Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons^™

Characterization And Selection Of Hop Cultivars Adapted To Nebraska, Kristina Alas

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Hop (Humulus lupulus L.) is an ingredient in the beer brewing industry that provides beer its flavor and aroma. High demand from the brewing industry has encouraged production outside of the traditional Pacific Northwest, the primary production region. Producers in the Midwest are attempting to grow cultivars adapted to the Pacific Northwest, but environmental differences have caused low yields and changes in secondary metabolite content. To aid producers, a regional breeding program was initiated to develop cultivars adapted to the Midwest. Success of any breeding program relies on the selection of genetically superior parents to generate progeny with the …

Mycorrhizae In Maize (Zea Mays L.) Cropping Systems Respond Differently To Nitrogen Fertilization Under Increasing Crop Rotational Diversity, Morgan R. Mcpherson

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) remain a vital obligate symbiont of nearly all plants. It is well established that the symbiosis between AMF and host plant improves plant nutrient acquisition, alleviates abiotic and biotic environmental stressors, defends against plant pathogens, and contributes to overall plant fitness and productivity through modification of the soil habitat. Modifications include increased soil aggregation and stability, carbon sequestration through provision of fungal wall precursors to soil organic matter (SOM) formation, and enhanced nutrient cycling in the mycorrhizosphere. The goal of this dissertation was to assess how AMF respond to nitrogen (N) fertilization regimes in maize cropping …

Pestfacts Wa Issue 12 - August 2022, Alan Lord, Ciara Beard, Cindy L. Webster

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 12 - August 2022 contents:

• Native budworm activity update
• Sclerotinia update
• Oat disease webinar recording can now be viewed online
• Explainer video for new PestFacts WA Reporter app

Pestfacts Wa Issue 13 - August 2022, Cindy L. Webster, Dusty Severtson, Alan Lord, Andrea Hills

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 13 - August 2022 contents:

• Identifying caterpillars in cereal crops
• Diamondback moth update
• Native budworm
• Wheat powdery mildew fungicide resistance testing

Quantification And Machine Learning Based N2o–N And Co2–C Emissions Predictions From A Decomposing Rye Cover Crop, Deepak R. Joshi, David E. Clay, Sharon A. Clay, Janet Moriles-Miller, Aaron L. M. Daigh, Graig Reicks, Shaina Westhoff

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Cover crops improve soil health and reduce the risk of soil erosion. However, their impact on the carbon dioxide equivalence (CO_2e) is unknown. Therefore, the objective of this 2-yr study was to quantify the effect of cover crop-induced differences in soil moisture, temperature, organic C, and microorganisms on CO_2e, and to develop machine learning algorithms that predict daily N₂O–N and CO₂–C emissions. The prediction models tested were multiple linear regression, partial least square regression, support vector machine, random forest (RF), and artificial neural network. Models’ performance was accessed using R², …

Registration Of Lcs ‘Valiant’ Hard Red Winter Wheat, P. Stephen Baenziger, S. D. Masterson, J. D. Boehm Jr., Vikas Belamkar, M. D. Barnett, Devin J. Rose, Lan Xu, Stephen N. Wegulo, T. Regassa, Amanda Easterly, Cody F Creech, Dipak K. Santra, G. R. Kruger, G. W. Hergert, R. N. Klein, J. Kolmer, J. Kolmer, M.-S. Chen, Gary L. Hein, R. L. Bowden, M. J. Guttieri, G. Bai, El-Basyoni Salah, J. Poland

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Historically cultivars developed jointly by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and USDA-ARS wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) improvement project tend to be late and better adapted to the northern Great Plains. LCS ‘Valiant’ (Reg. no. CV-1196, PI 693223; tested as NE10478-1) was released based on the merits of its earliness, agronomic performance, relevant disease resistances, and end-use quality characteristics and its adaptation to the central Great Plains. As such, the line was licensed to Limagrain Cereal Seeds for their ability to market outside of Nebraska. LCS Valiant hard red winter wheat was released in March 2020 by the developing institutions and …

Association Analyses Of Host Genetics, Root-Colonizing Microbes, And Plant Phenotypes Under Different Nitrogen Conditions In Maize, Michael A. Meier, Gen Xu, Martha G. Lopez-Guerrero, Guangyong Li, Christine Smith, Brandi Sigmon, Joshua R. Herr, James R. Alfano, Yufeng Ge, James C. Schnable, Jinliang Yang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The root-associated microbiome (rhizobiome) affects plant health, stress tolerance, and nutrient use efficiency. However, it remains unclear to what extent the composition of the rhizobiome is governed by intraspecific variation in host plant genetics in the field and the degree to which host plant selection can reshape the composition of the rhizobiome. Here, we quantify the rhizosphere microbial communities associated with a replicated diversity panel of 230 maize (Zea mays L.) genotypes grown in agronomically relevant conditions under high N (+N) and low N (-N) treatments. We analyze the maize rhizobiome in terms of 150 abundant and consistently reproducible …

Replacing Fallow With Field Pea In Wheat Production Systems Across Western Nebraska, Samuel T. Koeshall, Amanda Easterly, Rodrigo Werle, Strahinja Stepanovic, Cody F. Creech

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Integration of field pea (Pisum sativum L.) (FP) into dryland cropping systems has increased due to ecological and economic benefits, paired with a growing market for pea-derived products. Challenges exist in the High Plains that limit the integration of crop rotations to replace fallow periods with FP in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)- based systems. This experiment compares chemical summer fallow to FP in a fallow– wheat rotation at two locations in western Nebraska. Soil water content, soil fertility, N mineralization, FP yield, and subsequent hard red winter wheat (HWW) yields were recorded. Subsequent HWW yields were not different …

Non-Destructive Classification And Quality Evaluation Of Proso Millet Cultivars Using Nir Hyperspectral Imaging With Machine Learning, Laruen E. Doyle, Julia R. Loeb, Nader Ekramirad, Dipak K. Santra, Akinbode A. Adedeji

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Millet is a small-seeded cereal crop with big potential and remarkable characteristics such as high drought resistance, short growing time, low water footprint, and the ability to grow in acidic soil. There is a need to develop nondestructive methods for differentiation and evaluation of the quality attributes of different of proso millet cultivars grown in the U.S. Current methods of cultivar classification are either subjective or destructive, time consuming, not allowing for the whole population to be tested, and requiring trained operators and special equipment. In this study, the feasibility of using near-infrared (NIR) hyperspectral imaging (900-1700 nm) to predict …

Cover Cropping: Sensor-Based Estimations Of Biomass Yield And Nutrient Uptake And Its Impact On Sugarcane Productivity, Hector H. Fajardo Duran

LSU Master's Theses

Sugarcane in Louisiana can be harvested for up to three years from one planting. Soil cultivation along sides of established beds is done for weed control and improve fertilizer use efficiency which increases the risk of soil degradation and yield decline. Planting cover crops (CC) is a soil conservation practice and an effective strategy to improve soil health and nutrient recycling. Limited work has been done on remote sensor-based evaluation of the potential nutrient benefits from cover crops and its effect on nutrient cycling on sugarcane systems. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of two planting methods (broadcast …

Pestfacts Wa Issue 09 - July 2022, Cindy L. Webster, Svetlana Micic, Dusty Severtson, Alan Lord

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 09 - July 2022 contents:

• Diamondback moth

Helping Utah Landowners Reduce Pesticide Use Through A Statewide Ipm Program, Nick Volesky, Mair Murray

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

The Utah Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program provides outreach and education to Utahns to reduce pesticide use and ultimately protect human and environmental health. In 2022, the IPM program responded to stakeholders’ needs by partnering with county Extension offices to deliver eight (8) in-person workshops across the state. The workshops connected Extension specialists and county faculty with managers of home landscapes and farms. The objective of the workshops was to provide participants with IPM skills to identify, monitor, and manage pest problems in preparation for the upcoming growing season.

Optimization Of Nozzle, Application Height, And Speed For Uass Pesticide Applications, Trenton Houston

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Unmanned aerial spray systems (UASS) applications have the potential to be efficient pesticide application platforms under conditions that are not accessible or fit for typical pesticide application equipment. Although this type of application is still under development in the United States, UASS pesticide applications are common in Asia, as they have replaced backpack sprayers. There is limited literature on the optimization of UASS applications and many parameters need to be investigated to identify the best combination of application variables such as flight height, flight speed, and nozzle selection. The objectives were to identify the deposition patterns of a four rotor …

Neuropilin-2 Regulates Androgen-Receptor Transcriptional Activity In Advanced Prostate Cancer, Samikshan Dutta, Navatha Shree Polavaram, Ridwan Islam, Sreyashi Bhattacharya, Sanika Bodas, Thomas Mayr, Sohini Roy, Sophie Alvarez, Marieta I. Toma, Anza Darehshouri, Angelika Borkowetz, Stefanie Conrad, Susanne Fuessel, Manfred Wirth, Gustavo B. Baretton, Paramita Ghosh, Kenneth J. Pienta, David L. Klinkebiel, Surinder K. Batra, Michael H. Muders, Kaustubh Datta

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Aberrant transcriptional activity of androgen receptor (AR) is one of the dominant mechanisms for developing of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Analyzing AR-transcriptional complex related to CRPC is therefore important towards understanding the mechanism of therapy-resistance. While studying its mechanism, we observed that a transmembrane protein called neuropilin-2 (NRP2) plays a contributory role in forming a novel AR-transcriptional complex containing nuclear pore proteins. Using immunogold electron microscopy, high-resolution confocal microscopy, chromatin immunoprecipitation, proteomics, and other biochemical techniques, we delineated the molecular mechanism of how a specific splice variant of NRP2 becomes sumoylated upon ligand stimulation and translocates to the inner nuclear …

Pestfacts Wa Issue 08 - July 2022, Benjamin S. Congdon, Svetlana Micic, Cindy L. Webster, Jean Galloway, Janette Pratt

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 08 - July 2022 contents:

• Cold winter conditions are reducing winged aphid activity
• Russian wheat aphid
• UCI BlacklegCM – A new decision support tool for upper canopy blackleg management

Soybean Management For Seed Composition: The Perspective Of U.S. Farmers, Andre F. Borja Reis, Luiz Rosso, Dan Davidson, Peter Kovacs, Larry C. Purcell, Frederick E. Below, Shaun Casteel, Hans J. Kandel, Seth Naeve, Sotirios V. Archontoulis, Ignacio A. Ciampitti

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

The soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] compositional quality is mainly provided by the seed concentration of protein and oil. These traits are critical for sustaining global use, and although there is demand for high protein soybean, no mechanism to differentiate production is in place. At the opposite end of the supply chain, farmers are remunerated on a mass basis without having any incentive regarding seed composition. This study evaluated farmers' perspectives and knowledge on soybean quality and their propensity to adopt quality improvement technologies. Farmers from the main U.S. producing regions (n = 271) were investigated with a …

Simulating The Impact Of Crop–Livestock Interaction On Crop Performance Using Dssat, Teerath Rai, Sandeep Kumar, Thandiwe Nleya, Gerrit Hoogenboom

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

An integrated crop–livestock system (ICL) can help with enhancing soil quality and crop productivity, ultimately increasing farm income. Field experiments that evalu- ated the impact of cover crops (CCs) and grazing on crop productivity have shown mixed results primarily because of a relatively short duration of the crop–livestock system. Dynamic crop models can help to simulate the long-term impact of soils and crop management on crop yield. The objectives of the current study were to develop a simple simulation methodology for crop–livestock interaction using the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) and to evaluate the perfor- mance of CC …

Pestfacts Wa Issue 10 - July 2022, Saleh Adnan, Benjamin S. Congdon, Alan Lord

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 10 - July 2022 contents:

• Russian wheat aphids found at Geraldton
• Turnip yellows virus detected n canola in Albany port zone
• Meet PestFacts WA team member – Alan Lord

Pestfacts Wa Issue 11 - July 2022, Ciara Beard, Geoff J. Thomas

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 11 - July 2022 contents:

• Wheat powdery mildew in the Geraldton port zone

Increased Signal-To-Noise Ratios Within Experimental Field Trials By Regressing Spatially Distributed Soil Properties As Principal Components, Jeffrey C. Berry, Mingsheng Qi, Balasaheb V. Sonawane, Amy Sheflin, Asaph Cousins, Jessica Prenni, Daniel P. Schachtman, Peng Liu, Rebecca S. Bart

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Environmental variability poses a major challenge to any field study. Researchers attempt to mitigate this challenge through replication. Thus, the ability to detect experimental signals is deter-mined by the degree of replication and the amount of environmental variation, noise, within the experimental system. A major source of noise in field studies comes from the natural heterogeneity of soil properties which create microtreatments throughout the field. In addition, the variation within different soil properties is often nonrandomly distributed across a field. We explore this challenge through a sorghum field trial dataset with accompanying plant, microbiome, and soil property data. Diverse sorghum …

Expression Of Atwri1 And Atdgat1 During Soybean Embryo Development Influences Oil And Carbohydrate Metabolism, Cintia Lucía Arias, Truyen Quach, Tu Huynh, Hanh Nguyen, Ademar Moretti, Yu Shi, Ming Guo, Amira Rasoul, Kyujung Van, Leah Mchale, Thomas E. Clemente, Ana Paula Alonso, Chi Zhang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Soybean oil is one of the most consumed vegetable oils worldwide. Genetic improvement of its concentration in seeds has been historically pursued due to its direct association with its market value. Engineering attempts aiming to increase soybean seed oil presented different degrees of success that varied with the genetic design and the specific variety considered. Understanding the embryo’s responses to the genetic modifications introduced, is a critical step to successful approaches. In this work, the metabolic and transcriptional responses to AtWRI1 and AtDGAT1 expression in soybean seeds were evaluated. AtWRI1 is a master regulator of fatty acid (FA) biosynthesis, and …

Critical P, K And S Concentrations In Soil And Shoot Samples For Optimal Tedera Productivity And Nodulation, Daniel Real, Richard G. Bennett, Nazanin K. Nazeri, David M. Weaver

Grain and Other Field Crops Research Articles

Tedera is a forage legume that can provide out-of-season green feed in Mediterranean climates. To date, growers have had no comprehensive soil nutrition guidelines to optimise tedera production. We undertook field and glasshouse studies to understand tedera’s macronutrient requirements. Three field experiments were sown with tedera cv. Lanza® at Cunderdin, Dandaragan and Three Springs in Western Australia. These experiments evaluated seven levels of phosphorus (P) (0–30 kg ha−1) and potassium (K) (0–80 kg ha−1) and two combined treatments with P and K. Glasshouse pot experiments were conducted using tedera cultivars Lanza® and Palma and lucerne cultivar SARDI Grazer. Ten concentrations …

Fine-Mapping And Characterisation Of Genes On Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Chromosome 2h For Salinity Stress Tolerance During Germination, Edward Mwando, Yong Han, Tefera Angessa, Xiao-Qi Zhang, Chengdao Li

Grain and Other Field Crops Research Articles

Salinity causes a detrimental impact on plant growth, particularly when the stress occurs during germination and early development stages. Barley is one of the most salt-tolerant crops; previously we mapped two quantitative trait loci (QTL) for salinity tolerance during germination on the short arm of chromosome 2H using a CM72/Gairdner doubled haploid (DH) population. Here, we narrowed down the major QTL to a region of 0.341 or 0.439 Mb containing 9 or 24 candidate genes belonging to 6 or 20 functional gene families according to barley reference genomes v1 and v3 respectively, using two DH populations of CM72/Gairdner and Skiff/CM72, …

Links Between Soilborne Pathogens, Plant Parasitic Nematodes, Farm Management And Biophysical Constraints In A Southern Australian Rainfed Cropping System, Martin Harries, Ken C. Flower, Michael Renton, Sarah J. Collins, Daniel Huberli

Grain and Other Field Crops Research Articles

Context: Rotations in rainfed farming systems of southwest Australia have shifted towards intensified cropping and it is necessary to reassess soilborne pathogens and plant parasitic nematodes within this context. Aims: We tested the hypothesis that these recent changes in rotations and agronomy have altered the efficacy with which rotations reduce the incidence of common root pathogens and plant parasitic nematodes. Methods: We tracked changes in common pathogen DNA in soil and the incidence and severity of crop root damage in 184 paddocks, over 6 years from 2010 to 2015, and related this to farmer practices. Key results: Overall, severe root …

Identification Of Putative Snp Markers Associated With Resistance To Egyptian Loose Smut Race(S) In Spring Barley, Kamal A.M. Abo-Elyousr, Amira M.I. Mourad, P. Stephen Baenziger, Abdelaal H.A. Shehata, Peter E. Eckstein, Aaron D. Beattie, Ahmed Sallam

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Loose smut (LS) disease is a serious problem that affects barley yield. Breeding of resistant cultivars and identifying new genes controlling LS has received very little attention. Therefore, it is important to understand the genetic basis of LS control in order to genetically improve LS resistance. To address this challenge, a set of 57 highly diverse barley genotypes were inoculated with Egyptian loose smut race(s) and the infected seeds/plants were evaluated in two growing seasons. Loose smut resistance (%) was scored on each genotype. High genetic variation was found among all tested genotypes indicating considerable differences in LS resistance that …

Improving Growth And Yield Of Sunflower With Integrated Use Of Compost And Pgpr (Variovorax Paradoxus) With Different Levels Of N-Chemical Fertilizer, Muhammad Imran, Muhammad Javed Akhtar, Sarmad Frogh Arshad, Muhammad Ashfaq, Muhammad Zeeshan Gulzar, Hafiz Shahzad Ahmad, Kashif Bashir, Zulqurnain Khan, Hasan Riaz, Tanveer Ul Haq

Journal of Bioresource Management

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs) stimulate plant growth through their ability, to increasing the root length and growth, by asymbiotic nitrogen fixation, by producing siderophores, solubilization of mineral phosphates and mineralization of other nutrients. Organic waste material of fruits and vegetables was collected and composted in a locally fabricated composting unit. A pot trial was conducted to study the effectiveness of compost and PGPR (Variovorax paradoxus) with recommended rate of PK and with different rates of N fertilizer i.e. 50 %, 75 % and 100 %, on growth and yield of sunflower. Results showed that the integrated use of …

Determination Of Crop Coefficient Of Hybrid Wheat Under Arid Climate: A Pot Study, Saba Wajid, Muhammad Imran, Hafiz Shahzad Ahmad, Muhammad Zeeshan Gulzar, Tanveer Ul Haq, Abdul Ghaffar, Sarmad Frogh Arshad, Zulqurnain Khan, Kashif Bashir, Hasan Riaz

Journal of Bioresource Management

Climate change increases vulnerabilities for crop productivity in Pakistan. Water crises are increasing with an increase in temperature and change in precipitation patterns due to climate change which ultimately imposed a threat to the food security of the country. Water is indispensable for all plants to complete life cycle as the unavailability of water at critical growth stages drastically affects the development of the plant. The present pot study was conducted for the estimation of crop coefficient of hybrid wheat for irrigation scheduling at Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture, Multan during two growing seasons 2018-19 and 2019-20. In this …

Legacy Lead In Urban Garden Soils: Communicating Risk And Limiting Exposure, Anna Paltseva, Zhongqi Cheng, Murray Mcbride, Maha Deeb, Sara Perl Egendorf, Peter M. Groffman

Advanced Science Research Center

Lead (Pb) exposure has long been recognized as a hazard to human health. Urban garden soils often contain elevated levels of Pb, mainly from legacy sources, which is a main barrier for urban gardening. The capacity of gardeners to access, understand, and act on scientific data related to soil contamination is also variable. This synthesis paper briefly summarizes the current scientific knowledge on soil Pb in urban gardens. Our objective is to produce clear recommendations about assessing actual risks and limiting exposure. First, we synthesize the nature and extent of soil contamination with Pb, and then describe how the bioavailability …

Sorghum Association Panel Whole-Genome Sequencing Establishes Cornerstone Resource For Dissecting Genomic Diversity, J. Lucas Boatwright, Sirjan Sapkota, Hongyu Jin, James C. Schnable, Zachary Brenton, Richard Boyles, Stephen Kresovich

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Association mapping panels represent foundational resources for understanding the genetic basis of phenotypic diversity and serve to advance plant breeding by exploring genetic variation across diverse accessions. We report the whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of 400 sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) accessions from the Sorghum Association Panel (SAP) at an average coverage of 38× (25–72×), enabling the development of a high-density genomic marker set of 43 983 694 variants including single-nucleotide polymorphisms (approximately 38 million), insertions/deletions (indels) (approximately 5 million), and copy number variants (CNVs) (approximately 170 000). We observe slightly more deletions among indels and a much higher prevalence …

Pestfacts Wa Issue 07 - June 2022, Alan Lord, Dusty Severtson, Cindy L. Webster, Svetlana Micic, Kithsiri Jayasena, Geoff J. Thomas, Ciara Beard, Andrea Hills, Jean Galloway

PestFacts WA

PestFacts WA Issue 07 - June 2022 contents:

• Native budworm moths and caterpillars are being found early
• 2022 winter spring insecticide spray guide is now available
• Monitor barley crops for net blotches
• Powdery mildew in barley and wheat
• Sclerotinia apothecia
• Spartacus leaf tipping