyards. Pastoral systems must focus on effective management of grazing pressure. Community pasture management involves application of technologies, land …

Nutrient Movements Through Ruminant Livestock Production Systems, Adegbola T. Adesogan, Jose C. B. Dubeux, Lynn E. Sollenberger

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Considerable attention has been paid to reducing nutrient emissions from ruminant livestock in the last few decades. This area will continue to attract considerable research in the future due to increasing farm sizes in some developed countries as well as the increasing demand for meat and dairy products, particularly in developing countries. This paper discusses the deposition and losses of carbon and nitrogen in soils and plants in grazed and harvested forage systems as well as utilization and losses of both nutrients by ruminants in both systems. The paper also outlines several soil, plant, and animal-focused strategies that can be …

Strengthening Livelihood Of Rural Farmer Populations Through Improved Grasslands, Sujatha Premaratne, S. C. Somasiri

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

This paper reviews the current background of the grassland resource with a purpose of livestock perspective to improve the livelihood of rural farmers. The use of grasslands for livestock rearing by rural farmers has been a long tradition. In climate and vegetation contrast, these grasslands are much more diverse. They are likely to play an economical role in increasing the milk production in many Asian countries. With an increase of human population, the traditional feeding, breeding and surviving habitats for livestock have been acutely restricted in many countries. Therefore, a continued effort is needed to maintain production for sustainable management …