Horticulture Commons^™

Developments In Agricultural Soil Quality And Health: Reflections By The Research Committee On Soil Organic Matter Management, Michelle M. Wander, Larry J. Cihacek, Mark Coyne, Rhae A. Drijber, Julie M. Grossman, Jessica L. M. Gutknecht, William R. Horwath, Sindhu Jagadamma, Daniel C. Olk, Matt Ruark, Sieglinde S. Snapp, Lisa K. Tiemann, Ray Well, Ronald F. Turco

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The North Central Education and Research Activity Committee (NCERA-59) was formed in 1952 to address how soil organic matter formation and management practices affect soil structure and productivity. It is in this capacity that we comment on the science supporting soil quality and associated soil health assessment for agricultural lands with the goal of hastening progress in this important field. Even though the suite of soil quality indicators being applied by U.S. soil health efforts closely mirrors the “minimum data set” we developed and recommended in the mid-1990s, we question whether the methods or means for their selection and development …

A Tmeff2-Regulated Cell Cycle Derived Gene Signature Is Prognostic Of Recurrence Risk In Prostate Cancer, Constantin Georgescu, Joshua M. Corbin, Sandra Thibivilliers, Zachary D. Webb, Yan D. Zhao, Jan Koster, Kar-Ming Fung, Adam S. Asch, Jonathan D. Wren, Maria J. Ruiz-Echevarria

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Background: The clinical behavior of prostate cancer (PCa) is variable, and while the majority of cases remain indolent, 10% of patients progress to deadly forms of the disease. Current clinical predictors used at the time of diagnosis have limitations to accurately establish progression risk. Here we describe the development of a tumor suppressor regulated, cell-cycle gene expression based prognostic signature for PCa, and validate its independent contribution to risk stratification in several radical prostatectomy (RP) patient cohorts.

Methods: We used RNA interference experiments in PCa cell lines to identify a gene expression based gene signature associated with Tmeff2, an …

Impact Of Hurricane Katrina On The Coastal Systems Of Southern Louisiana, Wen-Ching Chuang, Tarsha Eason, Ahjond Garmestani, Caleb Roberts

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Natural disasters, such as hurricanes and forest fires, could trigger collapse and reorganization of social-ecological systems. In the face of external perturbations, a resilient system would have capacity to absorb impacts, adapt to change, learn, and if needed, reorganize within the same regime. Within this context, we asked how human and natural systems in Louisiana responded to Hurricane Katrina, and how the natural disaster altered the status of these systems. This paper discusses community resilience to natural hazards and addresses the limitations for assessing disaster resilience. Furthermore, we assessed social and environmental change in New Orleans and southern Louisiana through …

Genome-Wide Association Study For Multiple Biotic Stress Resistance In Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat, Madhav Bhatta, Alexey Morgounov, Vikas Belamkar, Stephen N. Wegulo, Abdelfattah A. Dababat, Gul Erginbas-Orakci, Mustapha El Bouhssini, Pravin Gautam, Jesse Poland, Nilufer Akci, Lutfu Demir, Ruth Wanyera, P. Stephen Baenziger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Genetic resistance against biotic stress is a major goal in many wheat breeding programs. However, modern wheat cultivars have a limited genetic variation for disease and pest resistance and there is always a possibility of the evolution of new diseases and pests to overcome previously identified resistance genes. A total of 125 synthetic hexaploid wheats (SHWs; 2n = 6x = 42, AABBDD, Triticum aestivum L.) were characterized for resistance to fungal pathogens that cause wheat rusts (leaf; Puccinia triticina, stem; P. graminis f.sp. tritici, and stripe; P. striiformis f.sp. tritici) and crown rot (Fusarium spp.); …

Expression Of The Arabidopsis Wrinkled 1 Transcription Factor Leads To Higher Accumulation Of Palmitate In Soybean Seed, Pamela A. Vogel, Shen Bayon De Noyer, Hyunwoo Park, Hanh Nguyen, Lili Hou, Taity Changa, Hoang Le Khang, Ozan N. Ciftci, Tong Wang, Edgar B. Cahoon, Thomas Elmo Clemente

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) is a commodity crop highly valued for its protein and oil content. The high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids in soybean oil results in low oxidative stability, which is a key parameter for usage in baking, high temperature frying applications, and affects shelf life of packaged products containing soybean oil. Introduction of a seed-specific expression cassette carrying the Arabidopsis transcription factor WRINKLED1 (AtWRI1) into soybean, led to seed oil with levels of palmitate up to approximately 20%. Stacking of the AtWRI1 transgenic allele with a transgenic locus harbouring the mangosteen steroyl-ACP thioesterase (GmFatA) resulted …

Statistical And Machine Learning Methods Evaluated For Incorporating Soil And Weather Into Corn Nitrogen Recommendations, Curtis J. Ransom, Newell R. Kitchen, James J. Camberato, Paul R. Carter, Richard B. Ferguson, Fabian G. Fernandez, David W. Franzen, Carrie A. M. Laboski, D. Brenton Myers, Emerson D. Nafziger, John E. Sawyer, John F. Shanahan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer recommendation tools could be improved for estimating corn (Zea mays L.) N needs by incorporating site-specific soil and weather information. However, an evaluation of analytical methods is needed to determine the success of incorporating this information. The objectives of this research were to evaluate statistical and machine learning (ML) algorithms for utilizing soil and weather information for improving corn N recommendation tools. Eight algorithms [stepwise, ridge regression, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (Lasso), elastic net regression, principal component regression (PCR), partial least squares regression (PLSR), decision tree, and random forest] were evaluated using a dataset …

Predicting Soil Wind Erosion Potential Under Different Corn Residue Management Scenarios In The Central Great Plains, M. K. Rakkar, Humberto Blanco-Canqui, J. Tatarko

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Various models and simplified equations are available to predict wind erosion potential. However, their performance can be often site-specific, depending on soil characteristics and agronomic practices, warranting sitespecific model validations. Thus, in this study, we 1) validated the wind erodible fraction (WEF) predictive equations by Fryrear et al. (1994) and López et al. (2007) and 2) estimated the total soil loss with the Singleevent Wind Erosion Evaluation Program (SWEEP) using 3-yr measured data from six experiments located across a precipitation gradient in the central Great Plains. Each site had three corn (Zea mays L.) residue removal treatments: control (no …

Molecular Marker Dissection Of Stem Rust Resistance In Nebraska Bread Wheat Germplasm, Amira M. I. Mourad, Ahmed Sallam, Vikas Belamkar, Stephen Wegulo, Guihua Bai, Ezzat Mahdy, Bahy Bakheit, Atif Abo El-Wafa, Yue Jin, P. Stephen Baenziger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Stem rust (caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici) is a major disease of wheat. To understand the genetic basis of stem rust resistance in Nebraska winter wheat, a set of 330 genotypes representing two nurseries (DUP2015 and TRP2015) were evaluated for resistance to a Nebraska stem rust race (QFCSC) in two replications. The TRP2015 nursery was also evaluated for its resistance to an additional 13 stem rust races. The analysis of variance revealed significant variation among genotypes in both populations for stem rust resistance. Nine stem rust genes, Sr6, Sr31, Sr1RS^Amigo, Sr24, Sr36 …

Utilizing Trait Networks And Structural Equation Models As Tools To Interpret Multi‑Trait Genome‑Wide Association Studies, Mehdi Momen, Malachy T. Campbell, Harkamal Walia, Gota Morota

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Background: Plant breeders seek to develop cultivars with maximal agronomic value, which is often assessed using numerous, often genetically correlated traits. As intervention on one trait will affect the value of another, breeding decisions should consider the relationships among traits in the context of putative causal structures (i.e., trait networks). While multi-trait genome-wide association studies (MTM-GWAS) can infer putative genetic signals at the multivariate scale, standard MTM-GWAS does not accommodate the network structure of phenotypes, and therefore does not address how the traits are interrelated. We extended the scope of MTM-GWAS by incorporating trait network structures into GWAS using structural …

Identification Of Quantitative Trait Loci For Plant Height, Crown Diameter, And Plant Biomass In A Pseudo-F2 Population Of Switchgrass, Megan Taylor, Carl-Erik Tornqvist, Xiongwei Zhao, R. W. Doerge, Michael D. Casler, Yiwei Jiang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) is a perennial warm-season grass that produces high biomass yield. Identification of mechanisms for genetic regulation of biomass traits has potential to facilitate genetic manipulation of switchgrass for enhancing biomass yield. The objective of this study was to identify quantitative trait loci for biomass-related traits in a pseudo-F₂ population of switchgrass derived from an upland cross with a lowland switchgrass cultivar. Plant height (HT), crown diameter (CD), and plant biomass (PB) were assessed in field studies in 2015 and 2016. Plant height was positively correlated with PB in both years but only correlated with …

Selection Of Bread Wheat For Low Grain Cadmium Concentration At The Seedling Stage Using Hydroponics Versus Molecular Markers, Caixia Liu, Mary J. Guttieri, Brian M. Waters, Kent M. Eskridge, P. Stephen Baenziger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The excessive accumulation of Cd in harvested crops grown on high-Cd soils has increased public concerns for food safety. Due to the high consumption of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) per capita, high concentrations of Cd in wheat grain can significantly affect human health. Breeding is a promising way to reduce grain Cd concentration. However, a lack of efficient selection methods impedes breeding for low grain Cd concentration in bread wheat. In this study, a recombinant inbred population segregating for grain Cd concentration was used to assess the efficacy of two selection methods for decreasing grain Cd concentration in …

Joint Use Of Genome, Pedigree, And Their Interaction With Environment For Predicting The Performance Of Wheat Lines In New Environments, Réka Howard, Daniel Gianola, Osval Montesinos-Lopez, Philomin Juliana, Ravi Singh, Jesse Poland, Sandesh Shrestha, Paulino Pérez-Rodriguez, José Crossa, Diego Jarquin

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Genome-enabled prediction plays an essential role in wheat breeding because it has the potential to increase the rate of genetic gain relative to traditional phenotypic and pedigree-based selection. Since the performance of wheat lines is highly influenced by environmental stimuli, it is important to accurately model the environment and its interaction with genetic factors in prediction models. Arguably, multi-environmental best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) may deliver better prediction performance than single-environment genomic BLUP. We evaluated pedigree and genome-based prediction using 35,403 wheat lines from the Global Wheat Breeding Program of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). We implemented …

A World Of Cobenefits: Solving The Global Nitrogen Challenge, Benjamin Z. Houlton, Maya Almaraz, Viney Aneja, Amy T. Austin, Edith Bai, Kenneth G. Cassman, Jana E. Compton, Eric A. Davidson, Jan Willem Erisman, James N. Galloway, Baojing Gu, Guolin Yao, Luiz A. Martinelli, Kate Scow, William H. Schlesinger, Thomas P. Tomich, Chao Wang, Xin Zhang

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen is a critical component of the economy, food security, and planetary health. Many of the world's sustainability targets hinge on global nitrogen solutions, which, in turn, contribute lasting benefits for (i) world hunger; (ii) soil, air, and water quality; (iii) climate change mitigation; and (iv) biodiversity conservation. Balancing the projected rise in agricultural nitrogen demands while achieving these 21st century ideals will require policies to coordinate solutions among technologies, consumer choice, and socioeconomic transformation.

Optimum Droplet Size Using A Pulse-Width Modulation Sprayer For Applications Of 2,4-D Choline Plus Glyphosate, Thomas R. Butts, Chase A. Samples, Lucas X. Franca, Darrin M. Dodds, Daniel B. Reynolds, Jason W. Adams, Richard K. Zollinger, Kirk A. Howatt, Bradley K. Fritz, W. Clint Hoffmann, Joe D. Luck, Greg Kruger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The delivery of an optimum herbicide droplet size using pulse-width modulation (PWM) sprayers can reduce potential environmental contamination, maintain efficacy, and provide more flexible options for pesticide applicators. Field research was conducted in 2016, 2017, and 2018 across three locations (Mississippi, Nebraska, and North Dakota) for a total of 6 site-years. The objectives were to evaluate the efficacy of a range of droplet sizes (150 μm [Fine] to 900 μm [Ultra Coarse]) using a 2,4-D choline plus glyphosate pre-mixture and to create novel weed management recommendations using PWM sprayer technology. A pooled site-year generalized additive model explained less than 5% …

Benchmarking Irrigation Water Use In Producer Fields In The Us Central Great Plains, Katherine E. B. Gibson, Justin E. Gibson, Patricio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Efficient use of freshwater resources is necessary to balance food production and long-term sustainability of irrigated agricultural systems. Here we developed a framework to benchmark irrigation water use relative to crop yield for individual fields based on site-specific weather and soil. Subsequently, we used the framework to diagnose on-farm irrigation management, in relation to crop production, in maize and soybean producer fields in Nebraska (USA).We found actual irrigation to be similar to estimated irrigation water requirement in about half of the fields (i.e. small water surplus). Remarkably, these fields attained yields similar to fields where actual irrigation exceeded water requirements …

Comparing Infiltration Rates In Soils Managed With Conventional And Alternative Farming Methods: A Meta-Analysis, Andrea D. Basche, Marcia S. Delonge

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Identifying agricultural practices that enhance water cycling is critical, particularly with increased rainfall variability and greater risks of droughts and floods. Soil infiltration rates offer useful insights to water cycling in farming systems because they affect both yields (through soil water availability) and other ecosystem outcomes (such as pollution and flooding from runoff). For example, conventional agricultural practices that leave soils bare and vulnerable to degradation are believed to limit the capacity of soils to quickly absorb and retain water needed for crop growth. Further, it is widely assumed that farming methods such as no-till and cover crops can improve …

History Of Grass Breeding For Grazing Lands In The Northern Great Plains Of The Usa And Canada, Kenneth P. Vogel, John Hendrickson

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

• In the early 1930s there were millions of acres of extensively degraded grazing lands and abandoned and eroded cropland in the Northern Plains of the United States and Canada.

• Grass breeding and plant materials programs were established by both the US and Canadian governments and cooperating universities to develop revegetation materials.

• Efforts of a small number of research locations and people resulted in grass cultivars or varieties that were used to revegetate and preserve the soil on millions of acres of land.

• This is a brief history of the people, agencies, and universities that developed these …

Context-Specific Genomic Selection Strategies Outperform Phenotypic Selection For Soybean Quantitative Traits In The Progeny Row Stage, Christopher J. Smallwood, Arnold M. Saxton, Jason D. Gillman, Hem S. Bhandari, Phillip A. Wadl, Benjamin D. Fallen, David L. Hyten, Qijian Song, Vincent R. Pantalone

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Evaluating different breeding selection strategies for relative utility is necessary to choose those that maximize efficiency. Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] seed yield and fatty acid, protein, and oil contents are all commercially important traits that display complex quantitative inheritance. A soybean population consisting of 860 F₅–derived recombinant inbred lines (RILs), genotyped with 4867 polymorphic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) was used to compare phenotypic and context specific genomic selection (GS) strategies. To simulate progeny rows, each RIL was grown in a single plot in 2010 in Knoxville, TN, and phenotype was recorded. A subset of 276 RILs …

Do Cover Crops And Corn Residue Removal Affect Soil Thermal Properties?, Michael Sindelar, Humberto Blanco-Canqui, Virginia L. Jin, Richard B. Ferguson

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Soil thermal properties govern the transport and storage of heat in the soil. How management practices such as crop residue removal and cover crop (CC) use affect these soil properties is not well understood. For example, CCs could provide physical cover and improve soil properties after main crop residue removal and thus ameliorate the negative effects of residue removal on soil thermal properties. We measured changes in soil thermal properties including soil thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, volumetric heat capacity, and related properties under corn (Zea mays L.) residue removal with and without winter cereal rye (Secale cereale L.) …

Cover Crops And Corn Residue Removal: Impacts On Soil Hydraulic Properties And Their Relationships With Carbon, Michael Sindelar, Humberto Blanco-Canqui, Virginia L. Jin, Richard B. Ferguson

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Large-scale crop residue removal may negatively affect soil water dynamics. Integrating cover crop (CC) with crop residue management can be a strategy to offset potential adverse effects of residue removal. We studied: (i) the impact of corn (Zea mays L.) residue removal (56%) with and without the use of winter rye (Secale cereale L.) CC on soil hydraulic properties, (ii) whether CC would ameliorate residue removal effects on hydraulic properties, and (iii) relationships of hydraulic properties with soil organic C (SOC) and other properties under irrigated no-till continuous corn on a silt loam in south central Nebraska after …

Predicting Longitudinal Traits Derived From High-Throughput Phenomics In Contrasting Environments Using Genomic Legendre Polynomials And B-Splines, Mehdi Momen, Malachy T. Campbell, Harkamal Walia, Gota Morota

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Recent advancements in phenomics coupled with increased output from sequencing technologies can create the platform needed to rapidly increase abiotic stress tolerance of crops, which increasingly face productivity challenges due to climate change. In particular, high-throughput phenotyping (HTP) enables researchers to generate large-scale data with temporal resolution. Recently, a random regression model (RRM) was used to model a longitudinal rice projected shoot area (PSA) dataset in an optimal growth environment. However, the utility of RRM is still unknown for phenotypic trajectories obtained from stress environments. Here, we sought to apply RRM to forecast the rice PSA in control and water-limited …

Dedicated Bioenergy Crops And Water Erosion, Bharat Sharma Acharya, Humberto Blanco-Canqui, Robert B. Mitchell, Richard Cruse, David Laird

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Information on the water quality impact of perennial warmseason grasses (WSGs) when grown in marginal lands as dedicated energy crops is limited. We studied how WSGs affected runoff, sediment, and nutrient losses and related near-surface soil properties to those of no-till corn (Zea mays L.) on an eroded soil in southwestern Iowa and a center pivot corner in east-central Nebraska. The experiment at the eroded soil was established in 2012, and treatments included ‘Liberty’ switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) and no-till continuous corn. The experiment at the pivot corner was established in 2013 with ‘Liberty’ switchgrass, ‘Shawnee’ switchgrass, low-diversity grass …

Shifting Avian Spatial Regimes In A Changing Climate, Caleb P. Roberts, Craig R. Allen, David G. Angeler, Dirac Twidwell

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

In the present era of rapid global change, development of early warnings of ecological regime shifts is a major focus in ecology. Identifying and tracking shifts in spatial regimes is a new approach with potential to enhance understanding of ecological responses to global change. Here, we show strong directional non-stationarity of spatial regimes identified by avian community body mass data. We do this by tracking 46 years of avian spatial regime movement in the North American Great Plains. The northernmost spatial regime boundary moved >590 km northward, and the southernmost boundary moved >260 km northward. Tracking spatial regimes affords decadal …

Rapid Metabolism Increases The Level Of 2,4-D Resistance At High Temperature In Common Waterhemp (Amaranthus Tuberculatus), Chandrima Shyam, Amit J. Jhala, Greg Kruger, Mithila Jugulam

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Common waterhemp emerges throughout the crop growing season in the Midwestern United States, and as a result, the seedlings are exposed to a wide range of temperature regimes. Typically, 2,4-D is used in the Midwest to control winter annual broad-leaf weeds before planting soybean and in an early post-emergence application in corn and sorghum; however, the evolution of 2,4-D-resistant common waterhemp in several Midwestern states may limit the use of 2.4-D for controlling this problem weed. Moreover, temperature is one of the crucial factors affecting weed control efficacy of 2,4-D. This research investigated the effect of temperature on efficacy of …

The Mitochondrial Genome Of Eleusine Indica And Characterization Of Gene Content Within Poaceae, Nathan D. Hall, Hui Zhang, Jeffrey P. Mower, Joseph Scott Mcelroy, Leslie R. Goertzen

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Plant mitochondrial (mt) genome assembly provides baseline data on size, structure, and gene content, but resolving the sequence of these large and complex organelle genomes remains challenging due to fragmentation, frequent recombination, and transfers of DNA from neighboring plastids. Themt genome for Eleusine indica (Poaceae: goosegrass) is comprehensibly analyzed here, providing key reference data for an economically significant invasive species that is also the maternal parent of the allotetraploid crop Finger millet (Eleusine coracana). The assembled E. indica genome contains 33 protein coding genes, 6 rRNA subunits, 24 tRNA, 8 large repetitive regions 15 kb of transposable elements across a …

Adaptation Of Photosynthesis To Water Deficit In The Reproductive Phase Of A Maize (Zea Mays L.) Inbred Line, H.F. Zheng, L.F. Xin, J.M. Guo, J. Mao, X.P. Han, L. Jia, B.Y. Zheng, C.G. Du, Roger W. Elmore, Q.H. Yang, R.X. Shao

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Photosynthesis is sensitive to water deficit (WD) stress. Maize (Zea mays L.) yield is vulnerable to water stress, especially if it occurs during the reproductive stage. In this study, the expression patterns of photosynthesis-related genes, together with photosynthetic gas-exchange and fluorescence parameters were investigated in a maize inbred line exposed to 50% of field water capacity (moderate WD) for 15 d after tassel emergence. The results demonstrated that WD down-regulated expression of psbA, psbB, psbC, psbP, psaA, psaB, and cab, especially at later periods of WD stress. Besides, with the increased WD stress, the steady decline in the value of …

United States Midwest Soil And Weather Conditions Influence Anaerobic Potentially Mineralizable Nitrogen, Jason D. Clark, Kristen S. Veum, Fabian G. Fernandez, James J. Camberato, Paul R. Carter, Richard B. Ferguson, David W. Franzen, Daniel E. Kaiser, Newell R. Kitchen, Carrie A. M. Laboski, Emerson D. Nafziger, Carl J. Rosen, John E. Sawyer, John F. Shanahan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen provided to crops through mineralization is an important factor in N management guidelines. Understanding of the interactive effects of soil and weather conditions on N mineralization needs to be improved. Relationships between anaerobic potentially mineralizable N (PMN_an) and soil and weather conditions were evaluated under the contrasting climates of eight US Midwestern states. Soil was sampled (0–30 cm) for PMN_an analysis before pre-plant N application (PP_0N) and at the V5 development stage from the pre-plant 0 (V5_0N) and 180 kg N ha−1 (V5_180N) rates and incubated for 7, 14, and …

Enhancing Water Stress Tolerance In Floriculture Crops, Suejin Park

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Water deficit is one of the major constraints on plant growth and development, causing reduction of crop productivity. To minimize water loss, among many adaptation strategies, plants close their stomata to reduce transpiration. The stomatal closure is regulated by light, internal CO2 concentration, and plant hormones, mainly abscisic acid. Plants’ response mechanisms to water deficit are complex processes involving numerous genes and various signaling pathways. Floriculture crops are often exposed to water deficit during shipping and retailing, and these periods often result in damaged crops and profit loss. Understanding of plant responses to water deficit stress will provide us an …

Evaluation Of Spray Pattern Uniformity Using Three Unique Analyses As Impacted By Nozzle, Pressure, And Pulse-Widthmodulation Duty Cycle, Thomas R. Butts, Joe D. Luck, Bradley K. Fritz, W. Clint Hoffmann, Greg R. Kruger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: The increasing popularity of pulse-width modulation (PWM) sprayers requires that application interaction effects on spray pattern uniformity be completely understood to maintain a uniform overlap of spray, thereby reducing crop injury potential andmaximizing coverage on target pests. The objective of this researchwas to determine the impacts of nozzle type (venturi vs. non-venturi), boom pressure, and PWMduty cycle on spray pattern uniformity. Research was conducted using an indoor spray patternator located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, NE, USA. Coefficient of variation (CV), root mean square error (RMSE), and average percent error (APE) were used to characterize spray pattern …