Life Sciences Commons^™

Biological Control Of Alfalfa Insect Pests, Chris M. Christensen

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

Alfalfa is a succulent plant that obviously is good feed for large herbivores such as cattle and horses. Therefore, it should not be surprising that a large number of small herbivores such as insects also find this plant delicious. Fortunately, most of these insects are not major pests. However, we do have a couple pest insects that annually attack this valuable crop and often cause economic damage.

Controlling insect pests is expensive and time consuming. However, not controlling them can be disastrous to the profit margin of the alfalfa producer. Entomologists who work on the insect pests of alfalfa have …

Weed Control In Alfalfa — Present & Future, Charles H. Slack

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

To achieve maximum alfalfa production and maintain excellent stands and forage quality for a number of years, producers need to start including weed control in their management program. Unfortunately good stands are not being established because of early weed competition where herbicides are not used. Alfalfa stands tend to play out before achieving their maximum number of years of production unless maintenance herbicides are used. Fortunately there are now herbicides registered to meet most every phase of alfalfa production.

This paper will deal primarily with the herbicides that are currently labeled for use on alfalfa. Several herbicides that are not …

Fertilizing Alfalfa For Optimum Production, Lloyd W. Murdock

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

Alfalfa is a high producing crop. Therefore, it only makes sense not to limit its production or longevity by establishing it on unsuitable soil and by the use of unsound fertility practices. It is the aim of this paper to propose practices which will not limit the production of alfalfa, but, also allow it to be done as efficiently as possible with only the necessary inputs.

No-Till Alfalfa — Research And Observations, Garry D. Lacefield

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

In previous addresses to this Conference, I have suggested four basic goals be included in your alfalfa program: 1) attention to details prior to and during establishment such that you establish a thick, weed-free stand; necessary management to; 2) keep the stand productive for five years; 3) produce five tons per acre per year, and; 4) market your harvest product either as a cash crop or through your livestock program for profit. In the presentations to follow today, information will be presented which, if adapted to your program, will permit you to reach and surpass the above goals.

The topic …

Kentucky's Soils Potential For Alfalfa Production, Kenneth L. Wells

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

A description of Kentucky's land base indicates that of nearly 15 million acres suitable for cropland usage, approximately three-fourths has an erosion hazard potential of some degree, relating largely to steepness of slope (1). For this reason, there is a large potential acreage of alfalfa and other perennial forage crops relating to their sod forming growth habit which provides them an inherent value in erosion control.

Foreword [1985], Garry D. Lacefield

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

This is the front matter of the proceedings.

Equilibrium Moisture Properties Of Corn Cobs, G. M. White, Thomas C. Bridges, Samuel G. Mcneill, Douglas G. Overhults

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Equilibrium moisture content-equilibrium relative humidity data for broken corn cobs have been determined for both desorption and adsorption conditions for three temperature levels and five moisture levels. The Modified Henderson and Chung equilibrium moisture equations have been fitted to these data by using non-linear regression procedures to estimate equation parameters. Both equations adequately represented the experimental data. A test of varietal differences indicated no significant difference in cob desorption ERH values for three selected corn varieties.

Corn Stalk Rots, Paul Vincelli, Donald E. Hershman

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Stalk rots are the most common diseases of dent corn in Kentucky. It is estimated that these diseases reduce annual yields by a minimum of 3 percent. In certain years, yield losses may reach 10 to 20 percent. Losses are due to (1) premature plant death which results in poor filling of ears or light test weights for the grain, and (2) harvest losses associated with stalk breakage or lodging. Furthermore, problems with ear rot are usually greater where lodging occurs, particularly when the harvest season is wet.

Developing Realistic Agricultural Production Functions For Use In Undergraduate Classes, David L. Debertin

Agricultural Economics Textbook Gallery

This journal publication is included here as a supplement to Agricultural Production Economics text.  Supplementary files are also included.

Tall Fescue In Kentucky, Garry D. Lacefield, J. Kenneth Evans

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), a long-lived grass with short underground stems, is presently grown on approximately 5.5 million acres in Kentucky and on approximately 35 million acres in the south central United States. It is a versatile plant used for livestock feed, lawns, turf and conservation purposes, and is adapted for a wide range of soil and climatic conditions.

Chemical analyses for forage quality indicate that tall fescue compares favorably to other transition zone grasses. Many livestock producers, however, have found animal response from grazing tall fescue to be erratic and often undesirable. Researchers at the University of …

Effect Of Planting Dates Of No-Till And Conventional Corn On Soils With Restricted Drainage, James H. Herbek, Lloyd W. Murdock, Robert L. Blevins

Agronomy Notes

No-till corn is best adapted to well drained soils. It is on these soils that no-till has been most successful and the practice most widely accepted. On soils that are moderately well to somewhat poorly drained, no-till corn can also be successful but more management is required. Three areas which require more attention are weed control, nitrogen management and planting. It has long been recognized that no-tilling results in cooler soil temperatures which can delay and reduce seed germination and seedling emergence. Additional research also indicates that diseases which attack the corn seedling in the emergence stage are more prevalent …

Corn Grades And Feed Value, Morris J. Bitzer, Dan O. Riddell

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Corn is traditionally priced on the basis of U.S. No. 2 grade. However, with the release of CCC-owned corn stocks for Emergency Assistance Programs, there is an increase in corn being marketed as No. 4, No. 5 or Sample grade. It is important for producers to understand corn grading standards and the feeding values of these grades.

Toxicological Studies On Aquatic Contaminants Originating From Coal Production And Utilization: The Induction Of Tolerance To Silver In Laboratory Populations Of Fish And The Chronic Toxicity Of Nickel To Fish Early Life Stages, Wesley J. Birge, Jeffrey A. Black, James F. Hobson, Albert G. Westerman

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity studies were performed on two important coal-derived contaminants, silver and nickel. Silver was investigated with regard to metal-induced tolerance in laboratory populations of the fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas). Fish were exposed to acute silver concentrations following acclimation to sublethal exposures of this metal. Based on median lethal times (LT50), animals which had received 14 days prior exposure to 1.5 and 15 μg Ag/L were three to four times more resistant to silver than were previously unexposed organisms. This metal-induced resistance was not a sustained response. After organisms which had been acclimated to 15 μg/L had been transferred to …

Summary Of Alfalfa Variety Trials In Kentucky (1971-1983), Roy E. Sigafus

Agronomy Notes

This note shows comparable yields for 22 out of 100 alfalfa varieties which have been tested in at least three trials at Lexington or Princeton since 1971. Varieties not listed include many taken off the market, varieties known to be unsuited to Kentucky, or those which need further testing.

Yield results from seven separate trials are given in Table 1 as average annual dry matter yields (T/A) and as % relative yield (RY) as compared to Vernal. Vernal was used in each trial as a standard check and on the soils of limestone origin at Lexington and Princeton averaged over …

Performance Of Tall Fescue Varieties [1984], Robert C. Buckner, Paul B. Burrus Ii, Nelson Gay, James A. Boling, Garry D. Lacefield

Agronomy Notes

The objective of the tall fescue breeding program is the development of varieties characterized by superior nutritive value (including reduced contents of perloline and loline alkaloids and the fungal endophyte, Epichloe typhina, (Acremonium coenophialum), palatability, disease resistance, and adaptation through the utilization of intergeneric and interspecific hybrid derivatives of ryegtass and tall fescue species. Varieties previously released from the breeding program were Kentucky 31, Kenwell; and Kenhy. Johnstone tall fescue, developed cooperatively by the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station and USDA-ARS, was released March 1, 1982, as a new variety. Johnstone is characterized as having low levels of perloline alkaloid and …

Root Knot Nematode In Gardens And Commercial Vegetables, John R. Hartman, William C. Nesmith

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

The root knot nematode (Meloidogyne spp.) causes damage by its feeding and reproduction on plant roots. There are several pathogenic species of this nematode but the two most commonly found in Kentucky are the southern root knot nematode, M. incognita and the northern root knot, M. hapla. These nematodes can attack numerous plants including vegetables, fruits, field crops, ornamentals and common weeds. Frequently, Meloidogyne interacts with other plant pathogens to form a disease complex in which the resulting disease is much more severe than that caused by either component alone. These nematodes are particularly serious when high populations …

Activation Of B Lymphocytes By Monovalent Anti-Lyb-2 Antibodies, Subbarao Bondada, D. E. Mosier

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

Small resting B lymphocytes are activated when their cell surface immuno-globulin (Ig) receptors interact with specific antigen or anti-Ig antibodies. Such a receptor-ligand interaction leads to enlargement and proliferation of B lymphocytes. These activated B cells can subsequently mature into Ig-secreting cells in the presence of appropriate accessory cell signals (1-3). However, monovalent anti-Ig antibodies cannot induce B cell activation even though they can bind to the surface Ig (4-7). It has thus been concluded that membrane Ig has to be cross-linked to induce early steps in B cell activation (membrane depolarization; 8) as well as later steps (proliferation). T …

Method For Improving The Metabolic Stability And Survival Of Neonatal Pigs, Tim S. Stahly

Animal and Food Sciences Faculty Patents

A method of improving the metabolic stability of neonatal pigs and increasing their survival rate by administering to the pregnant sow during its latter stages of gestation up to about 80 days prior to parturition an effective amount of a material selected from the group consisting of a dihydroxy alkanol having 3 to 10 carbon atoms; a triglyceride of glycerol and fatty acids wherein at least one of the fatty acid moieties containing 8 to 12 carbon atoms with the remaining acid moieties containing 13 to 20 carbon atoms; the mono and diol esters of said alkanols and said fatty …

Fertilization Practices For Double Cropping Systems, John H. Grove

Agronomy Notes

Double cropping has become an important practice in the state of Kentucky. While the wheat-soybean grain intensive production system is the most widely used on an acreage basis (approx. 3/4 million acres per year) several other systems are being adopted by Kentucky growers. Most of these involve some silage production for beef and/or dairy cattle. The fall seeded small grain (wheat, barley, triticale) is harvested at an immature stage of growth and ensiled and a subsequent crop for silage (corn, grain sorghum) or grain (soybean, grain sorghum) is planted. The use of reduced and no-tillage management will speed up planting …

Tillage And Crop Residue Management, Monroe Rasnake

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

One heavy rain on a sloping field that has just been tilled can remove the equivalent of 50 tons of topsoil per acre. In just a matter of minutes, the work of hundreds of years of natural soil formation can be totally wiped out. That land's productivity would not likely be restored within the life span of anyone living at the time.

Topsoil lost by erosion is not only a loss to the land owner; it also creates problems where it is deposited. It covers crops in low areas, fills road ditches, clogs drains and covers roads. It muddies streams …

Atlas Of Wetlands In The Principal Coal Surface Mining Region Of Western Kentucky, William J. Mitsch, Jan R. Taylor, Kimberly B. Benson, Paul L. Hill Jr.

KWRRI Research Reports

This atlas contains maps of wetlands and surface mining activity in the Western Kentucky Coal Field, and focuses on a 3960 km² (1530 mi²) region where approximately 90 percent of surface mining in the Coal field occures. Some present and potential competition exists between surface coal mining and wetland protection. A wetland classification, based on the recent FWS classification, includes six types of palustrine systems and one each of riverine and laucstrine systems. Wetlands and surface mines are located on twenty-seven 7.5 minute USGS quadrangles that define the study region. A total of 460 km² (177 …

N:S Ratio Of Forages In Kentucky, Kenneth L. Wells

Agronomy Notes

Concern has been expressed during recent years that sulfur may have become more limiting for plant growth and subsequently ruminant animal nutrition than was expected. This likelihood is based largely on the fact that (a) the inherent sulfur content of fertilizer phosphates has greatly diminished with declining use of normal superphosphate in manufacture of mixed fertilizers, (b) increased regulatory effect on burning of high sulfur fuels, and (c) increased use of nitrogen fertilizers for production of animal feeds. Assumedly, any or all these factors could result in alteration of nitrogen and sulfur content of forages to the point that either …

The Induction Of Tolerance To Heavy Metals In Natural And Laboratory Populations Of Fish, Wesley J. Birge, William H. Benson, Jeffrey A. Black

KWRRI Research Reports

Aquatic toxicity studies were performed on two natural populations of fathead minnows. One group of organisms was taken from a metal-contaminated flyash pond associated with a coal-fired power plant and the other group was collected from relatively uncontaminated hatchery ponds. Acute tests indicated that flyash pond fish were significantly more tolerant to cadmium and copper than were hatchery fish. At an exposure concentration of 6.0 mg Cd/L in moderately hard water, the median period of survival for flyash pond fish was 50.0 hr compared to 6.8 hr for hatchery fish. Both groups of organisms were about equally sensitive to zinc. …

Effects Of Surface Application Of Dairy Manure On The Infiltration Rate And Quality Of Surface Runoff, Joseph L. Taraba, I. J. Ross, John D. Bottom, Bill J. Barfield

KWRRI Research Reports

Dairy manure was surface spread on 12 ft x 12 ft plots on an established fescue pasture in the summer and fall of 1981 and 1982. The soil was a Maury silt loam. A simulated rainfall was applied to plots to test the effects of nitrogen loading rate (75, 150, and 300 #N/acre) time delay between manure application and the simulated rainfall events (0, 3, 6, 24, 48, 96 hours and a 120 hour test repeated on 0 hr plot with 300 #N/acre), and type manure (semi-solid - 1981 and liquid - 1982) on the concentrations of pollutants in the …

Performance Of Tall Fescue Varieties, Robert C. Buckner, Paul B. Burrus Ii, Nelson Gay, Garry D. Lacefield

Agronomy Notes

The objective of the tall fescue breeding program is the development of varieties characterized by superior nutritive value (including reduced contents of perloline and loline alkaloids and the fungal endophyte, Epichloe typhina), palatability, disease resistance, and adaptation through the utilization of intergeneric and interspecific hybrid derivatives of ryegrass and tall fescue species. Varieties previously released from the breeding program were, Kentucky 31, Kenwell, and Kenhy. Johnstone tall fescue, developed cooperatively by the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station and USDA-ARS, was released March 1, 1982, as,a new variety. Johnstone is characterized as having low levels of perloline alkaloid and the fungal endophyte, …

An Estimate Of The Soil Fertility Status Of Graves And Todd Counties In Kentucky, Kenneth L. Wells, D. E. Peaslee, Marvin Davidson, William Green

Agronomy Notes

Some concern has developed during recent years that fertilizer is being used by farmers on fields with residual levels of P and K high enough that such use is not justified as a means of increasing crop yields. This has been due to increased "average" soil test values for samples routinely submitted to college soil test laboratories.

For this reason, studies were conducted in Graves and Todd Counties in Kentucky during the period September, 1978 to September, 1980, to determine if soil samples routinely submitted to college test laboratories do or do not accurately reflect the average soil fertility status …

Red Clover Variety Trials Through 1982, Roy E. Sigafus, Norman L. Taylor, Garry D. Lacefield

Agronomy Notes

Care should be taken by growers to obtain red clover seed of known origin, variety, germination, and purity. Whenever possible, purchase of certified seed of adapted varieties is strongly advised. Varieties such as Altaswede, Norlac, and Ottawa from Canada; Arlington and Lakeland from Wisconsin; Pennscott from Pennsylvania; Chesapeake from Maryland; and Tensas from Louisiana are not as well suited for use in Kentucky as are Kenland, Kenstar, and a few other varieties developed for the general area of Kentucky.

Forage Moisture Testers, George Turner, Doug Overhults

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

The quality of forage used for feed is affected by the moisture content at which it was harvested and stored. To guess moisture content from experience or by hand squeezing and wadding is not accurate enough for today's methods of putting up hay, haylage or silage.

There are several very accurate and rapid types of sophisticated moisture indicators used in various industries, but these are too complex and costly to be considered for portable use by farmers. Other smaller instruments are also available that do a less accurate but acceptable job of determining moisture content of forage. One of these …

Alfalfa Production And Marketing — Producer Story, Reeves Davie, Alfred Davie, Gene Davie

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

Our decision to plant a hundred acres of alfalfa in the late summer of 1981 was not made hastily. Past experiences of others in the area who had grown alfalfa commercially, an economic study of the alfalfa hay situation and the declining prices of corn, wheat, and soybeans all had their affect on our decision. However, we did not anticipate the price of corn, wheat and soybeans sinking to the levels they did this past year of 1982.

An Economic Examination Of Kentucky's Potential For Alfalfa Production, W. Donald Shurley

Kentucky Alfalfa and Stored Forage Conference

In managing a farm successfully, a major decision faced by the farmer is the choice of enterprises and the level of production for each of the enterprises chosen. For each enterprise or combination of enterprises, an initial investment in land, buildings, and machinery is required. The enterprises chosen and the production levels of each enterprise must be sufficient to reward investments above their cost. Once the choice of enterprises is made and investment incurred, little flexibility exists in making changes among enterprises unless some investments are liquidated and new investments made.