Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons^™

Where Is Your Crop Insurance Agent? Understanding The Geographical Distribution Of Agents, Cory Walters, Nathan Delay

Cornhusker Economics

Following the modifications to the Standard Reinsurance Agreement (SRA) in 2010, there was limited understanding of the impact of policy changes on agent availability. Our objective is to construct a model of the equilibrium supply of crop insurance agents and to test hypotheses regarding the factors influencing agent concentration, such as commissions, competition, and risk. We developed a theoretical equilibrium model of the federal crop insurance market, which encompasses three tiers: insurance companies, agents, and farmers. The model incorporates key features of the federal program, including government-set premiums and the stipulation that agents cannot refuse coverage or modify premiums for …

Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Flood-Irrigated Rice As Affected By Phosphorus Fertilizer Source, Chandler M. Arel, Kristofor R. Brye, Diego Della Lunga, Trenton L. Roberts, Richard Adams

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Research into alternative phosphorus (P) fertilizer sources that may be able to supplement P resources is necessary. Struvite (MgNH4PO4 · 6H2O) can be made by removing excess nutrients from waste sources and may reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cropping systems. This study sought to quantify GHG [i.e., methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and carbon dioxide (CO2)] fluxes, season-long emissions, and net GHG emissions from chemically precipitated struvite (CPST) and synthetic and real-wastewater-derived electrochemically precipitated struvite (ECST) compared to monoammonium phosphate (MAP) and an unamended control (UC) from flood-irrigated rice (Oryza sativa) grown in P-deficient, silt loam soil in a …

Evaluation Of The Global Durum Panel (Triticum Turgidum Ssp. Durum) For Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus Resistance, Winter Survival, And Seed Characteristics, Megan Engel

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

The majority of durum wheat (Triticum turgidum spp. durum; AABB; 2n=4x=28) is predominantly grown in the northern Great Plains of the United States, and is used in the production of semolina, a coarse flour that makes pasta and couscous. Durum has been widely regarded for being more tolerant to abiotic stress, due to its ability to withstand drought and high temperatures. In this thesis, we conducted greenhouse, field, and lab studies, for the traits wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV), winter survival, and single kernel characteristics of the Global Durum Panel version 2 (GDPv2 n = 976), a panel …

Arkansas Cotton Variety Tests 2024, F. Bourland, J. Gann, B. Lovelady, B. Guest Jr., J. Mcalee, L. Martin, Z. Treadway, C. Henderson

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

The primary goal of the Arkansas Cotton Variety Tests is to provide unbiased data regarding the agronomic performance of cotton varieties and advanced breeding lines in the major cotton-growing areas of Arkansas. This information helps seed companies establish marketing strategies and assists producers in choosing varieties to plant. These annual evaluations will then facilitate the inclusion of new, improved genetic material in Arkansas cotton production. Adaptation of varieties is determined by evaluating the lines at five University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture research sites (Manila, Keiser, Judd Hill, Marianna, and Rohwer). The 2024 tests at Keiser were adversely affected …

Genetic And Soil Influences On The Grapevine Rhizosphere Microbiome, Lauren M. Quackenbush

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

In vineyard cropping systems, the rhizosphere microbiome arises through recruitment and filtering of the bulk soil microbiome shaped over time by soil carbon and nitrogen, climate, pH and historical legacies of vineyard management. The recruitment and filtering steps occur under the genetic influences of rootstock and scion that together drive variability in rhizosphere microbiome diversity and composition.

This study compares rhizosphere microbiomes of four Pinot Noir blocks under two rootstocks (101-14 and 420A) and four scions (777, 828, Calera, Mt. Eden). Core microbiomes were consistent across all replicates. The most abundant bacterial phyla were Actinobacteriota, Proteobacteria, and Acidobacteriota …

Variation In Response To Phosphorus Among Sweetpotato (Ipomoea Batatas L.) Cultivars, Jeffrey Cole Denis Gregorie

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Phosphorus (P) is essential for plant growth and is often a major limiting nutrient in agriculture. In sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas), studies on the role of P on storage root yield have been limited because of the lack of response and inconsistent results across cultivars and years. Growing evidence shows that current phosphate (Pi) fertilizer rates can be reduced while maintaining productivity. Newly published molecular evidence shows differential expression of phosphate starvation response genes among sweetpotato cultivars, further supporting the hypothesis of cultivar-specific Pi sensitivity. The research herein sought to characterize root system architecture and yield response to Pi …

Arkansas Soybean Performance Tests 2024, J. F. Carlin, R. D. Bond, T. C. Swanson, J. C. Mccoy

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

Soybean variety and strain performance tests are conducted each year in Arkansas by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s Arkansas Crop Variety Improvement Program. The tests provide information to companies developing varieties and/ or marketing seed within the state and aid the Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service in formulating variety recommendations for soybean producers.

Three New Varieties Of Hoya Ilagiorum (Kloppenburg, Siar & Cajano), Maria Luisa D. Guevarra, Jennelyn C. Bengoa, Gerlie P. Antesco

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist

Three new varieties of Hoya were registered to the Germplasm and Technology Release and Registration Office of the Institute of Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture and Food Science, University of the Philippines Los Baños and the National Seed Industry Council, Bureau of Plant Industry, Department of Agriculture in 2020 and 2023, respectively. These are open-pollinated (OP) segregants of Hoya ilagiorum (Kloppenburg, Siar & Cajano) that were generated in 2010. Evaluation of OP seedlings started in 2012 and the selection of promising segregants yielded 3 varieties, namely ‘Moonlight’, ‘Sunkissed’, and ‘Starburst’. ‘Moonlight’ has a dainty creamy yellow inflorescence consisting of 31 …

Implementation Of Organic Rice Farming Based On Local Wisdom In Bali Province, Indonesia, Gede Sedana, Ketut Wirawan, Naori Miyazawa

The Philippine Agricultural Scientist

The Green Revolution has significantly contributed to agricultural development. However, it has also caused environmental damage due to excessive use of agricultural inputs and land exploitation. To promote sustainability in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs), organic farming has been recommended to improve and maintain agroecosystems. In Bali Province, Indonesia, the concept of Tri Hita Karana (THK), a form of local wisdom, has guided farmers in implementing the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) technique introduced by the government. This study explored how organic rice farming integrates local wisdom, assessed farmers’ knowledge and attitudes towards SRI, and examined government support …

Wayne E. Sabbe Arkansas Soil Fertility Studies 2024, Nathan A. Slaton

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

Rapid technological changes in crop management and production require that the research efforts be presented in an expeditious manner. The contributions of soil fertility and fertilizers are major production factors in all Arkansas crops. The studies described within will allow producers to compare their practices with the university’s research efforts. Additionally, soil-test data and fertilizer sales are presented to allow comparisons among years, crops, and other areas within Arkansas.

Arkansas Soybean Research Studies 2023, Jeremy Ross

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

The 2023 Arkansas Soybean Research Studies includes research reports on topics pertaining to soybean across several disciplines from breeding to post-harvest processing. Research reports contained in this publication may represent preliminary or only data from a single year or limited results; therefore, these results should not be used as a basis for long-term recommendations.

Several research reports in this publication will appear in other University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station publications. This duplication is the result of the overlap in research coverage between disciplines and our effort to inform Arkansas soybean producers of the research …

Advances Towards A Robotic Management Vehicle Suited To Nurse Row Crops To More Efficient Outcomes, Adam Mk Gronewold

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Enhancing agricultural production while reducing input costs remains a central challenge in modern row-crop management. Recent advances in computation, imagery, and sensors are enabling more efficient practices across various agricultural domains, and automation technologies are increasingly available to manage tasks central to perennial crop development. Automation in row-crop agriculture, by contrast, lags behind. This thesis explores utilizing small, unmanned ground vehicles to transform row cropping through the implementation of unconventional, in-season management strategies. The first focus of this work considers improvements to nitrogen fertilization using small, autonomous vehicles. An agronomy experiment in corn assessed the effects of gradually applying nitrogen …

Weed Incursion Of Irrigated Forage–Forb Mixtures Under Mob Grazing Or Mowing In The Mountain West Usa, Jennifer Macadam, Jared Gibbons, Xin Dai

Browse all Datasets

Improving the quality of irrigated pastures can increase the profitability of ruminant production systems. Increasing pasture plant biodiversity is beneficial for ruminants, pollinators, and soil health, but it is challenging to manage weed incursion in seeded mixed-species pastures. This study assessed the weed incursion that resulted when forage legumes or grasses were seeded as binary mixtures with one of four non-legume forbs. Defoliation occurred at 6-week intervals as either mowing or mob grazing. Forbs were chicory, plantain, Lewis flax, or small burnet and forages were alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil, creeping foxtail, intermediate wheatgrass, kura clover, meadow bromegrass, orchardgrass, perennial ryegrass, reed …

Nebraska Crop Budgets Updated For 2025, Glennis Mcclure

Cornhusker Economics

For the 2025 production season, 83 crop budgets were developed for Nebraska. These budgets show slightly lower per-unit costs compared to 2023 and 2024. The primary factor behind the reduction in input costs is the lower estimated costs of fuel and fertilizer. In most cases, machinery depreciation and opportunity costs remained relatively stable, while land values and rental rates increased slightly. Additionally, seed and interest costs also rose in the 2025 budgets. Budget scenarios for individual producers may vary depending on the timing of their input purchases and fluctuations in prices.

The Nebraska crop budgets are updated annually to serve …

Instructions For Authors, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

An Apple A Day: Have The Growing Conditions Of Apples In Maine Changed Over The Past 20 Years, Anooshka Sethi

Honors Theses

Climate change is increasingly affecting the growing conditions that farmers face. This study focused on if and how the growing conditions of apples have changed over the past two decades. Apples are an economically, socially, and culturally important crop to Maine's agriculture landscape. By production acreage, Maine is the second largest state in New England, with 2700 acres of land used to grow apples (USDA NASS CoA, 2022). A unique characteristic of agricultural production in Maine is that most farms are small-scale, run by families or small groups, making adverse changes to the growing conditions of a major crop in …

Adaptation For Whom? Understanding The Impacts Of Dyke Policies On Small-Scale Farmers In Ca Mau Province Of Vietnam, Nguyen Minh Quang, Nguyen Van Minh, Nguyen Vo Chau Ngan, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Low-lying deltas worldwide are extremely vulnerable to sea-level rise. As the risks of climate-induced flooding become increasingly clear, the thirst for infrastructure-driven adaptation increases. This highlights a patent need to understand the impacts of engineering adaptation solutions, especially those targeting built structures such as dykes and sluices, on farmers from a bottom-up, farmer-centred perspective. The study addresses this call by examining cases where dyke policies, while successful in some dimensions, have undermined small-scale farmer livelihoods in Ca Mau ― Vietnam’s southernmost rural province. It identifies areas in need of attention and adds empirical data related to this group of farmers. …

Contents, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Discovery: The Student Journal Of Dale Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences - Volume 26 2025, Several Authors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Featured Faculty Mentor/Student Team, Kelly Loftin, Eva Berryhill

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Management Adaptations To Sustainably Increase Soybean Yield And Water Productivity Through Field Studies And Crop Modeling, Mounica Talasila

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.), a major crop in the upper U.S. Mid-South, is predominantly cultivated under rainfed conditions, where variable precipitation frequently induces water stress and limits yield potential. Consequently, irrigation adoption has been increasing across this region. Determining the optimal cultivar maturity group (MG) and planting date (PD) for both rainfed and irrigated systems is essential for maximizing yield and improving water use metrics. Evaluating crop water use efficiency (WUE; yield per unit of seasonal evapotranspiration) and total water productivity (WP; yield per unit of total water input from precipitation and irrigation) is critical to developing such …

Effects Of Round-Up On The Environment, Sandra J. Marcu

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Many people around the world have used and still currently use Roundup but are unaware of the effects it has on the environment. Roundup is a spray on application weedkiller that is widely used around the world today both residentially and commercially. It enables its user to grow a garden or a field of crops with a no-tilling approach to eliminate weeds. It is a well-known and popular choice for killing weeds that has been around since the mid 1970’s (Oca, 2017). John Franz, a Monsanto scientist discovered that glyphosate (main ingredient in Roundup) was an herbicide or weedkiller, and …

Factors Impacting Germination, Emergence, And Establishment Of Direct Seeded And Transplanted Hemp (Cannabis Sativa L.), Paul Cockson Dr.

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Industrial hemp (IH) establishment has many challenges including: poor emergence, low stand establishment, and variable plant development in direct seeded hemp. In floral hemp production, quality transplant production is a challenge with seedlings often becoming root bound and etiolated. In both direct seeded and transplant hemp, the relationship between root vigor and vegetative growth has not been studied and may prove insightful for managing emergence and establishment challenges. The goals of this study were three-fold: 1) to measure and describe root system architecture (RSA) and root phenotypes observed in selected IH cultivars especially in regard to identifying agronomically important RSA …

Terrarium- An Ecosystem In A Jar, Stacy A. Adams

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

STEM education is supported through hand's-on activities in the classroom. Content understanding and reaffirmation of knowledge is supported through this informative STEM-Quick card that teachers or extension educators can distribute to participants for reference. Terrariums provide an example of a closed ecosystem where water and carbon cycling is demonstrated and plant growth can be observed. This card presents the steps to building and caring for an easy to create terrarium.

Letter From The Dean, Jeff Edwards

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Remote Sensing - Based Mapping And Analysis Of Winter Cover Crop Adoption For Sustainable Agriculture, Minnehaha County, Belinda Buechler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Winter cover crops planted by farmers such as cereal rye, crimson clover, radishes, hairy vetch, and winter wheat are used to conserve and protect the soil during winter. These crops offer numerous benefits such as improving soil health, reducing erosion, fixing nitrogen, increasing carbon sequestration, and weed suppression. Over time, winter cover cropping has been recognized as a sustainable agricultural practice and has gained attention from Federal and State conservation programs, farmers, and non-governmental organizations. Due to their vital benefits, agencies such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conversation Services (NRCS) have partnered with cost-share programs …

Letter From The Faculty Editor, Beth Kegley

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Introduction To Hydroponics- 2025-2026 Workshop Handbook, Stacy A. Adams

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Hydroponically grown plants grow faster than traditional production systems, with greater productivity, greater palatability, and having optimal visual character. Three principal components of a system include the plant support platform, a nutrient solution reservoir, and an interface for the root-solution. This publication provides in-depth explanation to system design, evaluation of water quality, nutrient formulation, and prototype systems that can be easily constructed for those wanting to explore hydroponics, such as educators, organizational leaders, or home enthusiasts.

Greenhouse Management For The Smaller Structure--Educational And Hobby, Stacy A. Adams

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Greenhouses used for teaching or by hobbyist are smaller than those used for commercial production or found in the retail environment. Structural materials, covering, mechanical equipment, and control systems often are packaged as a kit made available through greenhouse suppliers. Supplier construction services may not be available, in which buyers must use local contractors to complete the installation. Greenhouses are unique structures that differ greatly from sheds or other outbuildings. They have coverings that allow maximum light transmittance, protected from UV degradation, and can handle wide inside to outside temperature extremes. This extension circular provides valuable information on the character, …

An Economic And Production Analysis Of Seaweed Farms In California And The Pacific Northwest, Brian Donovan

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Since the early 2010s, the seaweed aquaculture industry has steadily expanded in the United States, with states like Alaska, Maine, Hawaii, and Connecticut leading the way in the development of this emerging sector. However, information gaps remain concerning certain aspects of the domestic seaweed aquaculture industry. The purpose of this study was to examine the status of the seaweed aquaculture industry along the West Coast of the United States; specifically in the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Seaweed farmers in these states were invited to voluntarily complete surveys asking important production, economic, and commercial questions regarding their operations. Data …