Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Agriculture Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Series

University of Vermont

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Articles 1 - 30 of 84

Full-Text Articles in Agriculture

Moving Towards An Anti-Colonial Definition For Regenerative Agriculture, Bryony Sands, Mario Machado, Alissa White, Eglee Zent, Rachelle K. Gould May 2023

Moving Towards An Anti-Colonial Definition For Regenerative Agriculture, Bryony Sands, Mario Machado, Alissa White, Eglee Zent, Rachelle K. Gould

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Regenerative agriculture refers to a suite of principles, practices, or outcomes which seek to improve soil health, biodiversity, climate, ecosystem function, and socioeconomic outcomes. However, recent reviews highlight wide heterogeneity in how it is defined. This impedes our ability to understand what regenerative agriculture is and has left the movement open to strategic repurposing by diverse stakeholders. Furthermore, the conceptual franchising of the regenerative agriculture debate by Western culture has omitted discussions surrounding social justice, relational values, and the contribution of Indigenous and local knowledge that does not align with Western-centric producer-consumer frameworks. This is a continuation of injustice by …

Go to article

Proceedings - U.S.A Agroecology Summit 2023, Deborah A. Neher, Colin R. Anderson, Andrea D. Basche, Christine Costello, Mary K. Hendrickson, Bruce D. Maxwell, Antonio M. Roman-Alcalá, Aubrey Streit Krug, William F. Tracy, Ernesto Méndez, Catherine Horner, Janica M. Anderzén Jan 2023

Proceedings - U.S.A Agroecology Summit 2023, Deborah A. Neher, Colin R. Anderson, Andrea D. Basche, Christine Costello, Mary K. Hendrickson, Bruce D. Maxwell, Antonio M. Roman-Alcalá, Aubrey Streit Krug, William F. Tracy, Ernesto Méndez, Catherine Horner, Janica M. Anderzén

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

This docket is a memory of the meeting held in Kansas City from May 22-25 called the 2023 USA Agroecology Summit and contains all the documents generated before, during, and after the meeting.

Go to article

Seeds Of Resilience: Learning From Covid-19 To Strengthen Seed Systems In Vermont, Ali Brooks, Carina V. Isbell, Daniel Tobin Ph.D., Travis Reynolds Ph.D., Eric Bishop Von Wettberg Ph.D., David Conner Ph.D., Evie Wolfe Jan 2022

Seeds Of Resilience: Learning From Covid-19 To Strengthen Seed Systems In Vermont, Ali Brooks, Carina V. Isbell, Daniel Tobin Ph.D., Travis Reynolds Ph.D., Eric Bishop Von Wettberg Ph.D., David Conner Ph.D., Evie Wolfe

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Seeds are central to crop-based production systems, yet in the United States seeds have been largely overlooked in both research and local and regional food systems initiatives. This report seeks to address the gap in seed-related research by assessing current strengths and vulnerabilities of Vermont’s seed systems. In particular, the findings presented in this report illuminate how seed systems can maintain function in the face of external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and how we can apply the lessons learned toward building resilience for an uncertain future due to factors such as climate change. Despite the turmoil caused by …

Go to article

Covid-19 Impacts On Vermont Farms And Food Businesses: Pivots, Needs And Opportunities For The Future, Meredith T. Niles, Farryl Bertmann, Emily H. Belarmino, Mark Cannella, David S. Conner Feb 2021

Covid-19 Impacts On Vermont Farms And Food Businesses: Pivots, Needs And Opportunities For The Future, Meredith T. Niles, Farryl Bertmann, Emily H. Belarmino, Mark Cannella, David S. Conner

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

This report highlights results from a survey of Vermont farm and food businesses conducted during August and September 2020, with a total of 223 respondents. The survey was distributed via a number of non-profit, business, and state agencies in Vermont. Respondents included farms, food and farm product retail, agritourism operators, on-farm food processors, food and beverage manufacturers, nurseries/greenhouses/garden centers, and food hubs/aggregators. Overall, we find the majority of respondents experienced a COVID-19 business impact, especially in market and financial ways. We also find that the majority of respondents had business changes they wanted to make, but couldn't because of a …

Go to article

Emulating Agricultural Disease Management: Comparing Risk Preferences Between Industry Professionals And Online Participants Using Experimental Gaming Simulations And Paired Lottery Choice Surveys, Eric M. Clark, Scott C. Merrill, Luke Trinity, Gabriela Bucini, Nicholas Cheney, Ollin Langle-Chimal, Trisha Shrum, Christopher Koliba, Asim Zia, Julia M. Smith Jan 2021

Emulating Agricultural Disease Management: Comparing Risk Preferences Between Industry Professionals And Online Participants Using Experimental Gaming Simulations And Paired Lottery Choice Surveys, Eric M. Clark, Scott C. Merrill, Luke Trinity, Gabriela Bucini, Nicholas Cheney, Ollin Langle-Chimal, Trisha Shrum, Christopher Koliba, Asim Zia, Julia M. Smith

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Mitigating the spread of disease is crucial for the well-being of agricultural production systems. Implementing biosecurity disease prevention measures can be expensive, so producers must balance the costs of biosecurity investments with the expected benefits of reducing the risk of infections. To investigate the risk associated with this decision making process, we developed an online experimental game that simulates biosecurity investment allocation of a pork production facility during an outbreak. Participants are presented with several scenarios that vary the visibility of the disease status and biosecurity protection implemented at neighboring facilities. Certain rounds allowed participants to spend resources to reduce …

Go to article

Awareness Of Climate Change’S Impacts And Motivation To Adapt Are Not Enough To Drive Action: A Look Of Puerto Rican Farmers After Hurricane Maria, Luis Alexis Rodríguez-Cruz, Meredith T. Niles Jan 2021

Awareness Of Climate Change’S Impacts And Motivation To Adapt Are Not Enough To Drive Action: A Look Of Puerto Rican Farmers After Hurricane Maria, Luis Alexis Rodríguez-Cruz, Meredith T. Niles

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Understanding how perceptions around motivation, capacity, and climate change’s impacts relate to the adoption of adaptation practices in light of experiences with extreme weather events is important in assessing farmers’ adaptive capacity. However, very little of this work has occurred in islands, which may have different vulnerabilities and capacities for adaptation. Data of surveyed farmers throughout Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria (n = 405, 87% response rate) were used in a structural equation model to explore the extent to which their adoption of agricultural practices and management strategies was driven by perceptions of motivation, vulnerability, and capacity as a function …

Go to article

Mobilizing Crop Biodiversity, Susan Mccouch, Zahra Katy Navabi, Michael Abberton, Noelle L. Anglin, Rosa Lia Barbieri, Michael Baum, Kirstin Bett, Helen Booker, Gerald L. Brown, Glenn J. Bryan, Luigi Cattivelli, David Charest, Kellye Eversole, Marcelo Freitas, Kioumars Ghamkhar, Dario Grattipaglia, Robert Henry, Maria Cleria Valadares Inglis, Tofazzal Islam, Zakaria Kehel, Paul J. Kersey, Graham J. King, Stephen Kresovich, Emily Marden, Sean Mayes, Marie Noelle Ndjiondjiop, Henry T. Nguyen, Samuel Rezende Paiva, Roberto Papa, Peter W.B. Phillips, Awais Rasheed Oct 2020

Mobilizing Crop Biodiversity, Susan Mccouch, Zahra Katy Navabi, Michael Abberton, Noelle L. Anglin, Rosa Lia Barbieri, Michael Baum, Kirstin Bett, Helen Booker, Gerald L. Brown, Glenn J. Bryan, Luigi Cattivelli, David Charest, Kellye Eversole, Marcelo Freitas, Kioumars Ghamkhar, Dario Grattipaglia, Robert Henry, Maria Cleria Valadares Inglis, Tofazzal Islam, Zakaria Kehel, Paul J. Kersey, Graham J. King, Stephen Kresovich, Emily Marden, Sean Mayes, Marie Noelle Ndjiondjiop, Henry T. Nguyen, Samuel Rezende Paiva, Roberto Papa, Peter W.B. Phillips, Awais Rasheed

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Genome-Wide Association Study In Accessions Of The Mini-Core Collection Of Mungbean (Vigna Radiata) From The World Vegetable Gene Bank (Taiwan), Alena Sokolkova, Marina Burlyaeva, Tatjana Valiannikova, Margarita Vishnyakova, Roland Schafleitner, Cheng Ruei Lee, Chau Ti Ting, Ramakrishnan Madhavan Nair, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova, Eric Von Wettberg Oct 2020

Genome-Wide Association Study In Accessions Of The Mini-Core Collection Of Mungbean (Vigna Radiata) From The World Vegetable Gene Bank (Taiwan), Alena Sokolkova, Marina Burlyaeva, Tatjana Valiannikova, Margarita Vishnyakova, Roland Schafleitner, Cheng Ruei Lee, Chau Ti Ting, Ramakrishnan Madhavan Nair, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova, Eric Von Wettberg

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) R. Wilczek, or green gram) is important tropical and sub-tropical legume and a rich source of dietary protein and micronutrients. In this study we employ GWAS to examine the genetic basis of variation in several important traits in mungbean, using the mini-core collection established by the World Vegetable Center, which includes 296 accessions that represent the major market classes. This collection has been grown in a common field plot in southern European part of Russia in 2018. Results: We used 5041 SNPs in 293 accessions that passed strict filtering for genetic diversity, linkage disequilibrium, population …

Go to article

Dynamical Climatic Model For Time To Flowering In Vigna Radiata, Konstantin Kozlov, Alena Sokolkova, Cheng Ruei Lee, Chau Ti Ting, Roland Schafleitner, Eric Bishop-Von Wettberg, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova Oct 2020

Dynamical Climatic Model For Time To Flowering In Vigna Radiata, Konstantin Kozlov, Alena Sokolkova, Cheng Ruei Lee, Chau Ti Ting, Roland Schafleitner, Eric Bishop-Von Wettberg, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Phenology data collected recently for about 300 accessions of Vigna radiata (mungbean) is an invaluable resource for investigation of impacts of climatic factors on plant development. Results: We developed a new mathematical model that describes the dynamic control of time to flowering by daily values of maximal and minimal temperature, precipitation, day length and solar radiation. We obtained model parameters by adaptation to the available experimental data. The models were validated by cross-validation and used to demonstrate that the phenology of adaptive traits, like flowering time, is strongly predicted not only by local environmental factors but also by plant …

Go to article

Vermont Seed Saver And Producer Survey: 2020 Summary Report, Susanna Baxley, Carina Viola Isbell, Daniel Tobin Sep 2020

Vermont Seed Saver And Producer Survey: 2020 Summary Report, Susanna Baxley, Carina Viola Isbell, Daniel Tobin

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

This report summarizes findings from a 2020 survey of seed producers in the state of Vermont. This survey, which was part of a larger research project aimed to characterize Vermont seed systems, aimed to identify areas of opportunity and concern for seed producers across the state. Data collected include types and valued characteristics of planting material produced from food crops in the state, information on motivations, challenges, and preferences that non-commercial and commercial seed producers perceive in their production of planting material, sourcing and distribution of planting material, forms of exchange that exist between seed producers and the community, and …

Go to article

Editorial: Wild Plants As Source Of New Crops, Eric Von Wettberg, Thomas M. Davis, Petr Smýkal Sep 2020

Editorial: Wild Plants As Source Of New Crops, Eric Von Wettberg, Thomas M. Davis, Petr Smýkal

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Benefits And Tradeoffs Of Reduced Tillage And Manure Application Methods In A Zea Mays Silage System, Kyle M. Dittmer, Heather M. Darby, Tyler R. Goeschel, E. Carol Adair Sep 2020

Benefits And Tradeoffs Of Reduced Tillage And Manure Application Methods In A Zea Mays Silage System, Kyle M. Dittmer, Heather M. Darby, Tyler R. Goeschel, E. Carol Adair

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

A critical question is whether there are agricultural management practices that can attain the multiple management goals of increasing yields, preventing nutrient losses, and suppressing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. No-till and manure application methods, such as manure injection, can enhance nutrient retention, but both may also enhance emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), a powerful GHG. We assessed differences in soil N2O and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, nitrate and ammonium retention, and crop yield and protein content under combinations of vertical-till, no-till, manure injection, and manure broadcast without incorporation in a corn (Zea mays L.) silage system. During the growing seasons …

Go to article

Making Hemp Choices: Evidence From Vermont, Jane Kolodinsky, Hannah Lacasse, Katherine Gallagher Aug 2020

Making Hemp Choices: Evidence From Vermont, Jane Kolodinsky, Hannah Lacasse, Katherine Gallagher

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Hemp's reemergence in the United States' economy presents an opportunity for a new category of sustainable product choice for consumers. This study fills a gap in knowledge about which consumers are currently aware of or choosing hemp products using the theory of choice alternatives and a statistically representative survey from a top ten hemp producing US state. Findings reveal high levels of consumer awareness and consideration of hemp products in general and a smaller evoked/choice set. Cannabidiol products appear most often in our sample's choice set; we examined these specifically. Other hemp products also appear, including clothing and textile, personal …

Go to article

Evaluation Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus Removal From A Denitrifyingwoodchip Bioreactor Treatment System Receiving Silage Bunker Runoff, Jillian C. Sarazen, Joshua W. Faulkner, Stephanie E. Hurley Jul 2020

Evaluation Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus Removal From A Denitrifyingwoodchip Bioreactor Treatment System Receiving Silage Bunker Runoff, Jillian C. Sarazen, Joshua W. Faulkner, Stephanie E. Hurley

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Leachate and storm-driven runoff from silage storage bunkers can degrade receiving water bodies if left untreated. This study evaluated a novel treatment system consisting of three treatment tanks with a moving-bed biofilm reactor and paired side-by-side denitrifying woodchip bioreactors for the ability to reduce influent nutrient mass loads. Flow-based samples were taken at four locations throughout the system, at the inflow to the first tank, outflow from the tanks prior to entering the woodchip bioreactors, and from the outflows of both bioreactors. Samples were analyzed for concentrations of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) species. Inflow concentrations were reduced from the …

Go to article

The Impact Of Covid-19 On The Local Food System: Early Findings From Vermont, Emily H. Belarmino, Farryl Bertmann, Thomas Wentworth, Erin Biehl, Roni Neff, Meredith T. Niles Jun 2020

The Impact Of Covid-19 On The Local Food System: Early Findings From Vermont, Emily H. Belarmino, Farryl Bertmann, Thomas Wentworth, Erin Biehl, Roni Neff, Meredith T. Niles

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has affected people worldwide, disrupting food access and security. To understand how food systems and security are impacted during this pandemic, an online survey was launched in Vermont from March 29th - April 12th, 2020 (less than a week after the Governor’s Stay Home/Stay Safe order). A total of 3,219 Vermonters responded, and nearly half provided written comments in response to open-ended questions about worries or general remarks. This brief summarizes survey findings and respondent comments relevant to the local food system, specifically local farms and direct-to-consumer sales, home food production, foraging, hunting, and fishing. …

Go to article

Legume Genetics And Biology: From Mendel’S Pea To Legume Genomics, Petr Smýkal, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg, Kevin Mcphee May 2020

Legume Genetics And Biology: From Mendel’S Pea To Legume Genomics, Petr Smýkal, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg, Kevin Mcphee

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Legumes have played an important part in cropping systems since the dawn of agriculture, both as human food and as animal feed. The legume family is arguably one of the most abundantly domesticated crop plant families. Their ability to symbiotically fix nitrogen and improve soil fertility has been rewarded since antiquity and makes them a key protein source. The pea was the original model organism used in Mendel’s discovery of the laws of inheritance, making it the foundation of modern plant genetics. This Special Issue provides up-to-date information on legume biology, genetic advances, and the legacy of Mendel.

Go to article

Green And Animal Manure Use In Organic Field Crop Systems, Patrick M. Carr, Michel A. Cavigelli, Heather Darby, Kathleen Delate, Jed O. Eberly, Heather K. Fryer, Greta G. Gramig, Joseph R. Heckman, Ellen B. Mallory, Jennifer R. Reeve, Erin M. Silva, David H. Suchoff, Alex L. Woodley Mar 2020

Green And Animal Manure Use In Organic Field Crop Systems, Patrick M. Carr, Michel A. Cavigelli, Heather Darby, Kathleen Delate, Jed O. Eberly, Heather K. Fryer, Greta G. Gramig, Joseph R. Heckman, Ellen B. Mallory, Jennifer R. Reeve, Erin M. Silva, David H. Suchoff, Alex L. Woodley

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Dual-use cover/green manure (CGM) crops and animal manure are used to supply nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to organically grown field crops. A comprehensive review of previous research was conducted to identify how CGM crops and animal manure have been used to meet N and P needs of organic field crops, and to identify knowledge gaps to direct future research efforts. Results indicate that: (a) CGM crops are used to provide N to subsequent cash crops in rotations; (b) CGM-supplied N generally can meet field crop needs in warm, humid regions but is insufficient for organic grain crops grown in …

Go to article

Visualizing Climate Change Adaptation: An Effective Tool For Agricultural Outreach?, Rachel E. Schattman, Stephanie E. Hurley, Holly L. Greenleaf, Meredith T. Niles, Martha Caswell Jan 2020

Visualizing Climate Change Adaptation: An Effective Tool For Agricultural Outreach?, Rachel E. Schattman, Stephanie E. Hurley, Holly L. Greenleaf, Meredith T. Niles, Martha Caswell

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Landscape photovisualizations (PVZs) are digitally altered photographs that show existing landscapes altered to include a simulated future scenario. They are commonly used to support dialogue and decision-making in multistakeholder contexts. In agricultural sectors, stakeholders increasingly must contend with pressures to adapt to climatic changes and shifts in weather patterns. This study examines the potential of PVZs to engage agricultural stakeholders about climate change adaptation, specifically around best management practices (BMPs). In 2015, survey data were collected (n 5 133) at six agricultural confer-ences Vermont. Participants were asked about their climate change knowledge, perceptions of adaptation, and their intentions to adopt …

Go to article

Evaluating Water Quality Regulation As A Driver Of Farmer Behavior: A Social-Ecological Systems Approach, Courtney R.Hammond Wagner, Suzie Greenhalgh, Meredith T. Niles, Asim Zia, William B. Bowden Jan 2020

Evaluating Water Quality Regulation As A Driver Of Farmer Behavior: A Social-Ecological Systems Approach, Courtney R.Hammond Wagner, Suzie Greenhalgh, Meredith T. Niles, Asim Zia, William B. Bowden

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Water quality policy for agricultural lands seeks to improve water quality by changing farmer behavior. We investigate farmer behavior in three water quality regimes that differ by rule structure to examine the fit and interplay of each policy within its social-ecological context, important aspects for improving water quality. Vermont, USA’s practice-based policy requires the adoption of specific practices, whereas New Zealand’s Lake Taupo and Lake Rotorua performance-based policies require farmers to meet a numeric limit for nutrient loss on their farm. Across the three regions we interviewed 38 farmers to elicit mental models of nutrient management changes. We utilized the …

Go to article

Functional Dissection Of The Chickpea (Cicer Arietinum L.) Stay-Green Phenotype Associated With Molecular Variation At An Ortholog Of Mendel’S I Gene For Cotyledon Color: Implications For Crop Production And Carotenoid Biofortification, Kaliamoorthy Sivasakthi, Edward Marques, Ng’Andwe Kalungwana, Noelia Carrasquilla-Garcia, Peter L. Chang, Emily M. Bergmann, Erika Bueno, Matilde Cordeiro, Syed Gul A.S. Sani, Sripada M. Udupa, Irshad A. Rather, Reyazul Rouf Mir, Vincent Vadez, George J. Vandemark, Pooran M. Gaur, Douglas R. Cook, Christine Boesch, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg, Jana Kholova, R. Varma Penmetsa Nov 2019

Functional Dissection Of The Chickpea (Cicer Arietinum L.) Stay-Green Phenotype Associated With Molecular Variation At An Ortholog Of Mendel’S I Gene For Cotyledon Color: Implications For Crop Production And Carotenoid Biofortification, Kaliamoorthy Sivasakthi, Edward Marques, Ng’Andwe Kalungwana, Noelia Carrasquilla-Garcia, Peter L. Chang, Emily M. Bergmann, Erika Bueno, Matilde Cordeiro, Syed Gul A.S. Sani, Sripada M. Udupa, Irshad A. Rather, Reyazul Rouf Mir, Vincent Vadez, George J. Vandemark, Pooran M. Gaur, Douglas R. Cook, Christine Boesch, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg, Jana Kholova, R. Varma Penmetsa

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

“Stay-green” crop phenotypes have been shown to impact drought tolerance and nutritional content of several crops. We aimed to genetically describe and functionally dissect the particular stay-green phenomenon found in chickpeas with a green cotyledon color of mature dry seed and investigate its potential use for improvement of chickpea environmental adaptations and nutritional value. We examined 40 stay-green accessions and a set of 29 BC2F4-5 stay-green introgression lines using a stay-green donor parent ICC 16340 and two Indian elite cultivars (KAK2, JGK1) as recurrent parents. Genetic studies of segregating populations indicated that the green cotyledon trait is controlled by a …

Go to article

Bird Dispersal As A Pre-Adaptation For Domestication In Legumes: Insights For Neo-Domestication, Hester Brǿnnvik, Eric J. Von Wettberg Oct 2019

Bird Dispersal As A Pre-Adaptation For Domestication In Legumes: Insights For Neo-Domestication, Hester Brǿnnvik, Eric J. Von Wettberg

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Us County-Level Agricultural Crop Production Typology, Courtney R. Hammond Wagner, Meredith T. Niles, Eric D. Roy Aug 2019

Us County-Level Agricultural Crop Production Typology, Courtney R. Hammond Wagner, Meredith T. Niles, Eric D. Roy

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Objectives: Crop production is an important variable in social, economic and environmental analyses. There is an abundance of crop data available for the United States, but we lack a typology of county-level crop production that accounts for production similarities in counties across the country. We fill this gap with a county-level classification of crop production with ten mutually exclusive categories across the contiguous United States. Data description: To create the typology we ran a cluster analysis on acreage data for 21 key crops from the United States Department of Agriculture's 2012 Agricultural Census. Prior to clustering, we estimated undisclosed county …

Go to article

Policy Options To Streamline The Carbon Market For Agricultural Nitrous Oxide Emissions, Meredith T. Niles, Hannah Waterhouse, Robert Parkhurst, Eileen L. Mclellan, Sara Kroopf Aug 2019

Policy Options To Streamline The Carbon Market For Agricultural Nitrous Oxide Emissions, Meredith T. Niles, Hannah Waterhouse, Robert Parkhurst, Eileen L. Mclellan, Sara Kroopf

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

The majority of emissions of nitrous oxide – a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) – are from agricultural sources, particularly nitrogen fertilizer applications. A growing focus on these emission sources has led to the development in the United States of GHG offset protocols that could enable payment to farmers for reducing fertilizer use or implementing other nitrogen management strategies. Despite the development of several protocols, the current regional scope is narrow, adoption by farmers is low, and policy implementation of protocols has a significant time lag. Here we utilize existing research and policy structures to propose an ‘umbrella’ approach for nitrogen …

Go to article

Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs And Behaviors Regarding Fruits And Vegetables Among Cost-Offset Community-Supported Agriculture (Csa) Applicants, Purchasers, And A Comparison Sample, Karla L. Hanson, Leah C. Volpe, Jane Kolodinsky, Grace Hwang, Weiwei Wang, Stephanie B. Jilcott Pitts, Marilyn Sitaker, Eretii Timeon, Alice S. Ammerman, Rebecca A. Seguin Jun 2019

Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs And Behaviors Regarding Fruits And Vegetables Among Cost-Offset Community-Supported Agriculture (Csa) Applicants, Purchasers, And A Comparison Sample, Karla L. Hanson, Leah C. Volpe, Jane Kolodinsky, Grace Hwang, Weiwei Wang, Stephanie B. Jilcott Pitts, Marilyn Sitaker, Eretii Timeon, Alice S. Ammerman, Rebecca A. Seguin

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Community-supported agriculture (CSA) participation has been associated with high fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption, which may be due to better access to FV for CSA purchasers, or to positive knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs (KAB) regarding healthy eating among CSA applicants. The objective of this study was to examine KAB and consumption, in association with application to a cost-offset CSA (CO-CSA) program, and with CO-CSA purchase among applicants. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of CO-CSA applicants and a comparison sample in August 2017. All respondents were English-reading adults with a child 2–12 years old and household income of < 185% of the federal poverty level. Among CO-CSA applicants, some were CO-CSA purchasers (n = 46) and some were not (n = 18). An online comparison sample met equivalent eligibility criteria, but had not participated in CSA for three years (n = 105). We compared CO-CSA applicants to the comparison sample, and compared purchasers and non-purchaser sub-groups, using Mann- Whitney U tests and chi-square analysis. CO-CSA applicants reported better knowledge, selfefficacy, home habits, and diet than the comparison sample. Among applicants, CO-CSA purchasers and non-purchasers had equivalent KAB, but children in purchaser households had higher FV consumption than in non-purchaser households (4.14 vs. 1.83 cups, P = 0.001). Future research should explore associations between CO-CSA participation and diet using experimental methods.

Go to article

Population Genomic Analysis Of Mango (Mangifera Indica) Suggests A Complex History Of Domestication, Emily J. Warschefsky, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg Jun 2019

Population Genomic Analysis Of Mango (Mangifera Indica) Suggests A Complex History Of Domestication, Emily J. Warschefsky, Eric J.B. Von Wettberg

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Trust Humans have domesticated diverse species from across the plant kingdom, yet much of our foundational knowledge of domestication has come from studies investigating relatively few of the most important annual food crops. Here, we examine the impacts of domestication on genetic diversity in a tropical perennial fruit species, mango (Mangifera indica). We used restriction site associated DNA sequencing to generate genomic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from 106 mango cultivars from seven geographical regions along with 52 samples of closely related species and unidentified cultivars to identify centers of mango genetic diversity and examine how post-domestication dispersal shaped the …

Go to article

A Review Of Determinants For Dairy Farmer Decision Making On Manure Management Strategies In High-Income Countries, Meredith T. Niles, Catherine Horner, Rajesh Chintala, Juan Tricarico May 2019

A Review Of Determinants For Dairy Farmer Decision Making On Manure Management Strategies In High-Income Countries, Meredith T. Niles, Catherine Horner, Rajesh Chintala, Juan Tricarico

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

The global dairy sector is a major source of human nutrition and farmer livelihoods, while also generating manure, an important nutrient for crop production, but one that must be managed to minimize environmental risk. Manure management - manure handling, processing, storage and application - is an important part of managing a dairy system. Rising awareness of environmental stewardship is increasing for dairy production that meets multiple sustainability goals. Importantly, a large body of research has identified a suite of potential manure management strategies (MMS) that can contribute to reduced environmental impact, and in some cases, provide additional benefits for farmers …

Go to article

A Comparative Analysis Of Governance And Leadership In Agricultural Development Policy Networks, Jessica Rudnick, Meredith Niles, Mark Lubell, Laura Cramer May 2019

A Comparative Analysis Of Governance And Leadership In Agricultural Development Policy Networks, Jessica Rudnick, Meredith Niles, Mark Lubell, Laura Cramer

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Agricultural development initiatives feature many public and private organizations working together across sectors and scales to pursue the goals of food security and climate resilience. Policy networks are considered a crucial ingredient for the learning and cooperation needed to effectively implement agricultural development projects and increase community resiliency, yet very little comparative empirical data has been collected to assess where and how these networks operate. We contribute to filling this gap by characterizing the governance and leadership patterns within agricultural development policy networks that connect organizations working on climate resilience and food security activities in 14 smallholder farming communities across …

Go to article

Spatial Considerations For Implementing Two Direct-To-Consumer Food Models In Two States, Marilyn Sitaker, Jared T. Mcguirt, Weiwei Wang, Jane Kolodinsky, Rebecca A. Seguin Apr 2019

Spatial Considerations For Implementing Two Direct-To-Consumer Food Models In Two States, Marilyn Sitaker, Jared T. Mcguirt, Weiwei Wang, Jane Kolodinsky, Rebecca A. Seguin

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

To open new markets, some farmers have adapted direct-to-consumer (DTC) models, such as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), to reach new settings or audiences. We compared sociodemographic and geospatial contexts to farmers' experience with one of two DTC innovations: a cost-offset CSA for low-income families and food boxes distributed through rural convenience stores. We geocoded addresses of thirteen farms and DTC pickup sites in two U.S. states (Vermont and Washington) and calculated road network distances from pickup to supermarket, farmers' market, and farm. We compiled Census block-level demographic and transportation data, and compared it to postseason interviews to explore the effect …

Go to article

Seeing Is Not Always Believing: Crop Loss And Climate Change Perceptions Among Farm Advisors, Meredith T. Niles, Sarah Wiener, Rachel E. Schattman, Gabrielle Roesch-Mcnally, Julian Reyes Mar 2019

Seeing Is Not Always Believing: Crop Loss And Climate Change Perceptions Among Farm Advisors, Meredith T. Niles, Sarah Wiener, Rachel E. Schattman, Gabrielle Roesch-Mcnally, Julian Reyes

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

As climate change is expected to significantly affect agricultural systems globally, agricultural farm advisors have been increasingly recognized as an important resource in helping farmers address these challenges. While there have been many studies exploring the climate change belief and risk perceptions as well as behaviors of both farmers and agricultural farm advisors, there are very few studies that have explored how these perceptions relate to actual climate impacts in agriculture. Here we couple survey data from United States Department of Agriculture farm service employees (n = 6, 514) with historical crop loss data across the United States to explore …

Go to article

Non-Linear Regression Models For Time To Flowering In Wild Chickpea Combine Genetic And Climatic Factors, Konstantin Kozlov, Anupam Singh, Jens Berger, Eric Bishop-Von Wettberg, Abdullah Kahraman, Abdulkadir Aydogan, Douglas Cook, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova Mar 2019

Non-Linear Regression Models For Time To Flowering In Wild Chickpea Combine Genetic And Climatic Factors, Konstantin Kozlov, Anupam Singh, Jens Berger, Eric Bishop-Von Wettberg, Abdullah Kahraman, Abdulkadir Aydogan, Douglas Cook, Sergey Nuzhdin, Maria Samsonova

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Accurate prediction of crop flowering time is required for reaching maximal farm efficiency. Several models developed to accomplish this goal are based on deep knowledge of plant phenology, requiring large investment for every individual crop or new variety. Mathematical modeling can be used to make better use of more shallow data and to extract information from it with higher efficiency. Cultivars of chickpea, Cicer arietanum, are currently being improved by introgressing wild C. reticulatum biodiversity with very different flowering time requirements. More understanding is required for how flowering time will depend on environmental conditions in these cultivars developed by …

Go to article

Next Last