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Tallgrass Prairie Center Newletter, Autumn 2014, University Of Northern Iowa. Tallgrass Prairie Center.

Tallgrass Prairie Center Newsletter

Inside This Issue:

-- The Tallgrass Prairie Center Goes to Washington (and Missouri, West Virginia, and Colorado)
-- 2015 Iowa Prairie Conference
-- ISAC Excellence in Action Award to UNI's Native Seed Distribution Program
-- What You Sow Is What Will Grow
-- The effect of summer floods on plant and wildlife diversity in managed prairie plantings: observations from a "natural experiment" in the Cedar River floodplain
-- Ecological Restoration Seminar
-- Friends of the Tallgrass Prairie Center
-- New Grad Student/Employees
-- Name that plant?

Defining Management Strategies To Maximize Net Soil Carbon And Nitrogen Retention In Turfgrass Systems, Quincy D. Law

Open Access Theses

Soil carbon (C) sequestration has been proposed as a method to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2 ). Managed turf areas are both a source and a sink for greenhouse gases (GHGs) including CO 2 , methane (CH4 ), and nitrous oxide (N2 O), among others. Management practices, including turfgrass selection and mowing, influence the amount of C and N stored in the soil, as well as the direct and indirect GHG emissions. Thus, the objective of this research was to determine how turfgrass selection (both species and cultivar) and mowing practices (such as frequency and grass clipping management) influence the …

Effect Of Post-Anthesis Fungicide Applications To Manage Fusarium Head Blight In Winter Wheat, Anna Noversoke

Open Access Theses

Fusarium head blight (FHB) of wheat, caused by the fungus Fusarium graminearum, is currently considered one of the most economically important diseases on wheat in the North Central United States. The fungus causes light-weight "tombstone" grains to form and produces the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON), reducing the yield and quality of the grain. Currently, farmers rely heavily on the sterol demethylase Inhibitor (DMI) triazole fungicide Prosaro (Bayer CropScience) to protect their crop from this disease. The optimal fungicide application timing is traditionally believed to be early anthesis - Feekes Growth Stage (FGS) 10.5.1. However, environmental conditions and uneven flowering across a …

Creating Initial Digital Soil Properties Map Of Afghanistan, Shams R. Rahmani

Open Access Theses

Afghanistan is a country with a population of more than 31 million people and is located in south central Asia. The total arable land in the country is 12%, 5% is irrigated and the remaining 7% is rainfed. Due to the lack of available soil information, poor farming practices and land management planning severely affect the yield of agriculture products. In order to ensure sustainable agriculture and prevent land degradation problems, understanding spatial variability of soil is crucial. The overall objective of this research study was to use digital soil mapping techniques to identify the soil resources and generate a …

Liquid Swine Manure Application Timing And Instincttm Impacts On Net Soil Nitrogen Mineralization And Corn Yield, Min Xu

Open Access Theses

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most expensive variable input costs for corn production. Optimized manure management is essential to ensure maximum crop N utilization and to reduce the risk of N loss. A field study was conducted in central Indiana from 2011-2013 to assess liquid swine ( Sus scrofa L.) manure N availability when applied at different times or co-applied with InstinctTM , a microencapsulated form of nitrapyrin. Soil inorganic N contents, soil N mineralization, corn yield, grain N content, whole plant N concentrations of corn at the V6 growth stage, and ear leaf N concentrations of corn at …

Invasive Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Moltrix) Protein Hydrolysates And Their Efficacy In Increasing Seedling Vigor And Reducing Seed Borne Pathogen Growth, Shanleigh Pauline Thomson

Open Access Theses

Silver carp are an invasive fish species introduced into the United States within the last forty years. Unable to be effectively eradicated or commercialized as a source of food, other methods must be developed to control and/or use these fish. Fish protein hydrolysates (FPH) are products derived from the proteins inherent within fish. Development of FPH from Silver carp for a variety of uses could aid in controlling their expanding population and provide organic produces with a seed treatment option which is not available to them currently.

In the first study, FPH were used as a seed vigor treatment for …

Identification And Characterization Of Factors Involved In Dna Demethylation And Anti-Silencing In Arabidopsis, Zhaobo Lang

Open Access Dissertations

DNA methylation is a key epigenetic mark for transcriptional gene silencing in many eukaryotes. DNA methylation status can be dynamically controlled by methylation and active demethylation processes. Compared to the well-known mechanisms of DNA methylation, the mechanisms of DNA demethylation and its regulation are poorly understood. In order to better understand the DNA demethylation pathway, we developed two genetic screening systems in Arabidopsis to identify new components involved in the DNA demethylation. In the first system, which is based on 35S promoter driven SUC2 (sucrose transporter 2) transgene, a mutant (91-1) was isolated and map-based cloning identified the …

Combining And Mapping Qtl For Fusarium Head Blight (Fhb) Resistance In Wheat, Jin Sun

Open Access Dissertations

Fusarium head blight (FHB) has become one of the most damaging wheat diseases in humid and semi-humid regions around the world. Single gene resistance to FHB in wheat provides only partial resistance and also the disease severity is highly influenced by environment. Consequently multiple genes are required for effective resistance. Our hypothesis is that identifying DNA markers for type I resistance will be very beneficial for selection, and combining type I and type II FHB resistance will be more effective than either type alone. The objectives of this project are to 1) combine type I resistance from cultivars Goldfield, INW0412, …

Nebline, October 2014

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Smart Snacking

Food & Health

Family Living

Farm & Acreage

Home & Family Living

Horticulture

Pests & Wildlife

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Sfa Gardens Newsletter, Fall 2014, Sfa Gardens, Stephen F. Austin State University

SFA Gardens Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Biosafety: Evaluation And Regulation Of Genetically Modified (Gm) Crops In The United States, Richard E. Goodman

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

This review of the safety assessment of genetically modified (GM) crops is focused primarily on the process and progress in the United States (US). It reviews the development of the safety evaluation process from the Asilomar conference in 1975 considering issues relevant to recombinant DNA technology, to discussions between the US government, academic and industrial scientists between 1984 and 1994 when the first GM crops were being field tested and evaluated commercial release for food and feed production. International guidelines were also reviewed for consistency with the US system. The overall process includes consideration of information relating to history of …

Growing South Dakota (Fall 2014), College Of Agriculture &. Biological Sciences

Growing South Dakota (Publication of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences)

[Page] 2 Abundant Opportunities: Bright Ag & Bio Career Outlook Fuels Enhancements
[Page] 4 Future Focus: New Institute Supports Efforts In Science, Technology, Engineering, Math
[Page] 7 Grant Funding Updates
[Page] 8 Profiles in Leadership: Engaging Students Utilizing Problem-Based Learning
[Page] 9 Profiles in Leadership: The Value Of Experience-Based Learning
[Page] 10 Campus News
[Page] 12 Steps To Ensure Student Success: Support Fostered In Living-Learning Communities
[Page] 14 New Student Advising Model Gets High Marks
[Page] 15 Student To Student: Ag Bio Ambassadors Relish Role As Front Line Recruiters
[Page] 16 Remembering Dr. Robert Pengra: SDSU Alums Establish Tribute Scholarship …

Ethnomedical, Ecological And Phytochemical Studies Of The Palauan Flora, Christopher Kitalong

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

There has been a serious deterioration of Palauan culture, language and traditional practices over the last century. To promote health and avoid this deterioration of tradition, ecological, ethnobotanical and phytochemical studies have been carried out on the plant Phaleria nisidai Kaneh. (Thymelaeaceae), "Delal a Kar", Palauan for "Mother of Medicine". This study is the first study that sets the foundations for the development of natural Palauan therapeutics, through validation of ethnomedically significant plants. Validations of these plants is done through documenting Palauan plant ethnomedical data; mapping the distribution of Palauan plants on limestone Rock Islands; and analyzing ethnopharmacological and phytochemical …

Systematics And Evolution Of Leandra S.Str. (Melastomataceae, Miconieae), Marcelo Reginato

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Phylogenetic studies in the Melastomataceae have demonstrated the need of taxonomic rearrangements in the current classification. Melastomes are among the most diverse groups of plants and several cases of known artificial taxa are observed and awaiting further resolution. One example is the Leandra s.str. clade, which includes the majority of the taxa traditionally treated in the genus Leandra. Some attempts have been made to infer the relationships of Leandra s.str., but the sampling in these earlier studies was sparse and the resolution low inside the clade. The main objective here is to propose a comprehensive phylogenetic framework for this group …

Warming, Competition, And Bromus Tectorum Population Growth Across An Elevation Gradient, Aldo Compagnoni, Peter B. Adler

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is one of the most problematic invasive plant species in North America and climate change threatens to exacerbate its impacts. We conducted a two‐year field experiment to test the effect of warming, competition, and seed source on cheatgrass performance across an elevation gradient in northern Utah. We hypothesized that warming would increase cheatgrass performance, but that warming effects would be limited by competing vegetation and by local adaptation of cheatgrass seed sources. The warming treatment relied on open top chambers, we removed vegetation to assess the effect of competition from neighboring vegetation, and we reciprocally …

Sesquiterpene Synthase Gene And Protein, Joe Chappell, Bryan T. Greenhagen

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Patents

The invention relates to sesquiterpene synthases and methods for their production and use. Particularly, the invention provides nucleic acids comprising the nucleotide sequence of citrus valencene synthase (CVS) which codes for at least one CVS. The invention further provides nucleic acids comprising the nucleotide sequence coding for amino acid residues forming the tier 1 and tier 2 domains of CVS. The invention also provides for methods of making and using the nucleic acids and amino acids of the current invention.

Ergovaline Stability In Tall Fescue Based On Sample Handling And Storage Methods, Krista La Moen Lea, Lori Smith, Cynthia Gaskill, Robert Coleman, S. Ray Smith

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Ergovaline is an ergot alkaloid produced by the endophyte Neotyphodium coenophialum (Morgan-Jones and Gams) found in tall fescue [Schedonorus arundinacea (Schreb.) Dumort.] and blamed for a multitude of livestock disorders. Ergovaline is known to be unstable and affected by many variables. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of sample handling and storage on the stability of ergovaline in tall fescue samples. Fresh tall fescue was collected from a horse farm in central Kentucky at three harvest dates and transported on ice to the University of Kentucky Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Plant material was frozen in liquid …

The Effect Of A Small Ruminant Farm Operation And Sustainable Farm Practices: Soil Quality And Run-Off At The University Hickory Hill Farm, Delaware, Gulnihal Ozbay Dr., Akida J. Ferguson, Raju Khatiwada, Lathadevi K. Chintapenta

Professional Agricultural Workers Journal

This project was designed to evaluate the effect of ruminant grazing practices at Hickory Hill Farm on the surrounding environment by measuring soil nutrients and runoff chemistry. Three pastures on the farm (Goat, Cattle and Control) were selected for soil sampling and nutrient analyses were recorded. Physical water quality parameters were conducted on the runoff collected from the farm after Hurricane Sandy. The sites with animal activity had higher levels of sulfate, phosphate, nitrate, Mehlich 3 phosphorus and conductivity when compared to control site. However, the control site had slightly higher pH and chloride levels. Nitrogen and phosphorous levels were …

Fragipan Horizon Fragmentation In Slaking Experiments With Amendment Materials And Ryegrass Root Tissue Extracts, Anastasios D. Karathanasis, Lloyd W. Murdock, Christopher J. Matocha, John H. Grove, Yvonne L. Thompson

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Slaking experiments were conducted of fragipan clods immersed in solutions of poultry manure, aerobically digested biosolid waste (ADB), fluidized bed combustion byproduct (FBC), D-H₂O, CaCO₃, NaF, Na-hexa-metaphosphate, and ryegrass root biomass. The fragipan clods were sampled from the Btx horizon of an Oxyaquic Fragiudalf in Kentucky. Wet sieving aggregate analysis showed significantly better fragmentation in the NaF, Na-hexa-metaphosphate, and ryegrass root solutions with a mean weight diameter range of 15.5-18.8 mm compared to the 44.2-47.9 mm of the poultry manure, ADB, and FBC treatments. Dissolved Si, Al, Fe, and Mn levels released in solution were ambiguous. …

Chlorovirus Skp1-Binding Ankyrin Repeat Protein Interplay And Mimicry Of Cellular Ubiquitin Ligase Machinery, Eric A. Noel, Ming Kang, Jiri Adamec, James L. Van Etten, George A. Oyler

James Van Etten Publications

The ubiquitin-proteasome system is targeted by many viruses that have evolved strategies to redirect host ubiquitination machinery. Members of the genus Chlorovirus are proposed to share an ancestral lineage with a broader group of related viruses, nucleo-cytoplasmic large DNA viruses (NCLDV). Chloroviruses encode an Skp1 homolog and ankyrin repeat (ANK) proteins. Several chlorovirus-encoded ANK repeats contain C-terminal domains characteristic of cellular F-boxes or related NCLDV chordopox PRANC (pox protein repeats of ankyrin at C-terminal) domains. These observations suggested that this unique combination of Skp1 and ANK repeat proteins might form complexes analogous to the cellular Skp1-Cul1-F-box (SCF) ubiquitin ligase complex. …

Economic Contribution Of The Agricultural Sector To The Arkansas Economy In 2012, Leah English, Jennie Popp, Wayne Miller

AAES Research Reports and Research Bulletins

This report is the ninth in a series of reports examining agriculture’s economic contribution on the Arkansas economy. Utilizing data from the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), USDA Economic Research Service (ERS), USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and IMPLAN Group, LLC , the economic contribution of agriculture on the Arkansas economy was estimated for the most recent year available, 2012.

Nebline, September 2014

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: 4-H Youth Showcase Their Achievements at Super Fair

Food & Health

Family Living

Farm & Acreage

Home & Family Living

Horticulture

Pests & Wildlife

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Forage News [2014-09], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Beef Bash 2014
• Advanced KY Grazing School at Eden Shale
• 15th Kentucky Grazing Conference
• Forage Quotes and Concepts: New Book Offers Fresh Approach to Forage-Livestock Management
• U.S. Ranking in Cattle
• U.S. Alfalfa Production to Grow by 11% in 2014, USDA Reports
• Grazing Drought Stressed Corn Stalks
• Strategies to Deal with Hay Shortages

A Review Of The Removal Of Arundo Donax From A Riparian Area Within San Timoteo Canyon, Catherine E. Howe

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

A site within San Timoteo Canyon was revisited, 13-14 years after treatment, to look at long-term effects of Arundo donax removal. The data obtained were used to determine whether A. donax had re-invaded, other non-native species had established the area, or if native species were able to grow in place of the removed A. donax. The previous removals included a combination of grinding large patches of A. donax and then foliar spraying, foliar spraying of uncut plants, and direct spraying of hand cut stems, depending upon the location and size of the plant. The effects of the A. donax …

The Trehalose Pathway In Maize: Conservation And Gene Regulation In Response To The Diurnal Cycle And Extended Darkness, Clémence Henry, Samuel W. Bledsoe, Allison Siekman, Alec Kollman, Brian M. Waters, Regina Feil, Mark Stitt, L. Mark Lagrimini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Energy resources in plants are managed in continuously changing environments, such as changes occurring during the day/night cycle. Shading is an environmental disruption that decreases photosynthesis, compromises energy status, and impacts on crop productivity. The trehalose pathway plays a central but not well-defined role in maintaining energy balance. Here, we characterized the maize trehalose pathway genes and deciphered the impacts of the diurnal cycle and disruption of the day/night cycle on trehalose pathway gene expression and sugar metabolism. The maize genome encodes 14 trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (TPS) genes, 11 trehalose-6-phosphate phosphatase (TPP) genes, and one trehalase gene. Transcript abundance of most …

Chromosome Counts For Packera Paupercula Variety Gypsophila, Chad Larson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

New plant species develop when diploid plants (having two sets of chromosomes) spontaneously double their chromosomes and the resulting tetraploids (having four sets of chromosomes) are no longer able to back cross to diploid members of the population. The North American plant species Packera paupercula (balsam-leafed ragwort), is widespread and morphologically diverse. An isolated group of populations from the chalky soils of west-central Alabama was recently named Packera paupercula variety gypsophila (the chalk-loving balsam ragwort). The variety’s large diameter pollen grains suggest it may be tetraploid. This project attempts the first chromosome count for the variety by examining cells undergoing …

Tombusvirus-Yeast Interactions Identify Conserved Cell-Intrinsic Viral Restriction Factors, Zsuzsanna Sasvari, Paulina Alatriste Gonzalez, Peter D. Nagy

Plant Pathology Faculty Publications

To combat viral infections, plants possess innate and adaptive immune pathways, such as RNA silencing, R gene and recessive gene-mediated resistance mechanisms. However, it is likely that additional cell-intrinsic restriction factors (CIRF) are also involved in limiting plant virus replication. This review discusses novel CIRFs with antiviral functions, many of them RNA-binding proteins or affecting the RNA binding activities of viral replication proteins. The CIRFs against tombusviruses have been identified in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), which is developed as an advanced model organism. Grouping of the identified CIRFs based on their known cellular functions and subcellular localization in yeast …

Evaluating Contaminants Of Emerging Concern In Commercial Biosolid-Based Fertilizers, John Hemmerling, Michael L. Mashtare, Linda S. Lee

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The production and popularity of commercially available biosolid-based fertilizers are increasing because of their economic, environmental, and plant nutrition benefits, particularly in urban and suburban areas. Because biosolid-based fertilizers are derived from waste water treatment plant residuals, we hypothesized that there is the potential for micropollutants to persist in these products. Their presence would be of particular concern due to their potential impact on human and ecological health and risk of bioaccumulation. This study involves quantifying contaminants of emerging concern in three biosolid-based fertilizers, and 2 non-biosolid-based fertilizers, a composted animal manure and an organic compost. Our extraction method employed …

Testing The Ecological And Physiological Factors Influencing Reproductive Success In Mosses, Erin Elizabeth Shortlidge

Dissertations and Theses

As non-vascular, early land plants with an aquatic ancestry, mosses do not regulate internal water conditions separate from that of their environment and as a result, evolved mechanisms to survive in a terrestrial world out of water. Yet, there is a widely accepted dogma that moss reproductive success is solely dependent on rainfall events carrying swimming, bi-flagellate sperm across the landscape to reproductively mature and receptive female mosses--but this classic view of moss reproduction may be too simplistic. In this dissertation I test the assumptions of reproductive limitation in mosses and present novel findings in a basal, yet understudied terrestrial …

Nebline, August 2014

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Cherry Creek Habitat Provides Opportunities for Pollinator Education

Food & Health

Family Living

Farm & Acreage

Home & Family Living

Horticulture

Pests & Wildlife

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Special pullout section: Lancaster County Super Fair 2014 Schedule & Map