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Nebline, January 2004

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Rural Living Carries Rewards, Responsibilities
Monthly “Acreage Insights” Clinics Focus on Rural Living Topics
Caring for Florist Azaleas
Garden Guide
Starting Avocado Seeds
Growing Norfolk Island Pines
Prevention and Control of Rabbit Damage
Don’t Let the Bed Bugs Bite!
Birds Need Water in Winter Too
Use Compact Fluorescent Lamps to Save Energy
Crop Protection Clinic Scheduled for Jan. 7
Off-Farm Income Important to Farm Families
Private Pesticide Applicator Training
Sorghum Seminars Scheduled
Use Portable Generators Carefully
Unused and Abandoned Wells
Put In The Big Rocks First!
Touchdown Beef Chili Recipe
10,000 Steps for Health
Serving Soup - Safely!
Tips for …

Contents, Discovery Editors

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

No abstract provided.

Relationships Between Needle Nitrogen Concentration And Photosynthetic Responses Of Douglas-Fir Seedlings To Elevated Co2 And Temperature, James D. Lewis, Melissa S. Lucash, David M. Olszyk, David T. Tingey

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

• Here we examined correlations between needle nitrogen concentration ([N]) and photosynthetic responses of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) seedlings to growth in elevated temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations ([CO₂]).
• Seedlings were grown in sunlit, climate-controlled chambers at ambient or ambient+3.5^° C and ambient or ambient +180 μmol mol^-1 CO₂ in a full factorial design. Photosynthetic parameters and needle [N] were measured six times over a 21-month period.
• Needle [N] varied seasonally, and accounted for 30–50% of the variation in photosynthetic parameters. Across measurement periods, elevated temperature increased needle [N] by 26% and light-saturated …

Instructions For Authors, Discovery Editors

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

No abstract provided.

Aerobic Stability Of Heat And Orchardgrass Round-Bale Silage, Robert T. Rhein, Wayne K. Coblentz, Charles F. Rosenkrans Jr., D. Wayne Kellog

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

In Arkansas, silage is typically stored as balage in long rows of round bales wrapped in plastic film. It is important to evaluate the aerobic stability of this fermented forage when it is exposed to air, especially during the winter months when most of it is fed to livestock or sold as a cash crop. Two types of forage, orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata) and wheat (Triticum aestivum), were harvested in May 2002 and stored as balage. Twenty-one bales of each balage type were unwrapped and exposed to air on 10 Dec. 2002 for 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, or 32 …

Distribution Of Legumes Along Gradients Of Slope And Soil Electrical Conductivity In Pastures, John A. Guretzky, Kenneth J. Moore, C. Lee Burras, E. Charles Brummer

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Legumes establish and persist on backslope landscape positions but fail on summits and toeslopes in southeastern Iowa pastures, suggesting that these pastures be managed site specifically. Visual delineation of landscape positions, however, can be difficult, and char- acterization of spatial variability through soil sampling is expensive. Creation of digital elevation models (DEM) and apparent soil electrical conductivity (EC_a) mapping are inexpensive alternatives to de- scribing field conditions. Our objective was to examine the relationships of DEM-derived slope, soil EC_a, and legume distribution in pastures.We examined these relationships across four 1.4-ha pastures. Each pasture was divided into …

Using Multi-Spectral Imagery To Evaluate Corn Grown Under Nitrogen And Drought Stressed Conditions, Shannon L. Osborne, James S. Schepers, Mike R. Schlemmer

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The in-season estimation of crop stresses which have the potential of adversely affecting crop yield and/or quality could allow producers to make in-season management decisions to correct for the particular stress. A field study was conducted to evaluate the use of multispectral imagery for estimating corn (Zea mays L.) grain yield, in-season biomass and nitrogen (N) concentration under varying N and drought stresses. The experiment was a split-plot design with three replications using a factorial arrangement of treatments. Three irrigation (whole-plot) treatments included dry land, irrigation based on 0.5, and full evapotranspiration (ET). Sub-plot treatments included five N …

Evaluation Of The Use Of Climatically Controlled Pankar-Huyus Modules For Cultivating Lettuce, Lucio Guillermo Rocabado Paco

Theses and Dissertations

Pankar-huyus are becoming an alternative solution to the Bolivian Altiplano's climate problems for agriculture and to help provide adequate nutrition for the inhabitants of this region. Pankar-huyus are small modules with mild ambient temperatures that cover roughly 4 m^2. They are built underground and are covered by agrofilm caps that, in this study, were partially opened by day and closed at night. This study evaluated the climactic parameters of minimum and maximum temperature, minimum and maximum relatively humidity inside the pankar-huyus, wind velocity outside and inside the pankar-huyus at 40 cm from the soil and at the level of the …

Levels And Changes Of Soil Phosphorus In Subtropical Beef Cattle Pastures, Gilbert C. Sigua, Mary J. Williams, Samuel W. Coleman

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

Long-term pasture management is believed to change soil chemical properties, but little is known about whether pasture management, such as fertilizer application, grazing, or haying can initiate such change in sandy and well-drained subtropical beef pastures. The objective of this study was to investigate the long term effect of pasture management (grazing+haying, GZ+HY) on soil phosphorus (P) dynamics (levels and changes) in subtropical beef cattle pastures with bahiagrass (BG, Paspalum notatum) and rhizoma peanut (RP, Arachis glabrata) with (WP) or without (WNP) P fertilization in Brooksville, FL from 1988 to 2000. Soil P dynamics in Subtropical Agricultural Research …

Habitat Manipulation Of The Apple Orchard Floor To Increase Ground-Dwelling Predators And Predation Of Cydia Pomonella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), Clarissa R. Mathews, Dale G. Bottrell, M. W. Brown

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

Augmenting generalist predator populations in new apple (Malus domestica Bork) plantings could potentially aid in the establishment of balanced orchard ecosystems that are less susceptible to pest outbreaks. Habitat can be an important factor in retaining predators in a system and can affect predator efficiency. We investigated the potential of increasing a complex of generalist ground-dwelling predators and enhancing biological control in a young 'Golden Delicious' apple orchard through ground habitat manipulation. We modified the orchard floor with four comparative habitat treatments: (1) detritus-rich compost mulch layer, (2) detritus-free synthetic mulch layer, (3) herbicide-treated vegetation thatch, and (4) bare …

An Investigation Of Weed Pest Problems In The Emerging Foliage Industry In Kerry, Tom Houlihan

Theses

The rapidly expanding cut foliage industry in the southwest of Ireland aims to satisfy the demands of an exacting market requiring quality stems for use in the manufacture of flower and foliage bouquets.

The studies identified, in detail, the type of weed pests that cause problems for growers of cultivated foliage crops and examined current weed control practice. Residual herbicides with potential for use within the sector were screened and trials were set up in a number of important foliage species.

Recommendations on weed management regimes based on the findings from these trials and economic criteria are presented for Paeony …

Emergence And Survival Of Legumes Seeded Into Pastures Varying In Landscape Position, John A. Guretzky, Kenneth J. Moore, Allen D. Knapp, E. Charles Brummer

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Landscape position affects legume establishment in pastures. We conducted this study to (i) determine the role of emergence and survival on establishment of legumes on summit and backslope positions and (ii) examine how competition, as influenced by sward-cutting height and N fertilization, affects legume emergence and survival across these positions. We no-till drilled a mixture composed of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), and birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) into an existing cool-season grass pasture at Rhodes, IA, in 1998 and 1999. Treatments consisted of landscape positions (summit and backslope), N fertilizer rates (0, …

Molecular Mapping And Identification Of Soybean Fatty Acid Modifier Quantitative Trait Loci, D. L. Hyten Jr., Vincent R. Pantalone, Arnold M. Saxton, Michael E. Schmidt, Carl E. Sams

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Altering FA content in soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] oil for improved functionality is a research goal of many soybean breeders. Several of the genes that alter palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic, and linolenic acids are modifier genes with small effects, causing these FA traits to act as quantitative traits. The objective of this study was to identify modifier FA quantitative trait loci (QTL) in soybean. A recombinant inbred line population was created from two prominent ancestors of currently avail-able U.S. cultivars (Essex and Williams) and grown in five environments. One hundred simple se-quence repeat markers spaced throughout the genome …

Characterization Of The Aspergillus Parasiticus Δ12-Desaturase Gene: A Role For Lipid Metabolism In The Aspergillus–Seed Interaction, Richard A. Wilson, Ana M. Calvo, Perng-Kuang Chang, Nancy P. Keller

Fungal Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions

In the mycotoxigenic oilseed pathogens Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus and the model filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, unsaturated fatty acids and their derivatives act as important developmental signals that affect asexual conidiospore, sexual ascospore and/or sclerotial development. To dissect the relationship between lipid metabolism and fungal development, an A. parasiticus Δ¹²-desaturase mutant that was unable to convert oleic acid to linoleic acid and was thus impaired in polyunsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis was generated. The Δ¹²-desaturase mutant demonstrates delayed spore germination, a twofold reduction in growth, a reduced level of conidiation and complete loss of sclerotial …

Two Δ9-Stearic Acid Desaturases Are Required For Aspergillus Nidulans Growth And Development, Richard A. Wilson, Perng-Kuang Chang, Agnieszka Dobrzyn, James B. Ntambi, Robert Zarnowski, Nancy P. Keller

Fungal Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions

Unsaturated fatty acids are important constituents of all cell membranes and are required for normal growth. In the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, unsaturated fatty acids and their derivatives also influence asexual (conidial) and sexual (ascospore) sporulation processes. To investigate the relationship between fatty acid metabolism and fungal development, we disrupted the A. nidulans sdeA and sdeB genes, both encoding Δ9-stearic acid desaturases responsible for the conversion of palmitic acid (16:0) and stearic acid (18:0) to palmitoleic acid (16:1) and oleic acid (18:1). The effects of sdeA deletion on development were profound, such that growth, conidial and ascospore production were …

Elemental Uptake In Relation To Root Characteristics Of Tall Fescue, Glenn E. Shewmaker, Douglas A. Johnson, Henry F. Mayland, Scott A. Martin, Susie B. Hansen

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

HiMag, an accession of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), was selected for high magnesium (Mg) concentration in leaves to reduce grass tetany risk to ruminants. However, the mechanism for enhanced Mg uptake in HiMag leaves has not been determined. The objective was to investigate if increased Mg uptake in HiMag could be explained by differences in elemental distribution among plant parts, root characteristics, or organic acid concentrations compared to its parental cultivars, ‘‘Kentucky 31’’ (KY31) and ‘‘Missouri 96’’ (MO96). The study was conducted on a surface-irrigated calcareous Portneuf silt loam (coarse-silty, mixed, mesic, Durinodic Xeric Haplocalcid). Vegetation and soil …

Betaine Improves Growth, But Does Not Induce Whole Body Or Hepatic Palmitate Oxidation In Swine (Sus Scrofa Domestica), Diane Wray-Cahen, Ignacio Fernández-Fígares, Erkki Virtanen, Norman C. Steele, Thomas J. Caperna

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

Dietary betaine may reduce carcass fat in growing pigs. We explored the effects of betaine on short-term growth and in vivo and in vitro fatty acid oxidation. Pigs were housed in metabolism crates and fed diets containing either 0% (control), 0.125% or 0.5% betaine at 80% of ad libitum energy intake. Fatty acid oxidation was measured during intravenous infusions of 1-¹³C-palmitate and in hepatocytes incubated in the presence or absence of betaine and carnitine. CO₂ and palmitate isotopic enrichments were determined by mass spectrometry. Pigs consuming 0.125% and 0.5% betaine for at least 9 days had growth …

Case Study: Effects Of Delaying Implant And Programmed Rate Of Gain On Performance And Carcass Characteristics Of Yearling Beef Steers, G. Scaglia, L. W. Greene, F. T. Mccollum, N. A. Cole, T. H. Montgomery

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

Ninety-six steers (average BW = 335 ± 36 kg) were allotted in a completely randomized design with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Factors were 1) implant on d 1 or no implant and 2) ad libitum access to feed on d 1 or programmed-fed for a target BW gain of 1.4 kg/d during the first 62 d of the feeding period. On d 63, all steers were implanted with Revalor-S^® (Hoechst Roussel Vet, Overland Park, KS) and provided ad libitum access to feed until harvest. From d 63 to 116, ADG and gain efficiency (g gain/kg …

Center For Grassland Studies Newsletter, Winter 2003, Volume 9, No. 1

Center for Grassland Studies: Newsletters

Planning for Bison Grazing on Native Rangeland by Kristin Miller, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Pooled Sales Add Value to Cull Cows by Rebekka Martin and Jana Beckman

The Grass Dance

UNL Offers Online Course in Turf Diseases

Second National Conference on Grazing Lands

Seed Dormancy – the Uncertainty in Native Grass Seeding

Prairie Pines to Benefit UNL Programs by Steven Ress, Water Center, UNL

Platte River Trust Begins Study of Birds Breeding in Grasslands by Felipe Chavez-Ramirez, Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust

Efficient Grazing Systems: Putting Pieces Together, Charles T. Dougherty

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Pros and cons of grazing systems are well-known to this audience. Efficient grazing systems, however, are a different story. What is an efficient grazing system? I think we could argue that topic until the cows come home and I do not believe we could come to any agreement. I am going to approach the subject of efficiency from several angles but you will probably see them differently. Economic efficiencies will not be covered.

Kentucky Goat Friendly Pasture Concepts, Terry Hutchens

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Goats are accomplished grazers of grass and browse plants. In addition, they can be managed within a grazing system both intensively or extensively as long as quality forage is made available. Goats are facultative browsers, they prefer to feed at eye level and upward and then feed on forage from the top of the plant down. Goats prefer to move freely from plant to plant-removing foliage from select portions of plants. Foliage meals are dictated by quality factors that insure adequate protein and energy levels. Each stem or leaf is clipped with precision leaving the forage residue standing equal in …

Grazing Systems For Dairy, Donna M. Amaral-Phillips

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Forages which are grazed can provide anywhere from 25 to 100% of the forage consumed by growing dairy heifers, dry cows or the milking herd. In this paper, I would like to specifically deal with devising a grazing program for a dairy lactating or milking herd. Lactating dairy cows are a “high performance animal” and, as such, any decreases in the availability or quality of forage can quickly decrease milk production. Thus, the goal when designing a grazing system is to provide adequate quantities of high-quality, vegetative forage to prevent decreases in performance. These decreases in performance occur in all …

Gaca, The Response Regulator Of A Two-Component System, Acts As A Master Regulator In Pseudomonas Syringae Pv. Tomato Dc3000 By Controlling Regulatory Rna, Transcriptional Activators, And Alternate Sigma Factors, Asita Chatterjee, Yaya Cui, Hailian Yang, Alan Collmer, James R. Alfano, Arun K. Chatterjee

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Concerted investigations of factors affecting host-pathogen interactions are now possible with the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and its model pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000, as their whole genome sequences have become available. As a prelude to analysis of the regulatory genes and their targets, we have focused on GacA, the response regulator of a two-component system. The DC3000 gene was cloned by testing for the reversal of phenotypes of an Erwinia GacA– mutant. A GacA– mutant of DC3000 constructed by marker exchange produces much-reduced levels of transcripts of three alternate sigma factors: HrpL, required for the production of effector …

Fisheries Research Contract Report No. 6 - Assessment Of The Nutritional Variability Of Lupins As An Aquaculture Feed Ingredient, Brett Glencross, John Curnow, Wayne Hawkins

Fisheries Research Reports

The nutritional value of the kernel meals of three species of lupin (Lupinus albus, L. angustifolius and L. luteus) was compared against each other and a reference ingredient of solvent extracted soybean meal, when fed to rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Each lupin kernel meal was included in test diets at 300 g/kg and also at a greater level, representing 50% of the total protein content in the diet. The digestibility of protein of all lupin kernel meals was better than for the soybean meal. The highest protein digestibility was that from L. luteus kernel meal at 30% inclusion (100%), which …

Nebline, November/December 2003

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

ABC’s for Good Health because Every Woman Matters!
Stretch Your Food Dollar - Create-A-Casserole Chart
Preparing and Using Pine Cones For Decoration
Forcing Spring-Flowering Bulbs
Garden Guide
Choosing and Caring for Indoor Trees
Understanding Nebraska’s Open Burning Law
“Megaforces of Agriculture” Seminar
Storage Methods to Reduce Hay Losses
Fall is a Great Time to Control Winter Annual Weeds
Consider Stand Density, Weeds When Rotating Alfalfa
Thoroughly Modern Thanksgiving: Turkey Cooking Tips
Healthy Eating: Enjoy Nebraska Foods
Making Changes in Eating Behavior
Web Resources of the Month
Lines from Lynn
Household Hints: Holiday Stain Removal for Washable Fabrics
FCE Achievement Night …

Meeting Cereal Demand While Protecting Natural Resources And Improving Environmental Quality, Kenneth G. Cassman, Achim R. Dobermann, Daniel T. Walters, Haishun Yang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Agriculture is a resource-intensive enterprise. The manner in which food production systems utilize resources has a large influence on environmental quality. To evaluate prospects for conserving natural resources while meeting increased demand for cereals, we interpret recent trends and future trajectories in crop yields, land and nitrogen fertilizer use, carbon sequestration, and greenhouse gas emissions to identify key issues and challenges. Based on this assessment, we conclude that avoiding expansion of cultivation into natural ecosystems, increased nitrogen use efficiency, and improved soil quality are pivotal components of a sustainable agriculture that meets human needs and protects natural resources. To achieve …

Forage News [2003-10], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Illinois Animal Scientist to Speak at Kentucky Grazing Conference
• KFGC Awards: Deadline October 15
• Fighting Tall Fescue Toxicity: Is There a Silver Bullet?
• Forage Extension Position
• Performance of Grazing-Tolerant Alfalfa Varieties Rotationally Grazed by Dairy Cattle
• The Most Important Invention in 2000 Years?
• Last Call for October Grazing School
• A Long, Rich History
• Evaluating Hay Quality
• Upcoming Events

On-Station Production Of Native Speargrass Hay In Western Australia, G L. Krebs, Robert R. Rouda, S P. Van Wyngaarden

Bulletins 4000 -

This report documents the practical and economic feasibility of on-station harvesting and production of speargrass hay and haylage and its subsequent feeding to cattle and sheep in the extensive regions of south-eastern Western Australia. Four hundred and ten bales weighing an average 275 kg were produced from a total harvested area of 40.6 ha in the vicinity of Duck Dam on Kanandah Station. In the lead up to harvesting, seasonal conditions were among the best on record. Half of the bales produced were further processed into haylage. Two feeding trials, involving wethers at Arubiddy and steers at Kanandah, were undertaken …

Effects Of Management Practices On Grassland Birds: Greater Prairie-Chicken, W. D. Svedarsky, J. E. Toepfer, R. L. Westemeier, R. J. Robel

United States Geological Survey: Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds

Information on the habitat requirements and effects of habitat management on grassland birds were summarized from information in more than 5,500 published and unpublished papers. A range map is provided to indicate the breeding distribution of Greater Prairie-Chicken in the United States and southern Canada. Although birds frequently are observed outside the breeding range indicated, the maps are intended to show areas where managers might concentrate their attention. It may be ineffectual to manage habitat at a site for a species that rarely occurs in an area. The species account begins with a brief capsule statement, which provides the fundamental …

Nebline, September 2003

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Food Safety Q & A Is This Food Still Safe to Eat?
Garden Guide
Planting Under Established Trees
Seasonal Needle Drop on Evergreens
Drying Gourds
Horticulture Information Center
Is it Really a “Sweat Bee”?
Odd Insects Found in Late Summer
West Nile Virus Alert!
West Nile Virus Q &A
Fall Livestock and Grain Price Outlook Meeting Scheduled
Time to Control Problem Weeds
Preparing Bins to Maintain Grain Quality, Value
Biosolids Increase Yields While Reducing Fertilizer Costs
Burning Wood Safely in a Stove or Fireplace
Water Quality Standards Apply To Public, Not Private Drinking Water
Lagoon Design and Construction
Store It, …