Digital Commons Network^™

Improving School Lunches And Environment Through On-Site Gardens, Benjamin J. Spoden

A with Honors Projects

This project is a proposal to illustrate the pros and cons of building a program for school lunches and horticulture education. Building community, knowledge, and health by an on-site gardening program.

Invertebrate Abundances And Diversity Of A Six Year Old Organic Apple Orchard In Northwest Arkansas, Cory Johnson, Brina Smith, Mary C. Savin

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Ground cover mulch applications in perennial systems can have multiple benefits, one of which may be to enhance the size and diversity of the ground surface faunal community. To determine if ground cover and organic fertilizer applications altered invertebrate communities, litters in an experimental 0.4-ha organic apple orchard in Fayetteville, Ark. were sampled during a four week period beginning in February 2012. The orchard was planted in 2006 in a replicated 4 × 3 factorial design with organic ground cover and fertilizer treatments applied annually each April. Invertebrates were extracted using Berlese funnels and hand sorting techniques. Ground covers (wood …

Biomass Yield And Nutrient Responses Of Switchgrass To Phosphorus Application, M. K. Kering, J. T. Biermacher, T. J. Butler, J. Mosali, John A. Guretzky

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Increasing desire for renewable energy sources has increased research on biomass energy crops in marginal areas with low potential for food and fiber crop production. In this study, experiments were established on low phosphorus (P) soils in southern Oklahoma, USA to determine switchgrass biomass yield, nutrient concentrations, and nutrient removal responses to P and nitrogen (N) fertilizer application. Four P rates (0, 15, 30, and 45 kg Pha⁻¹) and two N fertilizer rates (0 and 135 kg Nha⁻¹) were evaluated at two locations (Ardmore and Waurika) for 3 years.While P fertilization had no effect on yield …

Managing Nitrogen And Phosphorus Nutrients For Switchgrass Produced For Bioenergy Feedstock In Phosphorus-Deficient Soil, Mohua Haque, Jon T. Biermacher, Maru Kering, John A. Guretzky

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

There is limited information available explaining the agronomic and economic relationships between yield and nitrogen and phosphorus applications to growing switchgrass produced in phosphorus-deficient soils. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers on feedstock yield and measures of expected total cost, gross revenue, net return, and breakeven price of feedstock produced in phosphorus-deficient soils in the southern Great Plains. Data were collected from a three-year, two-location agronomic field study conducted in south-central Oklahoma. Two discrete nitrogen treatments (0 and 134 kg ha^-1) and four discrete phosphorus treatments (0, 30, 60 …

Great Plains Soils May Be C Sinks, David E. Clay, Gregg C. Carlson, Sharon A. Clay, James Stone, Kurtis Reitsma, Ronald Gelderman

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

Numerous studies with wide-ranging results have been conducted to resolve if Great Plains soils are a C source or sink. The authors addressed the source/sink question by examining the results from producer soil samples and production surveys that were analyzed and archived by the South Dakota Soil Testing Laboratory. Results showed that between 1985 and 2010, soil organic C content increased at a rate of 326 lb C/A/year, for a total increase of 24%. The increase was attributed to planting better adapted varieties and using better management practices that on average increased corn grain yields 2.29 bu/A/year. Higher soil organic …

Using An Active Optical Sensor To Improve Nitrogen Management In Corn Production, Donato Titolo

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Corn nitrogen (N) applications are still done on a field basis in Kentucky, according to previous crop, soil tillage management and soil drainage. Soil tests, as well as plant analysis for N, are not very useful in making N fertilizer rate recommendations for corn. Recommended rates assume that only 1/3 to 2/3 of applied N is recovered, variability largely due to the strong affect of weather on the release of soil N and fertilizer N fate. Many attempts have been made to apply N in a more precise and efficient way. Two experiments were conducted at Spindeltop, the University of …

Agricultural And Municipal Waste As Potting Media Components For The Growth And Flowering Of Dahlia Hortensis ‘Figaro’, Usman Tariq, Shoaib Ur Rehman, Muhammad Aslam Khan, Adnan Younis, Muhammad Yaseen, Muhammad Ahsan

Turkish Journal of Botany

This research project was conducted to evaluate the use of different waste materials as potting media for the dwarf variety Dahlia hortensis 'Figaro.' A total of 10 treatments were used where each treatment, consisting of 9 plants, was replicated 3 times. The results associated with plant growth parameters indicated that the maximum values for plant height, number of side shoots per plant, number of tubers per plant, flower diameter, and least days to flower emergence were observed in media containing coconut coir; the maximum corm weight per plant, however, was found in T_8, where rice hull was added to silt. …

Separation Of Alcohol Soluble Sorghum Proteins Using Non-Porous Cation-Exchange Columns, Deidre L. Blackwell, Scott R. Bean

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Kafirins, the storage proteins and major protein of the cereal grain sorghum, play an important nutritional role for millions of people in parts of Africa and Asia. Kafirins are non-water soluble, being soluble only in the presence of detergents or aqueous alcohol mixtures and are among the most hydrophobic of the cereal proteins. Limited M_w heterogeneity of kafirins reduces their resolution when separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Charge based separation techniques have been shown to have improved resolution of kafirins, but due to the nature of their solubility, ion-exchange (IE)-HPLC has not been widely used to …

The Effect Of Row Spacing And Seeding Rate On Biomass Production And Plant Stand Characteristics Of Non-Irrigated Photoperiod-Sensitive Sorghum (Sorghum Bicolor (L.) Moench), John L. Snider, Randy L. Raper, Eric B. Schwab

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

To evaluate row spacing and seeding rate effects on yield and plant stand characteristics of high-biomass sorghum, a photoperiod-sensitive cultivar was sown at three different row spacings (76, 38, and 19 cm) and seeding rates (218,000, 306,000, and 393,000 seeds ha⁻¹ for one site-year and 116,000, 204,000, and 291,000 seeds ha⁻¹ for three site-years) from 2009 to 2010 in Alabama and Arkansas, USA. Measurements included above-ground dry matter production, plant height, stem density, and stem diameter. Narrower row spacing (i.e. 19 cm) produced the highest biomass for all site-years. Increasing seeding rate did not affect yield for three …

Zebra Chip-Diseased Potato Tubers Are Characterized By Increased Levels Of Host Phenolics, Amino Acids, And Defense-Related Proteins, Christopher M. Wallis, Jianchi Chen, Edwin L. Civerolo

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Little is known about specific host chemistry effects on zebra chip disease symptom development in potatoes (Solanum tuberosum). This research compared chemical profiles and defense-related enzyme levels between non-symptomatic and zebra chip-symptomatic potato tubers. Levels of phenolics, five amino acids, peroxidases, polyphenol oxidases, chitinases, and B-1,3-glucanases were greater in symptomatic tubers than non-symptomatic tubers, and many of these compounds also were positively correlated with zebra chip disease severity. 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ was consistently present in symptomatic tubers. However, the lack of associations between titers and tuber chemistry suggests a complicated relationship between this bacterium and zebra chip …

Genomics Of Tropical Fruit Tree Crops, R. S. Arias, James W. Borrone, Cecile L. Tondo, David N. Kuhn, Brian M. Irish, Raymond J. Schnell

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The genetic improvement of tropical fruit trees is limited when compared to progress achieved in temperate fruit trees and annual crops. Tropical fruit tree breeding programs require significant resources to develop new cultivars that are adapted to modern shipping and storage requirements. The use of molecular markers in tropical fruit tree breeding is greatly assisting in solving a number of difficult challenges for breeders such as the development of complex family structures for recombination mapping and for recurrent selection. A review of the literature on molecular markers development and new techniques for increasing single-nucleotide polymorphic markers is discussed. The development …

Reproductive Potential Of Stable Flies (Diptera: Muscidae) Fed Cattle, Chicken, Or Horse Blood, Kristina M. Friesen, Gregory D. Johnson

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Reproductive potential was assessed for stable fly cohorts fed cattle, chicken, or horse blood. Flies provided chicken blood oviposited20%moreeggs per day than did those fed cattle or horse blood. However, flies provided cattle or horse blood were fecund 50% longer. When both egg viability and number of eggs produced were considered, lifetime reproductive potential was almost twice as high for flies fed cattle or chicken blood than for flies fed horse blood. Maternal investment, which took egg production and volume into account, was higher in cohorts fed cattle blood (70 mm³) when compared with the other treatments (chicken …

Nickel Hyperaccumulation By Natural Plants In Turkish Serpentine Soils, Haşi̇m Altinözlü, Alpteki̇n Karagöz, Turgay Polat, İlhami̇ Ünver

Turkish Journal of Botany

Natural plants in Turkish serpentine soils were surveyed to determine their Ni accumulation capability. Geographic distribution and diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA)-extractable nickel contents of the western Anatolian serpentine soils and their vegetative contents were studied to find the possible relationships between the phytoavailable Ni amount in the soil and the Ni content of potential accumulator plants. Over half of the surface area of Turkey was targeted in the study. Aboveground parts of 413 herbaceous plants and the surface soil (0-15 cm) of 192 serpentine samples were collected. A digital elevation model and ANUSPLIN and ArcGIS 8.1 software packages were …

Biogeochemical Interrelations Between The Çayırhan Oil Shales And Some Plants Growing On Them (Turkey), Berna Yavuz Pehli̇vanli, Şükrü Koç, Esra Ergi̇n, Ali̇ Sari, Leyla Açik, Meci̇t Vural

Turkish Journal of Botany

Oil shales are exposed in wide areas around the town of Çayırhan (Beypazarı-Ankara). It is known that some elements are enriched in oil shales and similar organic-material rich rocks. The purpose of this study was to understand the possible relations between the element abundances found at the Çayırhan oil shales (ÇOS) and those of some plant types growing on these rocks. The results of chemical analysis of selected plants (8 species) were compared with each other and with element abundances from the ÇOS. The plant types examined were divided into 2 groups with respect to enrichment factors. The first group …

Evidence From Micromorphology And Gross Morphology Of The Genus Loranthus (Loranthaceae) In Iran, Robabeh Shahi Shavvon, Shahryar Saeidi Mehrvarz, Narges Golmohammadi

Turkish Journal of Botany

The genus Loranthus L. (Loranthaceae) is represented in Iran by 2 species: Loranthus europaeus Jacq. and L. grewingkii Boiss. & Buhse; the latter species is endemic to the area of Flora Iranica. The plants of Loranthus are hemiparasites growing on various host trees such as Quercus infectoria Oliv., Acer monspessulanum L., and Armeniaca vulgaris Lam. In order to investigate the range of morphological variation in different populations of these species, an inclusive gross morphological and micromorphological study was conducted. For this purpose, the anatomical characteristics of the stem, leaf, petiole, and fruit were also investigated. The most prominent features were …

Modulation Of Kernel Storage Proteins In Grain Sorghum (Sorghum Bicolor (L.) Moench), Tejinder Kumar, Ismail M. Dweikat, Shirley Sato, Zhengxiang Ge, Natalya Nersesian, Han Chen, Thomas Elthon, Scott Bean, Brian P. Ioerger, Mike Tilley, Thomas E. Clemente

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Sorghum prolamins, termed kafirins, are categorized into subgroups α, β, and γ. The kafirins are co-translationally translocated to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) where they are assembled into discrete protein bodies that tend to be poorly digestible with low functionality in food and feed applications. As a means to address the issues surrounding functionality and digestibility in sorghum, we employed a biotechnology approach that is designed to alter protein body structure, with the concomitant synthesis of a co-protein in the endosperm fraction of the grain. Wherein perturbation of protein body architecture may provide a route to impact digestibility by reducing disulphide …

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 …

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 …

Biomass Yield And Nutrient Removal Rates Of Perennial Grasses Under Nitrogen Fertilization, M. K. Kering, T. J. Butler, J. T. Biermacher, John A. Guretzky

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Perennial grasses may provide a renewable source of biomass for energy production. Biomass yield, nutrient concentrations, and nutrient removal rates of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), giant miscanthus (Miscanthus x giganteus), giant reed (Arundo donax L.), weeping lovegrass [Eragrostis curvula (Shrad.) Nees], kleingrass (Panicum coloratum L.), and Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense (L.) Pers.) were evaluated at four N fertilizer rates (0, 56, 112, or 168 kg Nha⁻¹) on a Minco fine sandy loam soil in southern Oklahoma. Species were established in 2008 and harvested for biomass in winter of 2009 and 2010. Biomass …

The Effect Of Integrated Weed Management Strategies On Weed Populations And Biomass, Pasture Productivity, Economic Returns, And Forage Quality With And Without Grazing, Joshua Allen Tolson

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Field studies examined the strategies of mowing, herbicide, fertility, and all combinations on tall ironweed populations, weed biomass, pasture yield, grazing, economics, and forage quality at three Kentucky locations. Mowing was performed in July 2008 and 2009, herbicide applied in August 2008, and fertilizer applied in September 2008 and 2009 at all locations. Weed populations were measured in 2008, 2009, and 2010, and forage and weed biomass collected in May or June of 2009 and 2010. Herbicide treatments reduced weed biomass at all locations, and reduced tall ironweed stems by 64% or greater in 2009 at all locations. Weed biomass …

Evaluation Of Vascular Changes In Cattle Relative To Time-Off Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue, Jessica R. Bussard

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Twenty-four steers were grazed on endophyte (Neotyphodium coenophialum)-infected [[Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) Darbysh]; E+] tall fescue (TF) and exposed to ergot alkaloids for an 106-d grazing period. Cattle were removed from pasture, placed in dry lots, and fed a non-toxic diet to evaluate changes in vascular contraction relative to time-off E+ TF pasture. Lateral saphenous veins (SV) were biopsied from steers at 0-, 21-, 42-, and 63-d off TF pasture and from 6 control steers at 0- and 63-d off bermudagrass (BG) pasture. To evaluate contractile response, biopsied SV were exposed to increasing concentrations of ergotamine in a multimyograph. Cross-sectional scans …

Steer And Tall Fescue Pasture Responses To Grazing Intensity And Chemical Seedhead Suppression, Ben M. Goff

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum) is the principal cool-season species within pastures of the southeastern USA and is known to have a mutualistic relationship with a fungal endophyte (Neotyphodium coenophialum) that produces the ergot alkaloids responsible for tall fescue toxicosis. Management of the reproductive growth of tall fescue is necessary, as the seedheads contain the highest concentrations of ergot alkaloids, and livestock have been documented to selectively graze these tissues. Recently, the herbicide Chaparral^™ has been shown to be an effective method to prevent seedhead production in tall fescue pastures while also increasing steer gains at …

Trait Convergence And Plasticity Among Native And Invasive Species In Resource-Poor Environments, Rebecca E. Drenovsky, Albina Khasanova, Jeremy J. James

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Premise of study: Functional trait comparisons provide a framework with which to assess invasion and invasion resistance. However, recent studies have found evidence for both trait convergence and divergence among coexisting dominant native and invasive species. Few studies have assessed how multiple stresses constrain trait values and plasticity, and no study has included direct measurements of nutrient conservation traits, which are critical to plants growing in low-resource environments.

Methods: We evaluated how nutrient and water stresses affect growth and allocation, water potential and gas exchange, and nitrogen (N) allocation and use traits among a suite of six codominant species from …

Modifying Crops To Increase Cell Wall Digestibility, Hans-Joachim G. Jung, Deborah A. Samac, Gautam Sarath

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Improving digestibility of roughage cell walls will improve ruminant animal performance and reduce loss of nutrients to the environment. The main digestibility impediment for dicotyledonous plants is highly lignified secondary cell walls, notably in stem secondary xylem, which become almost non-digestible. Digestibility of grasses is slowed severely by lignification of most tissues, but these cell walls remain largely digestible. Cell wall lignification creates an access barrier to potentially digestible wall material by rumen bacteria if cells have not been physically ruptured. Traditional breeding has focused on increasing total dry matter digestibility rather than cell wall digestibility, which has resulted in …

Pulling Together: Linking Unemployment Insurance And Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Administrative Data To Study Effects Of The Great Recession, Theresa Anderson, John A. Kirlin, Michael Wiseman

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The SNAP-UI Data Linkage Project is an effort coordinated by the United States Department of Agriculture‘s Economic Research Service (ERS) to link state-level administrative data from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Unemployment Insurance (UI) program to examine the concurrent and sequential patterns in use of these program before and during the Great Recession. The project focuses on calendar years 2006 through 2009 and utilizes data from seven states: California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, and Texas. The project has illuminated various issues with administrative data linkage, which this paper characterizes as the ―”Three C’s" of administrative data: custody, …

Effect Of Silicon On Plant Growth And Drought Stress Tolerance, Kaerlek W. Janislampi

Publications

Silicon is not considered an essential nutrient, but it is typically abundant in soils and can be taken up in large amounts by plants. Silicon is known to have beneficial effects when added to rice and several other plants. These effects include disease and insect resistance, structural fortification, and regulation of the uptake of other ions. In this study, the effect of silicic acid fertilization on the growth and drought tolerance of four crop plants (corn, wheat, soybean, and rice) was analyzed. Plants were studied using three cultivation techniques: 1) hydroponic solution and subjected to salt stress, 2) low-silicon soil-less …

Growth And Photochemical Responses Of Three Crop Species Treated With Textile Azo Dyes, Nuran Çi̇çek, Banu Efeoğlu, Deni̇z Tanyolaç, Yasemi̇n Ekmekçi̇, Reto Jörg Strasser

Turkish Journal of Botany

The present study was conducted to investigate the impact of textile dye on the early seedling stage of 3 crops: barley, maize, and wheat. Seeds were imbibed in different concentrations of textile dye for 12 h and were then grown in a controlled growth room for 8 days with a related dye solution. Some growth and polyphasic chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were measured and analysed to appraise the effect of textile dye on the 3 crops. Although different crop species showed differences in response to different concentrations, textile dye generally affected almost all radicle growth parameters more adversely than coleoptile growth …

Biological Effects Of Copper On Prosopis Pubescens (Screw Bean Mesquite), Marian Nicte Zappala

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Phytoremediation is an emerging technology for cleaning industrial and urban contamination (Peuke and Rennenberg, 2005). Many factors including germination rate, biomass changes, biochemical changes, and nutrient changes must be determined in order to utilize a plant for phytoremediation. Our results showed that Prosopis pubescens (Screw bean mesquite) is a hyperaccumulator of copper from copper sulfate and a feasible option to remediate fields with up to 200 ppm of copper sulfate.

Screw bean mesquite seeds are viable even after 30 years of storage. Both copper sulfate and copper nitrate decreased the germination rate of screw bean mesquite seeds. In soil grown …

Molecular Approaches To Detect And Control Cercospora Kikuchii In Soybeans, Ashok Kumar Chanda

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Cercospora leaf blight (CLB) caused by Cercospora kikuchii, has become a troublesome disease in the southern United States. C. kikuchii produces a non-hostspecific phytotoxin and a pathogenicity factor known as cercosporin during infection of soybean. A quantitative real-time PCR assay was developed for detection and quantification of C. kikuchii. The sensitivity of detection is 1 pg of genomic DNA. The assay detected the presence of C. kikuchii in soybean leaves long before the appearance of disease symptoms. C. kikuchii DNA levels in soybean leaves increased slowly during early soybean development, followed by a quick increase at late reproductive stages. Results …

Dynamics Of The Sweetpotato Potyvirus Aphid Pathosystem In Louisiana, Everlyne Nafula Wosula

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Sweetpotato potyviruses [Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV), Sweet potato virus G (SPVG) and Sweet potato virus 2 (SPV2)] commonly infect sweetpotato and weedy morning glories in the USA. These viruses are transmitted in a non-persistent manner by various aphid species and cause up to 15% yield loss. Sweetpotato is vegetatively propagated, and in the USA growers are supplied with virus tested propagation material to minimize impact of viruses. However the rapid re-infection of these materials with viruses warranted further studies to determine factors that influence the epidemiology of these viruses. The objectives of this study were: (i) to determine …