Life Sciences Commons^™

Target Consumers For Organically Grown Fruit In Utah, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Tammy King

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides an overview of target consumers for organically grown fruits and fruit products in Utah. The data examined here comes from an online survey (via Qualtrics) of Utah consumers conducted in 2023. Here, we compare those willing to pay premiums for organically grown fruit and those unwilling to do so, outlining the distinction between them in terms of their demographics, purchasing patterns and shopping habits, as well as their lifestyle and attitudes.

Target Consumers For Locally Grown Fruit In Utah, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Tammy King

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes target consumers for locally grown fruits and fruit products in Utah. The data examined here comes from an online survey (via Qualtrics) of Utah consumers conducted in 2023. Here, we compare consumers who are willing to pay a higher premium for local fruit products and those who are not, outlining the distinction between them in terms of their demographics, purchasing patterns and shopping habits, as well as their lifestyle and attitudes.

Alfalfa Nutrient Management Guide, Megan Baker, Matt Yost, Clara Anderson, Grant Cardon, Jody Gale, Earl Creech, Cody Zesiger, Kalen Taylor

All Current Publications

Proper nutrient management is key to maintaining high yields, quality, and stand longevity for profitable alfalfa production. By the time that visible symptoms of nutrient deficiencies have appeared, yield, quality, and economic losses have already occurred. Soil tests provide a proactive opportunity to prepare fertilizer or amendment supplementation before the growing season. Fertilizer applications can greatly improve crop yield and quality and, in turn, greatly increase economic returns.

Intermountain West Wholesale Cut Flower Buyer Market Analysis, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Melanie Stock, Katherine Wagner, Cheyenne Reid, Victoria Xiong, Cody Zesiger

All Current Publications

This fact sheet discusses the results of a study conducted in early 2024 with wholesale flower buyers operating in the Intermountain West. The study was intended to provide local cut flower growers with pertinent information on wholesale buyer preferences for sourcing flowers from the Intermountain West, including pricing, quantity, variety, and delivery preferences. The study also included wholesaler business details and current supplier challenges to assist growers in identifying market gaps and needs.

Intermountain West Florist Local Cut Flower Sourcing Preferences, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Melanie Stock, Katherine Wagner, Cheyenne Reid, Victoria Xiong, Cody Zesiger

All Current Publications

This fact sheet, the second in a two-part series, outlines a study conducted in January 2024 with florists operating in the Intermountain West. It provides local cut flower growers with pertinent information on florist preferences for sourcing flowers locally. An online Qualtrics survey was conducted in January 2024 with florists in six Intermountain states, including Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana. A total of 1,412 florists were invited by email to complete the survey. A total of 205 florists responded to the survey, with 170 valid responses. The survey questions centered on various aspects of florist businesses, including their …

Intermountain West Florist Market Overview And Outlook, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Melanie Stock, Katherine Wagner, Cheyenne Reid, Victoria Xiong, Cody Zesiger

All Current Publications

This fact sheet, the first in a two-part series from a January 2024 study, focuses on florist and market trends in the Intermountain West. The study provides local cut flower growers with pertinent information on the florist market such as current sourcing and flower expenditures, primary markets and annual sales, as well as current supplier challenges. Market trends regarding sales, flower variety, and color predictions are also discussed. This information will help growers identify current gaps in the florist market and explore ways to meet florist needs.

Balancing The Scales: Evaluating Variables Of Greatest Impact To Profit Margins When Finishing Cattle, Ryan Bake

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This study examines the risk associated with finishing cattle in a feedlot, specifically in the context of historically high cattle prices and quality grade grid marketing systems that have not adjusted to these elevated prices. The analysis also looks at performance factors that drive profitability differences in pens of cattle in a commercial feedlot, and how market factors also impact profitability. Regression analysis determines the significance of performance variables such as days on feed, average daily gain, feed conversion rates, and carcass characteristics on pen profitability. The impact of cattle breeding and pre-feedlot management of the cattle are also considered …

Leveraging Generative Ai For Sustainable Farm Management Techniques Correspond To Optimization And Agricultural Efficiency Prediction, Samira Samrose

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

Sustainable farm management practice is a multifaceted challenge. Uncovering the optimal state for production while reduction of environmental negative impacts and guaranteed inter-generational assets supervision needs balanced management. Also, considering lots of different factors (cost, profit, employment etc), the agricultural based management technique requires rigorous concentration. In this project machine learning models are applied to develop, achieve and improve the farm management techniques. This experiment ensures the resultant impacts being environment friendly and necessary resource availability and efficiency. Predicting the type of crop and rotational recommendations will disclose potentiality of productive agricultural based farming. Additionally, this project is designed to …

The Utah State University Ambassador Program: Predictors Of Acceptance And Rural High School Representation, Mariah P. Spencer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The Utah State University Ambassador Program focuses on leadership, recruitment, and service. In addition to the Logan Main Campus, there are ambassadors on the USU Eastern and Statewide Campuses. The Logan Program is the most competitive, receiving 450-700 applications each year. Selected applicants receive a scholarship of 100% tuition and fees renewable for up to four years. This study looked at what factors predict whether students are accepted into the University Ambassador Program in Logan for in-state and out-of-state first-year applicants. Factors considered included involvement in student government, school and community activities, whether the student is the first in their …

Consumer Perceptions And Preferences For Utah Fresh And Packaged Fruit, Makaylie Langford, Kynda R. Curtis, Marcelo Pignatari

All Current Publications

In this fact sheet, we discuss the results of a 2023 study examining Utah consumer perceptions and preferences for Utah fresh and packaged fruit products. Study data were collected online via a Qualtrics survey, and 384 Utah adults completed the survey. Utah consumer food behaviors and attitudes, including participation in food and agricultural tourism activities, are discussed. We analyze the most consumed fruits and the preferred purchasing options for various fruit types, such as packaged, frozen, canned, and fresh. Additionally, we explore the factors influencing consumers’ decisions when buying fruit and review the product information they rely on. Overall, the …

Fruit Production And Opportunities For Growers In Utah, Makaylie Langford, Kynda R. Curtis

All Current Publications

This fact sheet discusses the state of the fruit industry in Utah, its impact on the Utah economy, as well as current challenges the fruit industry faces and opportunities for fruit growers moving forward. These challenges and opportunities underscore the importance of fruit to the state’s economy, as growers navigate urbanization, competition, and consumer preferences for locally grown produce. Fostering collaboration between consumers and growers will ensure a commitment to local agriculture and community support.

Fruit Consumption Indicators: Who Consumes More Fruit In Utah?, Makaylie Langford, Kynda R. Curtis

All Current Publications

This fact sheet discusses fruit consumption patterns in Utah, exploring the key demographic and socioeconomic factors linked to increased fruit intake. Fruit growers and marketers can use this information to design effective promotional campaigns targeting consumers more likely to purchase fruit and fruit products.

Utah Fruit Growers Assessment Results Overview, Makaylie Langford, Kynda R. Curtis

All Current Publications

Fruit growers throughout Utah manage operations of varying sizes and sell their fruit products fresh or processed through various direct-to-consumer and wholesale markets. In early winter 2023, researchers conducted an online survey via Qualtrics to better understand the fruit products under production, current marketing methods, grower concerns, and future business interests. This fact sheet provides an overview of the survey results.

Pocket Gophers, Mark Nelson, S. Nicole Frey, Earl Creech, Kalen Taylor, Jacob Hadfield, Linden Greenhalgh, Cory Farnsworth, Jody Gale, Melanie Heaton, Justin Wyatt Clawson, Steve Price

All Current Publications

Pocket gophers can damage agriculture and human development infrastructure. In agricultural fields, pocket gophers cause conflicts by directly consuming plants, destroying plants when their soil mounds cover them, and causing premature loss of field stands such as alfalfa, necessitating expensive alfalfa stand replacement. They can chew through electrical, internet, and other utility cables, damaging irrigation pipes, and compromising the integrity of canals and ditch banks. They also cause significant damage to lawns and gardens in urban areas. Understanding pocket gopher habits, especially the burrow system, is the key to effective control. Management methods include trapping, hand or mechanical baiting, fumigation, …

Utah Consumer Preferences And Willingness To Pay For Specialty Labeled Fruit Products, Kynda R. Curtis, Makaylie Langford, Marcelo Pignatari

All Current Publications

In this fact sheet, we discuss the results of a 2023 study examining Utah consumer preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for fruit products labeled local (Utah’s Own™), organic, and GMO-free. We discuss and compare survey respondents' past consumption, awareness, preferences, and attitudes toward these labeling programs. Additionally, we examine consumer WTP values for each of these labels for three fruit varieties and fresh and dried products, namely fresh apples, strawberries, and dried tart cherries.

A National Perspective Of Mental Health Awareness Among Agricultural Workers, Anna Gilliam, Ethan Gilliam

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

The knowledge and perceptions of mental health resources for agricultural workers were explored at the 2024 American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) National Conference. Data were gathered via a voluntary survey conducted at the event. With 137 completed surveys, the study revealed that the participants desired more information regarding agricultural mental health resources and revealed their preferences for receiving this information. These findings will lead USU Extension to create impactful educational resources to better address mental health awareness and education needs in agricultural workers.

An Introspective Understanding Of Livestock Movement, Ethan Gilliam

All Current Publications

This fact sheet creates a framework for understanding how human presence influences the movement of livestock animals. Although this work references sheep and cattle, the introspective approach to understanding livestock movement can be applied to a variety of livestock species. This fact sheet highlights self-confidence in livestock handling and training through calm working experiences.

Comparison Of Sheep And Goats To The Acute Toxic Effects Of Foothill Death Camas, Kevin D. Welch, Stephen T. Lee, Clint A. Stonecipher, Dale R. Gardner, Daniel Cook

Poisonous Plant Research (PPR)

Death camas (Zigadenus spp) is a perennial forb found throughout the western United States, which is known to kill both sheep and cattle. In a previous study, goats appeared to be somewhat resistant to the adverse effects of death camas. Therefore, the objective of this study was to directly compare the susceptibility of goats and sheep to the acute toxic effects of death camas. Sheep and goats were dosed at 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, and 6.0 g death camas per kg BW. The data presented in this manuscript suggest that goats are more susceptible to death camas than sheep. …

Plum Curculio (Conotrachelus Nenuphar), Kate V. Richardson, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

Plum curculio is a brown weevil (beetle with a snout) native to eastern North America, where it is a major pest of pome and stone fruits. It was detected in Box Elder County, Utah, in the early 1980s, and this population remains the only known infestation in western North America, where it is occasionally found in residential and wild fruit trees. Plum curculio is a quarantine pest in western North America (U.S. and Canada), and fruit grown in infested counties is restricted from being exported. Thus, it is a threat to Utah’s fruit industry and requires ongoing monitoring and management …

Cow-Calf Retained Ownership Analysis And Price Forecasting Using An Online Decision-Support Tool, Dillon M. Feuz

All Current Publications

Cow-calf producers frequently must make the decision to either sell their calves at weaning or soon thereafter or retain ownership of the calves through a background/growing phase. While the price they might receive at weaning may be known, there is great uncertainty about what cattle prices might be at the end of the retained ownership program. This fact sheet explains a method for reducing some of the uncertainty with cattle prices when the sale will occur months in the future and introduces a web-based decision-support tool that can help cattle producers quickly analyze the potential returns and risks from various …

Toxicosis From Range Lupine Ingestion In A Research Herd Of Rafter 7 Merino Sheep, Benjamin J. Weigler, Walter F. Mandeville Iii, Scott Huber, Gary Mccuin, Fabrizio Caragena, Daniel D. Cook, Stephen T. Lee, Chris A. Pritsos

Poisonous Plant Research (PPR)

An outbreak of lupine alkaloid neurotoxicosis and death occurred in sheep grazed on rangeland areas of the Nevada Great Basin during the summer of 2023. Overall, 97 sheep died despite veterinary supportive care. Lupinus argenteus var. utahensis was implicated as the causative plant with high levels of lupanine (11.5 µg/mg) and spartiene (13.7 µg/mg) in collected and archived samples. Previous reports of sheep deaths due to lupine ingestion have not been recorded in this region. An increased abundance of the number plants producing seed pods having a high alkaloid content may have been associated with abnormally elevated levels of precipitation …

Mixing Trembling Aspen And White Spruce Increases The Understory Vegetation Cover And Improves Soil Properties But Effects Vary With Broadleaf Density, Mostarin Ara, Bradley D. Pinno, Philip G. Comeau

Aspen Bibliography

Despite the importance of species mixtures to ecosystem-based forest management, density effect of broadleaf trees in the mixture on understory vegetation and soil properties are poorly understood. In this study, we examine the effects of trembling aspen [aspen] (Populus tremuloides Michx.) -white spruce [ spruce] (Picea glauca (Moench) Vos) mixtures that vary in the proportion of aspen on understory vegetation cover, soil nutrient supply rates, and soil properties. Data were collected from an established study located in Alberta, Canada at age 20 and included the following treatments: 1. Natural regeneration of pure aspen; 2. Retaining only …

Whitetop (Hoary Cress) Control In Residential Situations, Taun Beddes, Michael Caron, Jacob Hadfield, Corey Ransom

All Current Publications

Whitetop (Lepidium draba, formerly Cardaria draba) is a persistent, perennial weed that grows in open, sunny areas. It spreads by seeds and rhizomes, enabling it to spread by several feet in a single season. It is common in wildlands, agricultural, and residential areas. It rapidly spreads into unhealthy lawns, landscape beds, and vegetable gardens. This fact sheet provides information on identification, lifecycle, landscape damage, and suppression and control options.

50 Common Questions About Field Crops, Matt Yost, Burdette Barker, Cody Zesiger, Jody Gale, Justin Wyatt Clawson, Mark Nelson, Matthew Palmer, Michael Pace, Cheyenne Reid, Steven Price, Earl Creech, Corey Ransom, Grant Cardon, Clara Anderson, Madelyn Kunzler

All Current Publications

Utah State University Extension strives to provide research-based information and knowledge to help agricultural producers. Producers often have questions about several aspects of field crop production. This article is not comprehensive of all questions about field crops but represents some of the common questions that USU faculty have received from the public, producers, and crop advisors.

Analyzing The Use Of Agricultural Literacy Assessments: A Descriptive Study Of The Implementation Of The Judd-Murray And The Longhurst-Murray Agricultural Literacy Instruments, Taryn S. Whitaker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The purpose of this study was to provide a descriptive snapshot of how the JMALI and LMALI agricultural literacy assessment instruments have been implemented within the United States. It was concluded that the greatest number of respondents used the assessment instruments as formal assessment diagnostic tools to determine agricultural knowledge and improve instruction. When assessments are used as intended, the likelihood they will effectively achieve their intended goals increases.

This study was the first step in determining how agricultural literacy assessments are currently being used. However, future research should focus on improving the collection of agriculture literacy assessment scores and …

Mapping Quaking Aspen Using Seasonal Sentinel-1 And Sentinel-2 Composite Imagery Across The Southern Rockies, Usa, Maxwell Cook, Teresa Chapman, Sarah Hart, Asha Paudel, Jennifer Balch

Aspen Bibliography

Quaking aspen is an important deciduous tree species across interior western U.S. forests. Existing maps of aspen distribution are based on Landsat imagery and often miss small stands ( < 0.09 ha or 30 m²), which rapidly regrow when managed or following disturbance. In this study, we present methods for deriving a new regional map of aspen forests using one year of Sentinel-1 (S1) and Sentinel-2 (S2) imagery in Google Earth Engine. Using observed annual phenology of aspen across the Southern Rockies and leveraging the frequent temporal resolution of S1 and S2, ecologically relevant seasonal imagery composites were developed. We derived spectral indices and …

Sustainability And Drivers Of Populus Tremuloides Regeneration And Recruitment Near The Southwestern Edge Of Its Range, Connor D. Crouch, Nicholas P. Wilhelmi, Paul C. Rogers, Margaret M. Moore, Kristen M. Waring

Aspen Bibliography

Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) ecosystems are highly valued in the southwestern United States because of the ecological, economic, and aesthetic benefits they provide. Aspen has experienced extensive mortality in recent decades, and there is evidence that many areas in Arizona, United States lack adequate recruitment to replace dying overstory trees. Maintaining sustainable levels of regeneration and recruitment (i.e. juveniles) is critical for promoting aspen ecosystem resilience and adaptive capacity, but questions remain about which factors currently limit juvenile aspen and which strategies are appropriate for managing aspen in an increasingly uncertain future. To fill these critical knowledge gaps, …

Maintaining And Improving Irrigation Application Uniformity In Sprinkler And Drip Systems, Burdette Barker, Sheridan Stewart, Mark Nelson

All Current Publications

The goal of most irrigation system design and management is to provide all plants in an irrigated area with equal access to water. Ideally, each plant should receive the exact amount of water it needs. If a field needs 1 inch of water for irrigation, all parts of the field should receive exactly that. The reality is not so perfect. It is practically impossible to apply the same quantity of water to all plants in an irrigated area, plot, or field. In other words, all irrigation systems have some nonuniformities in the water delivered. Instead of designing and managing irrigation …

Where Have All The Flowers Gone? A Call For Federal Leadership In Deer Management In The United States, Bernd Blossey, Darragh Hare, Donald M. Waller

Aspen Bibliography

Forests in the United States continue to lose biodiversity and many fail to regenerate due to high deer (family Cervidae) abundance. Declines in biodiversity and overall ecosystem health due to high deer populations increases prevalence of wildlife and human diseases associated with increasing tick abundances and decreases forest resilience and the ability to deliver benefits provided by healthy ecosystems. In the eastern and midwestern United States, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are the main stressor, while in the western U.S. elk (Cervus elaphus) and black-tailed and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) can become equally problematic. Federal …

The Backyard Garden: Garlic Pests, Nick Volesky, Bridger Carey, Amelia Olds, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

The Backyard Garden is a series from Utah Pests, Utah State University Extension. This fact sheet explores the pests and diseases that affect garlic plants, covering severity, other hosts, general information, symptoms, and management.