Agriculture Commons^™

Assessing The Influence Of Interseeded Cover Crops On Beneficial Arthropod Abundance In A Northeastern Agroecosystem, Charles Cooper

Honors College

Conservation agriculture approaches are gaining traction as the planet’s food system grapples with climate change, oil depletion, and rampant environmental degradation (Palm et al., 2014). Cover cropping is an integral practice of conservation agriculture. Ground dwelling arthropods play an important role in agroecosystems, providing ecosystem services including seed predation and nutrient cycling. Because the relationship between cover crops and arthropod abundance are likely influenced by management conditions, I investigated arthropod abundance in a field interseeded with cover crops on a research farm in Maine, United States. Interseeding is an emerging practice in the northeastern United States, with potential to address …

Tapping The Sweet Spot: Predicting The Suitability Of A Woodlot’S Potential To Transition Into A Productive Sugarbush In Maine, Deven M. Teisl

Non-Thesis Student Work

Through conversations with Dr. Sara Velardi, a postdoctoral research associate who has been doing research on maple producers’ scale management decisions in Maine, most current owners and operators in the maple syrup industry have the common interest of expanding their current operations, but they are unsure of how to approach that problem. Due to these current issues, my research focused on creating a sugarbush assessment tool. This assessment tool consists of a set of guidelines which can be utilized by current or future producers and can be used to easily assess woodlots without having to hire a consulting forester to …

Integrative Experience: Soil Microbes And The Sustainability Of Organic Agriculture, Kristen Deangelis, Luiz Domeignoz Horta

Microbiology Educational Materials

This curriculum describes a one-unit course designed to fulfill the University of Massachusetts requirement for Integrative Experience as part of the Gen Ed curriculum for undergraduates.

Through The Eyes Of Locals: A Changing Climate In Bolivia, Jacob D. Rex

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Deforestation and Agricultural Land-Use Change in Bolivia as a Function of Socio-Economic Realities.

This research combines semi-structured interviews of key informants and local participants, as well as field observations, which were conducted between January and April of 2019 in the Departments of Santa Cruz & Chuquisaca.

Testing Predictions Used To Build An Agrivoltaics Installation On A Small-Scale Educational Model, Katie Kinney, Rebecca Minor, Greg Barron-Gafford

STAR Program Research Presentations

Models are valuable tools for explaining and testing systems. Small-scale models can be especially useful for educational purposes. For models to be useful, they have to accurately depict the larger system that they are describing. A novel man-made system, known as an agrivoltaic structure, is being constructed at Biosphere 2 near Oracle, Arizona. The word agrivoltaic is a combination of agriculture and photovoltaics, or solar farming. My research involved creating a small-scale version of this system for educational purposes. The model of this system tested two predictions: that plants will grow better in the shade of a panel and that …

Working With Locals To Restore Biodiversity To A Rubber Dominated Landscape, Francis Commercon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Xishuangbanna, in Yunnan,China, contains the country’s highest concentration of biodiversity. Since the 1980s,rubber plantations have replaced a significant portion of the prefecture’s lowland Seasonal Tropical Rainforest, leading to wildlife habitat loss and other environmental issues.Monoculture farming practices also leave farmers economically vulnerable to market fluctuations. To learn the best solutions for increasing ecosystem services and income stability in rubber-dominated areas, the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) project Green Rubber engages smallholders directly in establishing and maintaining scientifically rigorous intercropping experiments in their villages.

Using Man’e village and the Green Rubber project as a case study, I asked to what degree and …

Navigating A Pathway Toward Colorado's Water Future: A Review And Recommendations On Colorado's Draft Water Plan, Lawrence J. Macdonnell, Colorado Water Working Group

Books, Reports, and Studies

40 pages (includes color illustrations).

Development Of A Public Education Website: Building Bridges Over Water, Angelina Mckee

Agricultural Education and Communication

Website created by Angelina McKee to educate the public about water resource issues. Water is the basic unit of life, water resources are the basis for what societies and ecosystems are founded upon. Water shortages and droughts are more prevalent in our ever-changing world. It is no shock that there are discrepancies between various stockholders on either sides of the dry riverbed. This senior project resulted in the development of a website that addresses global water resources, water use in California, water conservation, and water allocation. The website informs the public on water resources and related issues and will hopefully …

Integrated Weed Management Plan For The Lower Las Vegas Wash, Elizabeth Bickmore

Publications (WR)

The Las Vegas Wash (Wash) is the primary drainage for the metropolitan Las Vegas Valley, eventually finding its way into the Colorado River watershed system. Pursuant to the recommendations of the Water Quality Citizens Advisory Committee, the Las Vegas Wash Coordination Committee (LVWCC) was formed in 1998 to develop a comprehensive plan for the long-term stabilization and management of the Wash. Consisting of representatives from 28 government agencies, businesses, environmental groups and citizens, the LVWCC formulated the Las Vegas Wash Comprehensive Adaptive Management Plan (CAMP) and designated the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) as the lead agency for the implementation …

Social And Economic Data For Regional And Natural Resource Management In Western Australia's South West Catchment : Results Of The 2006 Landholder Survey, Department Of Agriculture And Food, Western Australia, South West Catchments Council (W.A.), Michael Hanslip, Australia. Bureau Of Rural Sciences.

All other publications

This report presents a summary of the key findings from a mailed survey to 2,000 landholders in the South West Region of Western Australia in 2006. The survey gathered information on the key social and economic factors affecting landholder decision-making about the adoption of practices expected to improve the management of natural resources in the region. The response rate for the survey was 69.4%.

The South West Catchment Council, Western Australian Department of Agriculture and Food and the Bureau of Rural Sciences were key project partners. Funding was from a mix of national, state and regional programmes, including the Natural …

Potential For Crop Residue To Restrict Herbicide Movement In Surface From Water Corn And Soybean Fields, William W. Witt

KWRRI Research Reports

As no-tillage and other conservation tillage practices continue to increase, it is important to have knowledge of herbicide adsorption on crop residue with regard to the potential for the herbicide to be removed from the residue and move with runoff water from the field into nearby surface waters. Previous research had compared herbicide adsorption to various residues, but it was difficult to make comparisons among these studies because the residues were from different crops or the amount of residue decomposition was different. The amount of "weathering" or "aging" of the residue at the time of herbicide treatment could alter the …

Agenda: Sustainable Use Of The West's Water, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Sustainable Use of the West's Water (Summer Conference, June 12-14)

Conference organizers and/or faculty included University of Colorado School of Law professors David H. Getches, Lawrence J. MacDonnell, Teresa A. Rice, Elizabeth A. Rieke and Charles F. Wilkinson.

Sustainable development is on the policy agenda for the '90s. What does sustainability mean? Is it a realistic concept? Are water rights compatible with sustainable use? The Center's 16th annual summer conference will explore the meaning of sustainability in the context of the West's demands, development, and natural values. Presentations by leading experts will address the broad concept of sustainable development, with a particular look at Arizona's experience. The focus will be …