Digital Commons Network^™

Reaction-Diffusions System Simulated On Irregular Shapes And Surfaces Model Petal Spot Patterns In Monkeyflower Hybrids, Emily Simmons, Arielle M. Cooley, Joshua R. Puzey, Gregory D. Conradi Smith

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Adopting Yield-Improving Practices To Meet Maize Demand In Sub-Saharan Africa Without Cropland Expansion, Fernando Aramburu-Merlos, Fatima A. M. Tenorio, Nester Mashingaidze, Alex Sananka, Stephen Aston, Jonathan J. Ojeda, Patricio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Maize demand in Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to increase 2.3 times during the next 30 years driven by demographic and dietary changes. Over the past two decades, the area croppedwithmaize has expanded by 17million hectares in the region, with limited yield increase. Following this trend could potentially result in further maize cropland expansion and the need for imports to satisfy domestic demand. Here, we use data collected from 14,773 smallholder fields in the region to identify agronomic practices that can improve farm yield gains. We find that agronomic practices related to cultivar selection, and nutrient, pest, and crop management can …

Evaluating The Yield Of Surviving Plants From Early-Season Hail Damage In Corn: A Field Survey, I. P. Lisboa, Christopher A. Proctor, R W. Elmore, A. J. Mcmechan, N. D. Mueller, J. Wilson, G. Zobeck, Aaron Nygren, A. Bastidas, Osler Ortez

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Economic losses due to hailstorms acrossUS corn fields occur every year.Hailstorms result in leaf defoliation, decreasing photosynthetic area and impairing carbon assimilation and crop yield for all corn (Zea mays L.) development stages. However, more attention is often given to stand reductions rather than damage to stems or leaf defoliation. During the 2014 growing season, a natural hail event affected many areas of eastern Nebraska. Twelve affected corn fields were surveyed and included in this study. An injury score scale (1–5) was developed based on various injury and severity levels before the V6 (6-leaf corn growth stage) (six-collared leaves). …

Natural Variation In Lonely Guy-Like 1 Regulates Rice Grain Weight Under Warmer Night Conditions, Jaspreet Sandhu, Larissa Irvin, Anil Kumar Chandaran, Shohei Oguro, Puneet Paul, Balpreet Dhatt, Waseem Hussain, Shannon S. Cunningham, Cherryl O. Quinones, Argelia Lorence, Maria Arlene Adviento-Borbe, Paul E. Staswick, Gota Morota, Harkamal Walia

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Global nighttime temperatures are rising at twice the rate of daytime temperatures and pose a challenge for rice (Oryza sativa) production. High nighttime temperature (HNT) stress affects rice yield by reducing grain weight, size, and fertility. Although the genes associated with these yield parameters have been identified and characterized under normal temperatures, the genetic basis of grain weight regulation under HNT stress remains less explored. We examined the natural variation for rice single grain weight (SGW) under HNT stress imposed during grain development. A genome-wide association analysis identified several loci associated with grain weight under HNT stress. A …

The Ecology And Genetic Diversity Of Buckleya Distichophylla (Santalaceae), Montana Hill

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Piratebush (Buckleya distichophylla) is a native, rare, shrub found along the Blue Ridge mountains in North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Research on its ecology and genetic diversity is limited due to its rarity; only one population on Poor Mountain has been studied extensively in the past. To determine if there are ecological differences between populations of B. distichophylla, research on sex distribution, floral visitors, individual length, leaf area, and amount of light that reached each specimen were conducted and then compared between a population located on Dragon’s Tooth Trail and a population on Poor Mountain, both located …

New York City’S Rising Sea Level And Coastal Erosion: Approaches To Resiliency, Ryder D. Isidro

Student Theses 2015-Present

No abstract provided.

Barley Production: Effects Of Weather Damage And Varietal Purity On Quality, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Grains and other field crops factsheets

Australian barley is regarded for its quality and suitability for both malting and animal feed, although varietal differences and environmental conditions during production can influence its quality.

Reconnecting With Nature One Classroom At A Time, Bianca Apuzzo

Senior Honors Projects

Environmental science is more important to today’s society than it has ever been, and developing basic ecoliteracy is the easiest way we can work towards a more sustainable future. Ecoliteracy allows us to connect deeper to nature and provides us with the information needed to protect and restore our beautiful planet. We are rolling downhill, picking up speed as we go, through a silent mass extinction. The scariest part of it all: nobody seems to care.

In response to the lack of environmental education provided to today’s students, I have created a syllabus for a high school level science course …

The Combined Effects Of Nacl And Beet Juice On Germination And Early Seedling Growth Among Raphanus Sativus L., Justin Howell

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Salt pollution and soil salinization via secondary pathways is a global problem. One practice which contributes to increased salinity in soils and other natural systems is the application of road deicers in colder regions. Increased salinity in soils negatively affects plant growth and microbial activity. In an effort to decrease the amount of salt applied to roads, salts are applied as brine. Liquid organic additives are incorporated into these brines to foster better adherence of the salt to impermeable surfaces. One common additive is beet juice, a byproduct of sugar extraction. Beet juice contains high levels of phosphorus and organic …

On-Farm Nitrogen And Irrigation Management Strategies To Protect Groundwater Quality In The Bazile Groundwater Management Area, Arshdeep Singh

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Increasing groundwater nitrate (NO₃-N) contamination has raised significant environmental and health concerns in the irrigated sandy soils of Nebraska. Four studies were conducted to evaluate the impact the impact of 1) static (NE Yield Goal) vs. dynamic nitrogen (N) recommendations tools (Maize-N, Canopy Reflectance Sensing, Granular, and Adapt-N), 2) three N (optimum, suboptimum, and low) and irrigation rates (farmer’s full irrigation (FIT), 80% FIT, and 60% FIT), 3) conventional N sources vs. enhanced efficiency fertilizers (EEFs), and 4) multiple N splits (2, 3, 4, and 5-N splits) on agronomic (maize yield), environmental (NO3-N leaching), and economic returns (return …

Establishment Of Wildflower Islands To Enhance Roadside Health, Ecological Value, And Aesthetics, Jackson Ebbers

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Roadsides provide an abundant opportunity to increase connectivity of fragmented landscapes with diminishing floral resources for pollinating insects. The ecological value of these sites is often overlooked as quality habitat for pollinators, particularly monarch butterflies, which have been experiencing severe declines due to loss of habitat and loss of milkweeds that provide food for their larvae. Land managers across the nation are realizing the potential of roadsides to provide high quality floral resources for the benefit of insects and other wildlife. Current wildflower seed mixes used by state transportation departments are often low diversity and may only be implemented following …

Using Annual Forages To Replace Declining Cool-Season Grass Pasture Availability, Jonathon Matthew Jenkins

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

As land area in grain crop production increases in the US Midwest, perennial pasture availability decreases but the demand increases. Matching the seasonal growth patterns of C₃ and C₄ plant species to grow forages that are complementary allows producers to fill production gaps in otherwise monoculture systems and possibly increase overall productivity. One way to fill the forage production gap of C₃ grass dominated pastures is by producing a warm-season, annual forage in a separate field. However, with continual reductions in land availability, this may not be an option. Using two studies, our objectives were to improve …

Cross-Pollination: Building A Co-Taught Course To Examine Art And Sex Through The Lens Of Botany, Christopher T. Martine, Diamanda A. Zizis, Anna K. Kell

Faculty Journal Articles

Driven by overlapping interests in plants, art, and diversity in sex expression, Anna Kell (Department of Art and Art History) and Chris Martine (Department of Biology) developed a course that integrates the perspectives of a visual artist and a botanist. Art & Sex Through the Lens of Botany seeks to impart the importance of making connections across disciplines and the value of visual literacy across academic lines. The course introduces foundational concepts in each field and encourages students to integrate and explore these different systems of knowledge and their intersections. In addition to developing fluencies related to both general botany …

Public Horticulture: Process And Design Of The Lincoln Botanical Garden, Brad Kindler

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Beginning in 2012, the local non-profit, The Lincoln Botanical Garden, began organizing the conceptual design and creation of a glass conservatory within a botanical garden in Lincoln, Nebraska. These proposed urban enhancements seek to fill a gap in garden amenities in the city by providing year-round access to public horticulture programming and education.

This project, Public Horticulture: Process and Design of the Lincoln Botanical Garden, documents these efforts and makes design recommendations for a themed Glacial Erratic Garden that could be constructed within the botanical garden.

Advisors: Ellen Paparozzi and Sam Wortman

Clonal Plants' Traits And Responses Following Fire Disturbance In Ponderosa Pine Ecosystems In The Colorado Front Range, Raymond Erskine

Master's Theses

Mountain ecosystems are currently experiencing increasing impacts of disturbances (e.g., wildfire) due to global changes in climate and land use, leading to significant changes in vegetation composition and landscape dynamics. Clonal plants, characterized by their vegetative reproduction strategies, offer a range of ecologically important traits to cope with disturbances. However, clonality is often excluded in studies of post-fire vegetation dynamics in mountain ecosystems, and our knowledge of the ability of clonal plants to respond to differing disturbance regimes is limited. Therefore, I examined the response of understory vegetation following fire disturbance in burned and unburned ponderosa pine stands of the …

Clonal Growth And Trait Variation In The Colorado Front Range: The Influence Of Elevation And Ecosystem, Jordan Conley

Master's Theses

Amid global climate change, exploring adaptive strategies among alpine flora, particularly through clonal growth, becomes critical for biodiversity conservation. This study aims to explore the patterns of dominance and distributions among clonal species across environmental gradients in the Colorado Front Range, employing a trait-based comparative analysis to understand the adaptive strategies of alpine flora and their implications for conservation amid rapid climate change. We focused on two species, studying traits like lateral spread, bud count, and bulbil numbers. Advanced statistical methods such as Permutational Multivariate Analysis of Variance (PerMANOVA) and Multi-Response Permutation Procedures (MRPP) were used to evaluate community compositions …

Malt Quality Parameters For Malting Barley, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Grains and other field crops factsheets

Have you ever wondered how beer is made and what makes barley varieties different from each other in the eyes of the brewer? The barley malting process and main barley malt quality characteristics are briefly described on this page.

Identifying Grassland Cores In The Southeast: Relating Spatial Covariance To Avian Communities And Vegetation Structure, Lauren L. Berry

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Globally, grasslands are declining in range, which is leading to a decline in grassland-dependent taxa. These declines can be attributed to a variety of issues, a major one being the encroachment of woody species into historic grasslands. There is a new framework for strategizing grassland management, referred to as “Defend the Core,” which calls for proactive management of intact grasslands, meaning conserving remaining grasslands by preventing woody encroachment in the first place. To successfully defend the core, it is imperative that we develop rapid methods to identify intact grassland cores for management priority. One method that can be used for …

Green And Blue Water Footprints Of Major Crops In The Wami/Ruvu Basin, Tanzania: Implications For Water Scarcity And Sustainability, Benson Hm Lazaro, Martine M. Hagai, Rubhera Ram Mato

Tanzania Journal of Science

Accurate estimation of the blue and green water requirements of the various crops cultivated in a water basin is essential for planning specific plant/crop irrigation schedules. In this study, the crop water requirements of the major crops grown in the Wami/Ruvu basin were determined using the FAO-CROPWAT model based on meteorological parameters: monthly maximum and minimum temperature, wind speed, mean relative humidity, sunshine hours, rainfall data, and effective rainfall for 23 hydro-meteorological stations distributed in the study area. The studied crops are rice, maize, beans, tomatoes, and sugarcane. The crop reference evapotranspiration (ETo) and actual evapotranspiration (ETc) for each crop …

Microbiological Quality Of Irrigation Water And Leafy Vegetables In Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, Bubelwa L. Kamara, Godwill D. Mrema, Thomas J. Lyimo

Tanzania Journal of Science

The quality of water used for the irrigation of leafy vegetables in urban settings is in doubt due to contamination associated with poor hygiene and water pollution. This study examined the microbiological quality of irrigation water and leafy vegetables at Chang’ombe in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania as well as the perceptions and level of awareness of nearby consumers. Water and leafy vegetable samples were analysed for faecal coliform (FC) using standard techniques. Perception and awareness of consumers were collected using a questionnaire survey. The results showed an average FC count of 406.1 ± 16.40 MPN/100 ml for the irrigation water. …

Extraction Of Natural Dyes From Delonix Regia Flowers For Cotton Fibres, Lutamyo Nambela, Liberato V Haule

Tanzania Journal of Science

Textile colouration is among the major industry that pollutes the environment with effluents rich in dye chemicals. Most of the dyes used are synthetics which possess health and environmental impacts. Potentially, the use of bio-based dyes and other chemicals can lessen the environmental challenges of the textile effluents. This study reports on sustainable extraction and dyeing of cotton fabric using extract of Delonix regia flowers. The extraction process was done using acidified water as a solvent and the dyeing process was free from hazardous auxiliary chemicals. To improve the dyeing performance, banana sap was used as an affordable and eco-friendly …

Genetic Characterization Of Water Yam (Dioscorea Alata L.) And Production Constraints Of Yam In Pwani Region And Unguja Island, Tanzania, Gladness E Temu, Veneranda E Mlegi, Nessie D Luambano

Tanzania Journal of Science

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is a tuber crop cultivated in over 30% of all regions in Tanzania, contributing to the carbohydrate needs of many households. The morphological and genetic diversity of water yam (D. alata L.) local cultivars collected from Pwani region and Unguja Island were evaluated using 26 agro-morphological characters and 10 Short Sequence Repeat (SSR) markers. Cluster analysis using morphological characters classified nine water yam local cultivars into two main clusters with three subclusters. Tuber flesh and leaf colour were the main descriptors for clustering. The genetic diversity of 128 water yam genotypes using ten polymorphic SSR markers generated …

Modeling The Transmission Dynamics Of Tuberculosis In Humans, Farida Kisinda, Joshua A. Mwasunda, Mbwiga S. Aloni

Tanzania Journal of Science

Tuberculosis (TB) is a major threat to human health particularly in most of developing countries. In this article, we formulate and analyze a deterministic model for the transmission dynamics of pulmonary and extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. The next generation method is employed to find the basic reproduction number which helps to determine whether TB clears or persists in the human population. Global stability of model equilibria is done through Lyapunov functions whereas the normalized forward sensitivity index method is adopted to determine parameters that drive tuberculosis. Analysis shows that both TB free and endemic equilibria exist. The TB free equilibrium is globally …

The Effect Of Fruit Maturation Stage On Seed Germination Of Iaa9-3 And Iaa9-5 Tomato Mutants, Elfa Muhammad Ihsan Al Aufa, Syariful Mubarok, Anne Nuraini, Rahmat Budiarto, Nurmalita Waluyo, Hiroshi Ezura

Jurnal Kultivasi

One of the internal factors that play an important role in seed quality is the level of the phytohormone auxin. Efforts to increase auxin in seeds include developing new varieties with increased indigenous auxin, such as those found in mutant tomatoes from Micro-Tom, namely iaa9-3 and iaa9-5. This research was conducted to determine the germination response of iaa9-3 and iaa9-5 mutant tomato seeds at different levels of the fruit maturation stage. The research was carried out at the Seed Technology Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Padjadjaran University, and the Seed Testing Laboratory of the Center for Standard Testing of Vegetable Plant …

Overexpression Of Msdreb1c Modulates Growth And Improves Forage Quality In Tetraploid Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa L.), Yangyang Zhang, Zhen Wang, Fan Zhang, Xue Wang, Yajing Li, Ruicai Long, Mingna Li, Xianyang Li, Quanzhen Wang, Qingchuan Yang, Junmei Kang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

DREB has been reported to be involved in plant growth and response to environmental factors. However, the function of DREB in growth and development has not been elucidated in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), a perennial tetraploid forage cultivated worldwide. In this study, an ortholog of MtDREB1C was characterized from alfalfa and named MsDREB1C accordingly. MsDREB1C was significantly induced by abiotic stress. The transcription factor MsDREB1C resided in the nucleus and had self-transactivation activity. The MsDREB1C overexpression (OE) alfalfa displayed growth retardation under both long-day and short-day conditions, which was supported by decreased MsGA20ox and upregulated MsGA2ox in the OE …

Evaluating Consistency Across Multiple Neospectra (Compact Fourier Transform Near-Infrared) Spectrometers For Estimating Common Soil Properties, Sadia M. Mitu, Colleen Smith, Jonathan Sanderman, Richard R. Ferguson, Keith Shepherd, Yufeng Ge

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Rapid and cost-effective techniques for soil analysis are essential to guide sustainable land management and production agriculture. This study aimed at evaluating the performance and consistency of portable handheld Fourier-transform near-infrared spectrometers and the NeoSpectra scanners in estimating 12 common soil physical and chemical properties including pH; organic carbon (OC); inorganic carbon (IC); total nitrogen (TN); cation exchange capacity (CEC); clay, silt, and sand fractions; and exchangeable potassium (K), phosphorus (P), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg). A diverse set of samples (n = 600) were retrieved from a national-scale soil archive of the Kellogg Soil Survey Laboratory of USDA-NRCS …

Post-Translational Regulation Of A Bidomain Glycerol-3-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Catalyzing Glycerol Synthesis Under Salinity Stress In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Itzela Cruz-Powell, Binita Subedi, Yeongho Kim, Daniela Morales-Sánchez, Heriberto D. Cerutti

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Core chlorophytes possess glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenases (GPDs) with an unusual bidomain structure, consisting of a glycerol-3-phosphate phosphatase (GPP) domain fused to canonical GPD domains. These plastid-localized enzymes have been implicated in stress responses, being required for the synthesis of glycerol under high salinity and triacylglycerols under nutrient deprivation. However, their regulation under varying environmental conditions is poorly understood. C. reinhardtii transgenic strains expressing constitutively bidomain GPD2 did not accumulate glycerol or triacylglycerols in the absence of any environmental stress. Although the glycerol contents of both wild type and transgenic strains increased significantly upon exposure to high salinity, cycloheximide, an inhibitor of …

Accurate Measurement Of Field Size Is Essential For Analysis Of Smallholder Survey Data, Rica Joy Flor, Shen Yuan, Gonzalo Rizzo, Fahmuddin Agus, Anny Ruth P. Pame, Akhara Ouk, Rathmuny Then, Sokheng Keo, Virender Kumar, Particio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Context: Agronomic surveys play a vital role in identifying on-farm yield constraints and opportunities to increase productivity, input-use efficiency, and farmer profit. These surveys typically rely on farmer-reported data, where crop yield and applied inputs per hectare are estimated based on farmer-reported total harvested output and applied inputs per field and associated field size. At question is how accurate field size is, which is vital in the case of smallholders as small inaccuracies can lead to large biases in estimated yield and inputs.

Objectives: The goals of this study are to assess current approaches to determine field size …

Phenotypic Diversity For Morpho-Agronomic Traits In The Us Proso Millet (Panicum Miliaceum L.) Core Collection, Santosh G. Rajput, Rituraj Khound, Dipak K. Santra

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) is a short-season annual crop known for high water-use efficiency and drought tolerance. The low water requirement makes this ancient grain an excellent rotational crop for the winter wheat-based dryland cropping system in theHigh Plains of theUnited States. The genetic base of the commonly grown US cultivars is very narrow. Assessment of proso millet germplasm for agronomic traits is essential for its efficient utilization in the genetic improvement of this crop. The objectives of this study were to (1) characterize the US proso millet germplasm based on nine important morpho-agronomic traits and (2) classify …

Ammonium Chemotaxis In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Gabela Nelson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Analysis of ammonium chemotaxis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is largely hindered, compared to that of phototaxis, despite equal importance on flagellated microalgal physiology. A major contribution of this shortfall is the lack of proper assay method. We developed a simple Petri dish assay method in which light is homogenously exposed while patterns of the cellular migration are tracked with a function of time. Using the method, new findings were revealed. First, this research presented that a strain lacking the eyespot organelle required for light gradient-sensing exhibits similar chemotactic behavior compared to a wild-type strain, suggesting Chlamydomonas sense an ammonium gradient not …