Earth Sciences Commons^™

Variation In Suckering Capacity Among And Within Lateral Roots Of An Aspen Clone, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Excised roots were used to determine variation in suckering capacity among and within lateral roots of an aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) clone. Differences among lateral roots were significant. Within segments of a lateral root sucker production showed a high degree of polarity, increasing from the distal to proximal ends. There was no evidence of a gradient in suckering capacity in a segmented root; i.e., distal segments were not significantly different from proximal ones. This indicated that aging was not a factor regulating suckering within lateral roots. Sucker production was not affected by root length.

Terpenes For Indirect Selection Of Growth Potential In Rocky Mountain Douglas-Fir, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Possibilities of using terpene composition for indirect selection of growth potential were explored for Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir. Volatile leaf oil analyses were made on 170 5-year-old seedlings that represented full-sib hybrid families, wind-pollinated parental lines of inland origin, and wind-pollinated parental lines of coastal origin. Correlation analyses showed that terpenes could not be used efficiently for indirect selection of growth potential in the inland variety. But, terpenes may be useful in selecting parental lines in programs of intervarietal hybridization.

Linear Measurement: A Method Of Estimating Fascicle Numbers For Larch Casebearer Population Sampling, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Branch samples collected from 23 plots in northern Idaho and western Montana in 1975 had a combined mean distribution of 3.13 fascicles/inch (1.23 fascicles/cm) of branch length. By subsampling, it is possible to determine cumulative lineal inches of branch necessary to obtain a sampling unit of 100 fascicles for a plot, eliminating the need for counting fascicles on each sample.

Genetic Variation In Susceptibility Of Western White Pine To Needle Blight, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Ten clones of western white pine differed in their susceptibility to white pine needle blight. Two clones were significantly less infected than the average and two clones were significantly more infected than the average. This variability suggests a simple inheritance, maybe just one or two genes.

The Application Of Ecosym Vegetation Classification To Rangelands Near Price, Utah, Don Shute, Neil E. West

Memorandum

No abstract provided.

Desert Biome Aquatic Program: A Literature Search For Biological And Physical Parameters For Use In Estimation Of Zooplankton Production, J. Anne Holman

Memorandum

No abstract provided.

Seasonal Course Of Root Respiration In Atriplex Confertifolia, Richard S. Holthausen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Root respiratory response of mature Atriplex confertifolia plants growing in established communities was measured during two growing seasons using freshly excised root segments and gas chromatography techniques. Respiratory response at fixed test temperatures changed significantly during the growing season, and this pattern of respiratory adjustment varied for root segments located at different depths in the soil profile. Respiration measured at a constant test temperature was highest during early sumner, and declined to minimum values in late summer and fall. Root segments taken from the top 30 cm of the soil profile displayed peak activity several weeks before root segments from …

Growth-Form-Analysis And Paleoecology Of The Corals Of The Lower Mississippian Lodgepole Formation, Bear River Range, North-Central Utah, Judith M. Miller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Mississippian (Kinderhookian-Osagean) Lodgepole Formation contains a diverse fossil assemblage. Taxa present include brachiopods, crinoids, gastropods, cephalopods, trilobites and corals. Corals and associated fauna were collected from four localities within the Bear River Range. These are, from north to south, Beirdneau Hollow, Spring Hollow, Leatham Hollow and Porcupine Dam. The well-preserved tabulate and rugose (compound and solitary) corals exhibit a high degree of morphologic variability. The colonial corals of the Lodgepole Formation (particularly Lithostrotionella, Syringopora) exhibit a morphologic gradient from platy to hemispherical forms. The six morphologic categories of colonial corals discussed in this study are identified by mean …

Structural Geology Of The Southern Part Of Elkhorn Mountain, Bannock Range, Idaho, George A. De Vries

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The area of southern Elkhorn Mountain, a previously unmapped area, is located north of Malad City, Idaho, in the Bannock Range. The mapped area is within the Basin and Range province. The mapped area measures 5.9 miles in the north-south direction and approximately 8.8 miles in the east-west direction.

The oldest stratigraphic unit, in the mapped area, is the Ute Formation of Middle Cambrian age. Other units of Cambrian age, in ascending order, are: Blacksmith Formation, Bloomington Formation, Nounan Formation, and St. Charles Formation. The units of Ordovician age are the Garden City and the Swan Peak Formations. The youngest …

Effect Of Drilling Fluid Components And Mixtures On Plants And Soils, Parvin Pesaran (Djavan)

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The concern about the environment has required that the effects of drilling fluids (muds) on surrounding areas be known. This study was initiated to investigate the effects of various muds on plant growth and on soils.

In preliminary studies in Phase I (31 individual mud components), it was concluded that the obvious dominant effects on plant growth of detrimental drilling fluid components included excess soluble salts, excess exchangeable sodium percentage, possibly a high pH in some mixtures, and undesirable physical conditions. The latter resulted from the sodium and/or starch, gums, and bentonite.

Phase II, the second year's study of the …

Vertical Mesoscale Water Vapor Flux In An Irrigated Valley, Esmaiel Malek

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

To obtain the profiles of dry bulb and wet bulb temperature, specific humidity, q, and air density, ρ, to a height of 200 meters above the ground, a precise lightweight thermocouple psychrometer was designed. To lift the thermocouple psychrometer and the attached wires in obtaining the ρq profiles, a rigid polyethylene balloon augmented with 5.5-feet outdoor or 100-g meteorological balloons were used. Using the height dependent eddy exchange coefficient and a one-dimensional time-dependent profile model, the nighttime variations of ρq as a function of height were predicted and compared with observed values. It was found that the general shape of …

Synecology And Faunal Succession Of The Upper Mississippian Great Blue Limestone, Bear River Range And Wellsville Mountain, North-Central Utah, Alan P. Sweide

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The late Mississippian Great Blue Limestone was studied at four locations around Cache Valley, Utah. One location was at Dry Lake in the Pisgah Hills to the west of Cache Valley. Three locations were in the Bear River Range to the east of Cache Valley. From north to south the locations are: 1) Beirdneau Peak, 2) Logan Peak, and 3) the ridge to the north of East Fork Canyon. The Dry Lake location represents the upper, middle, and some of the lower part of the section. The base of the section is covered. Locations in the Bear River Range represent …

Interpretation Of Selected Soil Data From The Central Part Of Utah, Amjad T. El-Rihani

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Seventy-eight soil samples belonging to 15 sites were sampled by SEAM project in 1976. These 15 pedons represent different soil types which cover the Manti-LaSal area in the central part of Utah. The 15 pedons were described in standard notation. Complete soil analysis was done. The soil analysis includes the following determinations: particle size distribution, moisture retention, soil pH, organic matter, electrical conductivity, calcium carbonate equivalent, cation exchange capacity , base saturation, extractable cations and saturation extract soluble. Also x-ray diffraction for selected horizons was done.

The 15 pedons were classified according to the currently used system. This report includes …

The Evaluation Of A Computer Model To Predict The Effects Of Salinity On Crop Growth, James K. Wolf

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A model was developed to predict the effects of soil salinity on crop growth. The model makes three major assumptions: 1) Relative yield for a growing season is directly related to the ratio of actual and potential transpiration. 2) Water uptake by plants is in response to the water potential gradient between the plant roots and the surrounding soil. 3) The effects of the soil salinity on crop growth is solely due to the affect of osmotic potential in decreasing the water potential. Minor assumptions also included are concerned with the plant growth cover, plant root growth, and the separation …

Phosphorus Availability As Indicated By Alfalfa Response To Applied Phosphorus On Soils With Low Soil-Test Values, Ibrahim Odeh Ghawi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A field experiment was conducted at two locations in Utah, one at Erda in Tooele County and the other at Minersville in Beaver County. Each experiment was designed as a randomized block design with five treatments and four replication s for each treatment. The test crop was alfalfa. Three cuttings were taken from each location to estimate the yield. Soil samples from the first 12 inches and subsoil samples from 12-24 inches were taken to determine the available NaHCO₃-P in the soils. Plant samples were taken to determine the P content of the crop. The results showed that …

Grindstone Flat And Big Flat Exclosures - A 41-Year Record Of Changes In Clearcut Aspen Communities, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Deer browsing prevented aspen regeneration in both uncut stands and small 1/20-hectare clearcuts, even though nearby large burns regenerated successfully. Size of the clearcut or burned area may be critical in determining success of aspen regeneration; areas less than about 2 hectares in size may adversely concentrate deer use. Shrub production was less under deer use and forb production was less under cattle use than on protected areas. More apsen suckers were produced in uncut stands where cattle grazed than in stands protected from grazing, suggesting a possible relationship between sucker initiation and reduced competition from the herbaceous understory. Removal …

Estimating Merchantable Volume And Stem Residue In Four Timber Species: Ponderosa Pine, Lodgepole Pine, Western Larch, Douglas-Fir, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Presents tables and equations for estimating total cubic volumes of wood, wood residue, and bark for ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, western larch, and Douglas-fir. Tables represent second-growth trees 80 years old or less, ranging in size from 1-1/2 inches d.b.h. to the maximum diameter measured for the respective species. The equations and tables provide a means for estimating wood bark residue volumes from tops, bole sections, and smaller submerchantable stems. Tables and equations can also be used to estimate total cubic volume for the size classes, species, and locale sampled.

Regeneration And Early Growth On Strip Clearcuts In Lodgepole Pine/Bitterbrush Habitat Type, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service

Forestry

Establishment and growth of seedlings 13 years after strip clearcutting was investigated on a lodgepole pine/bitterbrush habitat type in southwestern Montana. Ingress of new seedlings (all from open-coned lodgepole pine) on areas that had been heavily bulldozer scarified was considerably better than on areas without bulldozer scarification. Seed:seedling ratios (established seedlings) ranged from 625:1 to 2,160:1 on scarified sites, and from 1,876:1 to 6,480:1 on unscarified sites. Only 3 years out of 13 resulted in significant numbers of seedlings being established. Advanced regeneration released by logging was growing as rapidly as seedlings established following logging.

Quaternary Geomorphic Features Of The Bear River Range, North-Central Utah, Jerome Vernon Degraff

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Bear River Range, in north-central Utah, contains a variety of geomorphic elements influenced by the geologic setting and events. Controlling factors of the geologic setting include: (1) a syncline (west) and an anticline with a crestal graben (east) within the part of the mountain range studied, and an adjacent graben valley along the west side of the range; and (2) bedrock of Precambrian and Paleozoic age in the core of the range, predominantly of shallow-marine carbonates and covered in the graben by shaly and conglomeratic rocks of early Cenozoic age, with fanglomerates and lake deposits of later Cenozoic age. …

Structural Geology Of Cutler Dam Quadrangle And Northern Part Of Honeyville Quadrangle, Utah, Douglas A. Sprinkel

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mapped area is located in the north-central part of Utah. The northern part of the mapped area is located in the Basin and Range province and the southern part of the mapped area is located in the Middle Rocky Mountain province. The north-south and east-west dimensions of the mapped area are 11.1 miles and 5.1 miles, respectively.

Paleozoic rocks are exposed in Bear River Narrows, in Cache Butte Divide, and in the Wellsville Mountains. Paleozoic strata, in Bear River Narrows, dip west. The Ordovician Swan Peak Formation crops out in the eastern part of Bear River Narrows. It is …

Some Aspects Of The Salinity Of Mancos Shale And Mancos Derived Soils, James C. Whitmore

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Initial studies to determine the thermodynamic solubility product (K_sp) of gypsum and CaCO₃ were conducted. The influence of different electrolyte salts at different concentrations upon the solubility of gypsum and CaCO₃ was then tested. Analytical data was utilized in conjunction with a computer to calculate the activity of CaCO₃ and gypsum, the ion pair concentration and the solubility product. Indifferent salts increased the solubility of gypsum and CaCO₃, and salts with a common ion decreased the solubility of gypsum and CaCO₃.

Lithium was found to be the dominant monovalent cation present …

Modeling Spring Wheat Production As Influenced By Climate And Irrigation, V. Philip Rasmussen Jr.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A model has been developed that predicts spring wheat grain and dry matter yield. Preliminary tests show very favorable results when predicting grain yield in two different climatic regimes, one being a dryland and another being an irrigated area. The strengths of the model lie in its simplicity, relatively available input data, and low computer processing time cost. Weakness of the model stem from the assumptions that allow its simplicity. The basic assumption in the model is that grain and dry matter yield can be related to the ratio of actual to potential transpiration, computed for each of five phenological …

A Model For Designing Surface Drainage Systems In Nearly Level Agricultural Lands, Rafael Maria Rojas

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The increasing demand for reclamation of periodically waterlogged nearly level agricultural lands in humid tropical areas and the hazard of soil deterioration and soil moisture balance disturbances by current land forming methods suggests the need for investigations of new surface drainage design procedures. This report presents a rainfall-runoff model for simulating hydrographs from ungaged agricultural plots. The model is based on routing procedures and utilizes common soil and hydrologic data. Tests made with several small agricultural water-sheds indicate that the model could be a useful tool in simulating surface drainage design.

Input data for the model consists of (a) rainfall …

Dikes Of The Clear Creek Area, Wasatch Plateau, Utah, William Dennis Thomas

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The area, covered by this report, includes about 108 square miles in the northeastern part of the Wasatch Plateau in central Utah. Clear Creek, Utah, is near the center of the area.

Stratigraphy of the area is characterized by 18,000 to 20,000 feet of sedimentary rocks above the Precambrian basement. The oldest exposed stratigraphic unit is the 11ancos Formation of late Cretaceous age; the youngest exposed stratigraphic unit is the North Horn Formation of Cretaceous-Tertiary age. The sedimentary rocks are mainly sandstone, shale, and coal. Sandstone and shale are the most abundant.

Structure of the area is characterized by folds …

The Accuracy Of Soil Mapping Units Of Certain Pachic And Cumulic Soils In Northern Utah, Behjat Badamchian

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the accuracy of mapping of pachic and cumulic soils in Cache County. The soil maps that were used for this study as the basemap were the Atlas sheets of the published soil survey of Cache County.

Five map units from Mendou, Nebeker, Avon, Hendricks and Winn which include almost 52 percent of the pachic and cumulic soils in the survey area were selected for this study. These five soils cover large areas when compared to other soil series and they are distributed throughout the county. All these map units were recognized as …

Albedo Of The Earth's Surface -- A Comparison Of Measurements Taken On The Ground And From Flying Platforms, Frank D. Eaton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The main objectives of this study were to develop the intricacies of reflected solar radiation from different natural surfaces and to show comparisons between values sensed in space of emergent radiation to ground values obtained from accounting for anisotropic reflection and estimating the effect of the intervening atmosphere. Thus, this study demonstrated that a prior knowledge of the angular distribution of reflected radiation allows determining the true hemispherical reflected radiation from a narrow field of view instrument such as found on a flying platform. Measurements for determining the indicatrices were made from a tower-mounted Nimbus MRIR and, in one case, …

Nitrogen Fertilization Studies In Dryland Winter Wheat And Potential Nitrogen Losses From The Soil At The Blue Creek Experimental Station In Northern Utah, Subhawat Intalap

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study compared the effects of nitrogen sources on the available inorganic soil nitrogen, nitrogen movement, nitrogen losses, and wheat yields when nitrogen fertilizers were applied to soil planted to dryland winter wheat at the Blue Creek Experimental Station in northern Utah.

In the fall 1973 soil samplings, the fertilizers producing the largest mineral nitrogen contents in the 0-30 cm soil depths were ammonium nitrate >ammonium sulfate > S-coated urea, when they were broadcast at the practical rate of 56 kg N/ha. There was no increase in the mineral nitrogen at the dee per depths in the fall or at any …

Irrigation Scheduling Program For Sugarcane, Terence L. Pearse

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

An estimate of potential evapotranspiration is acquired to implement an irrigation scheduling program. Four equations, which estimate potential evapotranspiration (evaporation) were evaluated for prediction of Class "A" Pan evaporation. The equations used were Penman's combination equation, the Jensen-Haise temperature and radiation equation, and two of the Christiansen-Hargreaves polynomial regression type equations. Measured and calculated radiation was used together with two values of albedo. Four years of daily climate data from Rhodesia was evaluated by general linear regression methods.

Despite the significant variations between the four annual regression lines of each equation, the use of confidence intervals indicate that the Penman …

Biology Of Nematodes In Desert Ecosystems, D. W. Freckman, R. Mankau

Memorandum

No abstract provided.

Responses And Interactions In Desert Plants As Influenced By Irrigation And Nitrogen Application, R. B. Hunter, E. M. Romney, A. Wallace, H. O. Hill, T. A. Ackerman, J. E. Kinnear

Memorandum

No abstract provided.