Botany Commons^™

Providing Pest Management Education For Home Gardeners In Utah, Nick Volesky, Marion Murray

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

In January 2024, Utah State University (USU) Extension's Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program launched a three-part class series targeting Utah's home gardeners. The goal was to enhance their abilities in identifying and managing insect and plant diseases. With over 200 participants, the series notably increased the knowledge of attendees. This initiative aligns with the USU Extension IPM program's mission to promote sustainable pest management practices across Utah, evidencing its commitment to environmental stewardship and community education.

Rhaphiolepis Indica Fruit Extracts For Control Fusarium Solani And Rhizoctonia Solani, The Causal Agents Of Bean Root Rot, Ahmed A. Heflish, Said I. Behiry, Abdulaziz A. Al-Askar, Yiming Su, Ahmed Abdelkhalek, Mohamed K. Gaber

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Numerous strategies have been suggested to reduce dependence on synthetic products, such as physical, microbial, and natural methods. Among the natural remedies, plant extracts have emerged as a popular option owing to their eco-friendly character, ease of degradation, and harmless nature to humans. In our study, we used the acetone and hexane extracts of Rhaphiolepis indica fruit to combat two fungal pathogens that were isolated from infected bean plants and showed root rot symptoms. The two pathogens were confirmed to be pathogenic by pathogenicity assays conducted in vivo. The morphological and molecular identification by ITS-region sequencing revealed that the two …

Wyoming’S Wild Horse Ranch: History And Description Of A Socio-Ecological Experiment, Alex Sas-Jaworsky, John Derek Scasta

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The growing population of free-roaming horses (Equus ferus caballus) on western public rangelands has necessitated that federal agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service, develop novel approaches to curb growth including reproduction management. However, bureaucracy has hindered effective research and application of horse management on public lands and examples on private lands may present new solutions. Here we present the history and current population management strategy for the Wild Horse Ranch (WHR) located in southeastern Wyoming, USA, as an example of an ongoing private entity managing horses. Prior to 1985, this ~6,000-ha …

Ploidy And Clonal Membership In Populus Tremuloides From Radseq Data, James A. Walton, Benjamin Blonder, Karen E. Mock

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Ipyrad pipeline parameters files, raw sequence data, barcodes and supporting scripts for clonal and cytotype sample assignment of Populus tremuloides.

Pteridium Nuclear Gene Phylogeny, Paul G. Wolf, Carol Rowe, Sylvia Kinosian, Joshua P. Der, Peter J. Lockhart, Lara D. Shepherd, Patricia A. Mclenachan, John A. Thomson

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Raw amplicon sequence data and raw reads of from GBS library. Also all code and analyses required to process raw data.

Intraspecific Variation In The Response Of Elymus Elymoides To Competition From Bromus Tectorum, Rebecca K. Mann

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the western United States, thousands of acres of degraded rangelands are dominated by aggressive invasive species such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), and are seeded by managers with native plants in an attempt to restore species diversity, wildlife habitat, and ecosystem services. There are many options for obtaining seeds of native plants; for instance, they can be collected from the region where restoration is to occur, or they may be purchased through commercial producers. For a given plant species, managers may also select seeds from unique subspecies, cultivars, and populations. Genetic differentiation among these within-species groups can not only affect …

Limited Alpine Climatic Warming And Modeled Phenology Advancement For Three Alpine Species In The Northeast United States, Michael L. Davis, Kenneth D. Kimball, Douglas M. Weihrauch, Georgia L. D. Murray, Kenneth Rancourt

Ecology Center Publications

• Premise of the study: Most alpine plants in the Northeast United States are perennial and flower early in the growing season, extending their limitedgrowing season. Concurrently, they risk the loss of reproductive efforts to late frosts. Quantifying long-term trends in northeastern alpine flower phenology and late-spring/early-summer frost risk is limited by a dearth of phenology and climate data, except for Mount Washington, New Hampshire (1916 m a.s.l.).
• Methods: Logistic phenology models for three northeastern US alpinespecies (Diapensia lapponica, Carex bigelowii and Vaccinium vitis-idaea) were developed from 4 yr (2008–2011) of phenology and air temperature measurements from 12 …

Geographical Distribution And Survival Of Iris Yellow Spot Virus In Spiny Sowthistle, Sonchus Asper, In Georgia, Claudia Nischwitz

All Current Publications

No abstract provided.

Reproductive Ecology Of Astragalus Filipes, A Great Basin Restoration Legume, Kristal M. Watrous

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Astragalus filipes Torrey ex. A. Gray (Fabaceae) is being studied and propagated for use in rangeland restoration projects throughout the Great Basin. Restoration forbs often require sufficient pollination services for seed production and persistence in restoration sites. Knowledge of a plant's breeding biology is important in providing pollination for maximal seed set.

Reproductive output from four manual pollination treatments (autogamy, geitonogamy, xenogamy, and distant xenogamy) was examined in a common garden. Pod set, seed set, and seed germination were quantified for each of the treatments. Seed set from four wild populations was compared to that of an openly visited common …

Genomic Perspectives On Evolution In Bracken Fern, Joshua P. Der

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The fern genus Pteridium comprises a number of closely related species distributed throughout the world. Collectively they are called bracken ferns and have historically been treated as a single species, Pteridium aquilinum. Bracken is notorious as a toxic weed that colonizes open fields and poisons livestock. Bracken is also easily cultured and has become one of the most intensively studied ferns. Bracken has been used as a model system for the study of the fern life cycle, fern gametophyte development, the pheromonal mechanism of sex determination, toxicology, invasion ecology, and climate change. This dissertation places bracken within a global …

Combining Environmental History And Soil Phytolith Analysis At The City Of Rocks National Reserve: Developing New Methods In Historical Ecology, Lesley Morris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Historical ecology is an emerging and interdisciplinary field that seeks to explain the changes in ecosystems over time through a synthesis of information derived from human records and biological data. The methods in historical ecology cover a wide range of temporal and spatial scales. However, methods for the more recent past (about 200 years) are largely limited to the human archive and dendrochronological evidence which can be subject to human bias, limited in spatial extent or not appropriate for non-forested systems. There is a need to explore new methods by which biological data can be used to understand historic vegetation …

Plant Responses To Clinostating And Mechanical Stress: Growth And Flowering Responses, Chauncy Steed Harris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Plants rotated about a horizontal axis show certain growth responses. This research was designed to clarify which of the responses of clinostating are caused by gravity compensation and which are caused by mechanical stresses. Plants used were Xanthium strumarium L. (cocklebur) Chicago strain and Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. (tomato) cv. Rutgers. Six automated treatments that ran for five days were used to separate out the effects. Treatments were: 1) controls, 2) horizontal clinostat, 3) intermittent clinostat, 4) inversion (every 10 min), 5) invert and return, and 6) vertical rotation. Plant height and diameter changes were measured at ink dots with a …

Competition And Spacing Patterns Of Shrubs In The Mojave And Sonoran Deserts, Donald Lundahl Phillips

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Spacing patterns of shrubs were studied at a series of sites in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts. There were significant numbers of occurrences of both aggregation and regularity in dispersion of individuals. These may be due to vegetative reproduction or environmental heterogeneity, and competition between plants, respectively. Different size classes of shrubs tended to follow the trend of aggregated → random → regular with increasing size. This suggests the increasing importance of competition as the plants grow. Further evidence of competition between plants was provided by the correlations of plant size with the distance to their neighbors. Root systems were …

Meiotic And Mitotic Chromosomes Of Fritillaria Atropurpurea Nutt., John Keith Archibald

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this paper is to provide information concerning the number, structure, and behavior of chromosomes in the plant species Fritillaria atropurpurea. The material used for this investigation included both floral buds and root-tips from actively growing naturally occurring plants collected from populations in both Utah and Nevada, and root-tips from seed germinated in the greenhouse. The results obtained include a karyotype analysis of mitotic chromosomes, a discussion of meiosis, a discussion of B-chromosomes, and a series of photographs depicting the stages of mitosis and meiosis in this species.

Fritillaria atropurpurea has a diploid chromosome number of 24, …

The Seasonal Pattern Of Cavitation In Five Species Of Trees, Herond R. Hoyt

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Five species of trees were studied: Acer glabrum (Hook.) Dippel, maple; Betula fontinalis Sarg., birch; Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh., ash; Populus tremuloides Michx., aspen; Pseudotsuga menziesii Britton, Douglas Fir. The trees were taken from naturally growing stands, between 20 and 40 years old, and about 7 m tall. The trees were cut down at eight study dates extending over 18 months. A 1.5 m section of stem and a branch from the upper and lower part of the tree were taken to the laboratory. Small pieces were then cut from these large pieces and were subsequently sliced into sections 200 microns …

Low Temperature Germination And Seed Coat Thickness In Tomatoes, John M. Green

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This investigation has been shown that the thin seed coat of tomato variety P. I. 341988 is not the factor responsible for its ability to germinate at low temperatures. The results support a previous report that low temperature germinating ability is inherited as a simple recessive. Seed coat thickness appears to be conditioned by two or more gene pairs, with dominance lacking. The maternal parent's genes control seed coat thickness, but the embryo's genes control low temperature germinating ability.

Vector Preference Among Varieties Of Lycopersicon Peruvianum And L. Esculentum As Related To Curly Top Virus Resistance, Stanford A. Young

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Tests substantiating vector nonpreference as a factor in the ability of certain tomato varieties to escape curly top virus (CTV) infection were conducted and evaluated. Nonpreference is not an effective mode of resistance to CTV in tomatoes under field conditions since leafhoppers feed on and may infect plants before expressing a preference.

Preference of viruliferous leafhoppers was observed on plants of seven tomato varieties arranged both randomly and homogeneously in caged flats. Through observation of curly top symptom development, relative resistance due to vector nonpreference was calculated for each variety.

Up to 23 per cent of the fairly high resistance …

A Comparison Of The Ecological Life Histories Of Delphinium Occidentale S. Wats. And Delphinium Barbeyi Huth, Jere Randolph Holman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Two species of the holartic genus Delphinium (D. occidentale S. Wats. and D. barbeyi Huth) were studied in the field and laboratory to determine the factors influencing the life stage development and distribution of these plants.

Delphinium occidentale, more widely distributed geographically and altitudinally than D. barbeyi, is found as a member of aspen and sagebrush communities. Sites are mesic in early spring but turn xeric by midsummer. Delphinium barbeyi, more limited in distribution geographically and altitudinally, appears to be limited to subalpine sites.

Adult biological properties are similar for both species. Morphological and taxonomic differences …

Cytogenetic Effects Of Vitavax Fungicide On Secale Cereale On Allium Cepa, Jack Ernest Staub

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The effects of Vitavax fungicide (2,3-dihydro-5-carboxanilido-6-methyl-1,4-oxathiin) on meiotic chromosomes of rye (Secale cereale) and mitotic chromosomes of onion (Allium cepa) and rye were observed.

The principal aberrations recorded in pollen mother cells of rye were: 1-4 univalents at metaphase I; sticky bridges at telophase I; and micronuclei and misshapen nuclei at the quartet stage.

The principal aberrations recorded in root tip mitoses in onion and rye were: chromosome fragmentation, disintegration, clumping, aggregation and inhibition of mitosis.

All meiotic phases were significantly affected by 1,000, 5,000,10,000, 33,300, 66,600 ppm Vitavax at the 48, 72, and 96 hour …

Temperature Effect On Leaf Water Potential Measurements, Rex J. Prosser

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Silver foil psychrometers were used to monitor water potential in different portions of maize leaves which were subjected to temperature gradients. The psychrometers were preliminarily calibrated over standard NaCI solutions at temperatures ranging from 5°C to 45°C in an aluminum plate apparatus designed to provide uniform temperatures within each psychrometer even while overall temperature was changing. Based on the calibrations, empirical temperature correction equations were derived and used to correct psychrometer readings at different temperatures to equivalent values at 25°C. Temperatures on a single maize leaf were varied by placing the long leaf through an insulated box with several compartments …

The Effect Of The Herbicide Glyphosate On The Growth Of Selenastrum Capricornutum, Judith Susan Eisen

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The herbicide glyphosate (MON-0139), an isopropylamine salt of N- (phosphonemethyl)glycine, was tested to determine its effects on the growth of the fresh water green alga Selenastrum capricornutum. Experiments were carried out to determine algicidal, algistatic, and inhibitory concentrations of the compound.

Concentrations from 5 ppm to 1000 ppm were inhibitory to the growth of the alga, but the effects were algistatic, rather than algicidal. At concentrations from 0.1 ppm to 1.0 ppm the growth of the alga was stimulated by the presence of the herbicide, while at concentrations from 0.001 ppm to 0.05 ppm the effects of the herbicide were …

Xanthium Strumarium L.: Extraction And Assay Of Floral Promotive Principles And Additional Investigations Into Inhibition Of Flowering, David D. Gibby

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

New techniques in extraction and assay of florigenic substances were tested. Initial response to the buffer-PVP extracts proved promising, but after several successful experiments, results could not be duplicated. Possible reasons for the failure are discussed.

A long-day inhibitory effect, demonstrated earlier by Gibby and Salisbury (25), was further investigated. Experiments with ¹⁴C-labled assimilates disproved the hypothesis that the inhibition is a result of assimilate translocation. Other experiments pointed to the probability of phytochrome involvement as well as protein synthesis as part of the inhibitory process. The nature of inhibition was ascribed to a localized inhibitory condition, probably a …

The Action Of Antibiotics And Antimetabolites On The Tobacco Mosaic Virus Infection Process In Bean Leaves, Virendra Nayyar

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The action of 28 antibiotics and antimetabolites at varying concentrations was studied in coincidence with the bioassay of tobacco mosaic virus on detached bean leaves by using an ultrasonic method of inoculation developed by Lamborn, Cochran and Chidester.¹ All tested chemicals were classified, in regard to the virus infection process, as inhibitory or stimulatory and their optimal concentrations in the inoculum were determined. Of the 28 antibiotics and antimetabolites studied, eight were found to stimulate while twenty inhibited TMV infection in bean leaves. From the results of these experiments, an attempt was made to characterize the nature of the …

An Isolation And Partial Purification Of A Small Tobacco Mosaic Virus Nucleoprotein Unit And A Study Of Its Polymerization By Carbodiimides, Alicia Bruna De Tosso

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A small tobacco mosaic virus nucleoprotein unit, thought to be the basic infectious unit of TMV, was isolated and purified from systemically-infected Turkish tobacco leaves. This small TMV particle was characterized by a doughnut shaped form as shown in the electron micrographs and by the induction of gray lesions when inoculated on Scotia bean leaves. Four carbodiimides, organic chemical condensing reagents, were compared for effectiveness in inducing polymerization of this starting material into longer rod-shaped viral particles. Dicyclohexyl carbodiimide, a wax-like solid, was found to be the most suitable reagent when used with an organic solvent such as ethanol in …

Effects Of Six Herbicides On Three Common Fresh Water Algae, Mridulika Virmani

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Six herbicides (diuron, karbutilate, propham, chloropropham, atrazine and simazine) were tested for their effects on Chlorocuccum hypnosporum, Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Anabaena sp. Experiments were conducted to determine minimum lethal dosages, algicidal versus algistatic concentrations and the uptake of ¹⁴CO₂ fixation by diuron containing cultures, as well as the uptake of radioactive diuron.

All three investigated species have shown a high degree of sensitivity to diuron at or below 1 ppm. Karbutilate was found to inhibit the growth of Chlorella pyrenoidosa and Anabaena sp. at lower concentrations than were required in the case of Chlorococcum hypnosporum.

Chloropropham …

A Taxonomic Study Of Single Spikelet Elymus Species Of Western United States, Earl R. Jensen Jr.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Two single-spikelet species, including three varieties, of naturally occurring wild-ryes of the genus Elymus native to the Rocky Mountain and Intermountain West were investigated using morphological, anatomical, ecological, and cytogenetical methods to determine their biosystematic relationships.

One species, Elymus ambiguus Vasey and Scribn., was found to be a distinct species without any recognizable varieties. This species had been previously recognized with three varieties.

One taxon, Elymus salina (C. L. Hitchc.) E. Jensen, often considered a variety of Elymus ambiguus, was found to be a distinct species. It shared features with both Elymus ambiguus and Elymus salina but was sufficiently …

An Analysis Of The Taxonomic Status Of A New Taxon In The Genus Salsola, H. Lamont Arnold

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

An attempt was made to determine the taxonomic status of a Salsola taxon new to Utah but found quite extensively in parts of Nevada, and California. The disciplines of cytogenetics, morphology, anatomy, chemotaxonomy, and palynology were employed.

It is the consensus of some taxonomists that this new taxon, referred to as Salsola X and which has lax perianth tips, is a variant of the Salsola Salsola paulsenii Litv. or barbwire Russian thistle taxon. Accepted taxonomic authorities on the Cheopodiaceae, Aellen and Botschantzev, consider the erect, spinose perianth tips to be a morphological character used in delimiting S. paulsenii. If …

Inorganic Mercury Uptake And Mercury Tolerance Demonstrated By Several Species Of Algae, Daniel S. Filip

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The inhibition by low concentrations of inorganic mercury has been established for several species of freshwater algae, and a method has been developed to determine mercury levels in algal cells, having good precision at levels as low as one hundred parts per billion.

Rapid sorption of inorganic mercury by glassware was minimized by using heavy algal cultures and short term incubations. The rates and extent of mercury uptake by three species of freshwater green algae were delineated under laboratory conditions. Replicate mercury containing cultures yielded slightly different mercury concentrations upon analysis due to analytical errors and glass sorption. Therefore, percent …

The Relationship Between Matric Water And Related Physiological Properties, Hussain Ali Al-Saadi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Matric water was measured as the water retained by plant material on a pressure membrane or ultra filter after equilibration under 20 bars nitrogen gas pressure and the removal of free water. At increasing pressures lesser amounts of water are held by matric or colloidal surface forces. Twenty bars pressure, supplied by cylinder nitrogen for 48 hours, was used in this study. Matric water was expressed as a percent of either (a) the dry weight or (b) the original water content. Plant material was oven dried, ground, and then saturated with water prior to the determination.

The matric water values …

Investigations Of Unusual Curly Top Symptoms In Grafted Tomato Plants And Early Leafhopper Feeding Effects Upon Tomato Seedlings, Donald Eldon Gardner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

To determine possible unusual effects of resistant plants upon symptom expression of curly top disease in susceptible tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.), tops of susceptible plants were grafted to lower stems and roots of resistant plants and inoculated. The resistant plants used were wild relatives of L. esculentum: L. peruvianum var. dentatum Dun. and L. peruvianum var. humifusum C. H. Mul. Reciprocal grafts, in which tops of dentatum plants were grafted to lower stems and roots of L. esculentum, were also made and inoculated.

External symptoms in the grafted plant tops were observed and compared with those of nongrafted, …