Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Soil Science Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Discipline
Institution
Keyword
Publication Year
Publication
Publication Type
File Type

Articles 10741 - 10770 of 14408

Full-Text Articles in Soil Science

Kentucky Forage Spokesperson Contest, Kentucky Forage And Grassland Council Oct 2014

Kentucky Forage Spokesperson Contest, Kentucky Forage And Grassland Council

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Can I Afford To Spray For Weeds?, Scott Flynn Oct 2014

Can I Afford To Spray For Weeds?, Scott Flynn

Kentucky Grazing Conference

A common question among managers of grazing operations is “At what level of weed pressure does it become economical to apply herbicides on pastures?” Unfortunately there isn’t just one answer to this question as production goals and practices differ between operations and even within an operation over time. Regardless, the real question being ask is if weed control will increase profit per acre.

Go to article

Grazing Options For Fall And Winter, Edward N. Ballard Oct 2014

Grazing Options For Fall And Winter, Edward N. Ballard

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Feed costs represent the major cost in most livestock production systems. A recently completed analysis of 225 Standardized Performance Analysis (SPA) Beef Cow Records on herds in Illinois and Iowa showed that feed cost was the overriding factor determining profitability, explaining over 57 percent of the herd-to-herd variation.

Go to article

Summer Grazing Options, S. Ray Smith, Krista Lea Oct 2014

Summer Grazing Options, S. Ray Smith, Krista Lea

Kentucky Grazing Conference

During the last 15 years there have been several new forage species that have emerged as useful in grazing systems and many new varieties have been released of traditional species. There are many sources of information on summer grazing options. We especially encourage you to read the publication written by Dr. Garry Lacefield and colleagues, “Extending Grazing and Reducing Stored Feed Needs” (AGR-199, www.uky.edu/Ag/Forage/agr199.pdf). I have used information from this publication and other publications from the University of Kentucky Forage Website (www.uky.edu/Ag/Forage) in writing this article.

Go to article

Technical Service Provider: What Is It And Why Is It Important To You?, Bill Payne Oct 2014

Technical Service Provider: What Is It And Why Is It Important To You?, Bill Payne

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Progressive graziers and forage managers are continually looking to improve their operations’ productivity. The opportunity exists to have a Grazing Management Plan developed for your operation at little or no cost to you. By contacting your county NRCS office, you can apply to have this plan developed by a Technical Service Provider, an independent professional certified by NRCS.

Go to article

Forage Legumes: Their Importance And Management In Profitable Livestock Systems, Ben M. Goff Oct 2014

Forage Legumes: Their Importance And Management In Profitable Livestock Systems, Ben M. Goff

Kentucky Grazing Conference

The landscape of most Kentucky operations is heavily dominated by the utilization of cool-season grasses as the primary source of forage for livestock. However, legumes species, such alfalfa and red or white clovers are an essential component to a complete forage-livestock system. Relative to grasses alone, incorporating legumes into a mixture has the benefits of improving the nutritive value of the available forage in the field, extending the grazing season by increasing the yield of forage during the early summer months, and providing a more economical source of N compared to commercial fertilizers. This paper will briefly describe each of …

Go to article

Maximizing Stocker Gains On Pastures, Jeff Lehmkuhler Oct 2014

Maximizing Stocker Gains On Pastures, Jeff Lehmkuhler

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Stocker enterprises by definition utilize pasture forages to add weight to light weight feeder cattle. These operations add value to calves by assimilating small groups of calves and combining them into larger uniform packages. Stocker operators also enhance quality through livestock husbandry practices that “upgrade” feeders which could include castrating bulls, dehorning, improving immunity and other attributes. In an effort to optimize profit margins, stocker operators must manage feeders to ensure high rates of gain while finding a balance in stocking rates that provide adequate gains per acre.

Go to article

Grazing Method: Tool Or Toolbox?, Garry D. Lacefield Oct 2014

Grazing Method: Tool Or Toolbox?, Garry D. Lacefield

Kentucky Grazing Conference

This conference makes the 15th consecutive year we have devoted a full day to Grazing. Kentucky is a great state for grazing animals since we have a relatively long pasture season, can grow many forage grasses and legumes and a long tradition of producing quality animal products from quality pasture. We have tremendous potential to improve our overall grazing efficiency and the discussion throughout the day will address many of the practical strategies for improvements.

Go to article

Foreword And Kfgc Award Winners [2014], Garry D. Lacefield, Christi L. Forsythe Oct 2014

Foreword And Kfgc Award Winners [2014], Garry D. Lacefield, Christi L. Forsythe

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Warming Reduces Tall Fescue Abundance But Stimulates Toxic Alkaloid Concentrations In Transition Zone Pastures Of The U.S., Rebecca L. Mcculley, Lowell P. Bush, Anna E. Carlisle, Huihua Ji, Jim A. Nelson Oct 2014

Warming Reduces Tall Fescue Abundance But Stimulates Toxic Alkaloid Concentrations In Transition Zone Pastures Of The U.S., Rebecca L. Mcculley, Lowell P. Bush, Anna E. Carlisle, Huihua Ji, Jim A. Nelson

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Tall fescue pastures cover extensive acreage in the eastern half of the United States and contribute to important ecosystem services, including the provisioning of forage for grazing livestock. Yet little is known concerning how these pastures will respond to climate change. Tall fescue's ability to persist and provide forage under a warmer and wetter environment, as is predicted for much of this region as a result of climate change, will likely depend on a symbiotic relationship the plant can form with the fungal endophyte, Epichloë coenophiala. While this symbiosis can confer environmental stress tolerance to the plant, the endophyte …

Go to article

Geogram 2014, David J. Keeling Editor, Wku Department Of Geography And Geology Oct 2014

Geogram 2014, David J. Keeling Editor, Wku Department Of Geography And Geology

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Publications

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Vegetation And Soil Characteristics Of Pine Plantations And Naturally Regenerated Hardwood Forests On The Hoosier National Forest, Patrick James Duffy Oct 2014

Vegetation And Soil Characteristics Of Pine Plantations And Naturally Regenerated Hardwood Forests On The Hoosier National Forest, Patrick James Duffy

Open Access Theses

During the 1930s there was widespread erosion on farmland and subsequent land abandonment. As a result, Pinus strobus L. (white pine), P. resinosa Aiton (red pine), and P. echinata Mill. (shortleaf pine) were planted in the Midwest to prevent erosion and rehabilitate sites. These species were selected due to their wide availability at the time. Currently, it is the goal of the U.S. Forest Service to provide a more natural and sustainable landscape, in part by removing these non-native Pinus stands and by replacing them with native hardwood species. The ultimate success of hardwood restoration depends, in part, on the …

Go to article

Assessing Positional Accuracy And Correcting Point Data For Digital Soil Mapping At Varying Scales, Minerva J. Dorantes Oct 2014

Assessing Positional Accuracy And Correcting Point Data For Digital Soil Mapping At Varying Scales, Minerva J. Dorantes

Open Access Theses

Accuracy, timeliness, and the effect of scale of soil maps are rarely assessed. The recent increase in the use of GIS technologies and modelling software in natural resources and land management, has increased the demand for soil information at a finer resolution worldwide. Most of the world's developing countries rely on soils information at a scale that is too coarse for practical planning, and have obstacles impeding collection of new data, such as civil war and a lack of collection resources. The United States has an exhaustive collection of soils data at a fine scale. However, its location information is …

Go to article

Liquid Swine Manure Application Timing And Instincttm Impacts On Net Soil Nitrogen Mineralization And Corn Yield, Min Xu Oct 2014

Liquid Swine Manure Application Timing And Instincttm Impacts On Net Soil Nitrogen Mineralization And Corn Yield, Min Xu

Open Access Theses

Nitrogen (N) is one of the most expensive variable input costs for corn production. Optimized manure management is essential to ensure maximum crop N utilization and to reduce the risk of N loss. A field study was conducted in central Indiana from 2011-2013 to assess liquid swine ( Sus scrofa L.) manure N availability when applied at different times or co-applied with InstinctTM , a microencapsulated form of nitrapyrin. Soil inorganic N contents, soil N mineralization, corn yield, grain N content, whole plant N concentrations of corn at the V6 growth stage, and ear leaf N concentrations of corn at …

Go to article

Soil Quality And Nitrogen Cycling Dynamics Altered By Fertility Amendments In Intensively Managed Vegetable Production Systems, Matt A. Rudisill Oct 2014

Soil Quality And Nitrogen Cycling Dynamics Altered By Fertility Amendments In Intensively Managed Vegetable Production Systems, Matt A. Rudisill

Open Access Dissertations

Fresh market vegetable production in the Midwest U.S. is growing rapidly as a result of increased demand for locally-sourced food. High tunnels are becoming increasingly popular among Midwest vegetable growers as these structures offer many production benefits including season extension. However, vegetables require substantial fertility inputs, particularly nitrogen (N), in order to meet desired levels of productivity, and some fertility management strategies can negatively impact soil and environmental quality. This can be particularly problematic in high tunnels, where longer production periods and modification of the growing environment put these systems at greater risk for soil degradation. Identification of fertility practices …

Go to article

Warming, Competition, And Bromus Tectorum Population Growth Across An Elevation Gradient, Aldo Compagnoni, Peter B. Adler Sep 2014

Warming, Competition, And Bromus Tectorum Population Growth Across An Elevation Gradient, Aldo Compagnoni, Peter B. Adler

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is one of the most problematic invasive plant species in North America and climate change threatens to exacerbate its impacts. We conducted a two‐year field experiment to test the effect of warming, competition, and seed source on cheatgrass performance across an elevation gradient in northern Utah. We hypothesized that warming would increase cheatgrass performance, but that warming effects would be limited by competing vegetation and by local adaptation of cheatgrass seed sources. The warming treatment relied on open top chambers, we removed vegetation to assess the effect of competition from neighboring vegetation, and we reciprocally …

Go to article

Field Trip Guidebook For The Nebraska Well Drillers Association, Duane A. Eversoll, Matt Joeckel, Lee Orton Sep 2014

Field Trip Guidebook For The Nebraska Well Drillers Association, Duane A. Eversoll, Matt Joeckel, Lee Orton

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Three-Dimensional Deformable Pore Networks, Jack W. Conrad, Laura J Pyrak-Nolte Aug 2014

Three-Dimensional Deformable Pore Networks, Jack W. Conrad, Laura J Pyrak-Nolte

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Porous structures in materials play a part in many areas of research and development. A couple of examples of this are extraction of water through aquifers and oil through fracking processes. Current understanding of the small scale fluid-fluid interactions in the structure of these porous materials stops at data of the two dimensional interface between the two fluids. This experiment aimed to create three dimensional, transparent, deformable micro-models which are expected allow us to obtain three dimensional data sets of the capillary pressure–saturation–interfacial area per volume relationship. The micro-models were synthesized using a grain deposition technique. Grains were formed using …

Go to article

Assessing The Influence Of Mineral Surface Chemistry On Soil Organic Matter Stability In The Us In Response To Climate Change, Alexandra Toledo, Katherine Heckman Aug 2014

Assessing The Influence Of Mineral Surface Chemistry On Soil Organic Matter Stability In The Us In Response To Climate Change, Alexandra Toledo, Katherine Heckman

STAR Program Research Presentations

Soils represent a significant pool for carbon storage and sequestration. Previous field experiments have indicated that some mineral compositions are more effective in preserving soil organic matter (SOM) from microbial degradation. Due to climate change, it is important to quantify which soil types are changing in mineral surface chemistry. One way to do that is by differentiating the SOM stabilization mechanisms in different soil types at various depths. This study focused on examining the distribution of soil mass and composition by the soils density and mineral classification and the soils stability by measuring the amount of carbon and radiocarbon abundance. …

Go to article

Changes In Tundra Plant And Soil Organic Geochemical Composition In Response To Long-Term Increased Winter Precipitation In N. Alaska, Olivia Miller Jul 2014

Changes In Tundra Plant And Soil Organic Geochemical Composition In Response To Long-Term Increased Winter Precipitation In N. Alaska, Olivia Miller

Open Access Theses

Tundra ecosystem soils store half of the global soil organic carbon (SOC) pool and have the potential to release large amounts of greenhouse gases, primarily CH4 and CO2. As climates warm and permafrost thaws, the emissions of these gases as organic matter decomposition rates increase may become increasingly important to the chemistry of the atmosphere. Increases in precipitation that accompany warming, may shift tundra vegetative composition from moss/graminoid- to shrub-dominated systems. These vegetation shifts may result in important feedback effects as altered plant and litter chemistry may affect SOC storage in soils. Questions investigated include: 1) How …

Go to article

Investigating Meter Scale Topographic Variation As A Factor Of Monterey Pine (Pinus Radiata) Growing Conditions At Kenneth Norris Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, Ca, William J. Meyst Jun 2014

Investigating Meter Scale Topographic Variation As A Factor Of Monterey Pine (Pinus Radiata) Growing Conditions At Kenneth Norris Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, Ca, William J. Meyst

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Endemic Monterey pine (Pinus radiata) is limited to three locations in California due to its unique ecological requirements. This project was conducted to investigate spatial growth patterns ofMonterey pine over complex ground surfaces. The coastal hills of Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, were surveyed using four 150-m transects to quantify and record ground surface features and growing conditions ofMonterey pine. Changes in elevation of each transect were measured using an Abney level. Linear ground surfaces were found at 86% (344 of 400) of survey nodes. Convex ground surfaces were found at 10.5% of survey nodes (42 of 400). Of …

Go to article

The Effect Of Increasing Rates Of Biochar On Corn Grown In Salinas Clay Loam, Joshua Fridlund Jun 2014

The Effect Of Increasing Rates Of Biochar On Corn Grown In Salinas Clay Loam, Joshua Fridlund

Agricultural Education and Communication

In order to sustain the ever growing global population, agriculture needs to not only increase yields but to increase yields in a way that is sustainable and is either environmentally neutral or has a positive effect on the environment. Biochar offers a solution to this challenge with numerous environmental benefits, as well as agricultural benefits (Lehman and Joseph 2009). The agricultural benefits of biochar have been well documented in tropical climates, with the benefits of biochar for other climates, such as temperate climates and Mediterranean climates, relatively unknown (Blackwell et. al. 2009). To determine the effect of biochar on agricultural …

Go to article

Plant-Microbial Interactions Change Along A Prairie Restoration Chronosequence, Anna Herzberger May 2014

Plant-Microbial Interactions Change Along A Prairie Restoration Chronosequence, Anna Herzberger

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Soil microbial communities are critical in determining the performance and density of species in plant communities. However, their role in regulating the success of restorations is much less clear. This study assessed the ability of soil microbial communities to regulate the growth and performance of two potentially dominant grasses and two common forbs in prairie restorations. Specifically, I examined the effects of soil microbial communities along a restoration chronosequence from agricultural fields to remnant prairies using experimentally inoculated soils. The two grass species, Andropogon gerardii and Sorghastrum nutans, produced larger biomass with the agricultural inoculates and experienced a decline …

Go to article

Pore Water Extraction For Unsaturated Zone Isotope Research: An Investigation Using An Immiscible Displacement Fluid And A Centrifuge, Caitlin Burnett Weaver May 2014

Pore Water Extraction For Unsaturated Zone Isotope Research: An Investigation Using An Immiscible Displacement Fluid And A Centrifuge, Caitlin Burnett Weaver

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Accurate and reliable pore water extraction techniques are important to an array of scientific fields including, but not limited to, hydrogeology, soil science, and paleoenvironmental research. The aim of the current project is to test the applicability of an immiscible displacement extraction technique for stable isotopes of water under a range of textural, hydrologic, and chemical conditions. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to establish the extent to which the proposed method 1) achieves sufficient yield for laboratory isotopic analyses, 2) results in isotopic exchange between water and the displacement fluid, 3) conserves initial isotopic compositions of spike test …

Go to article

Estimating Unsaturated Flow Properties In Coarse Conglomeratic Sediment, Michael James Thoma Jr. May 2014

Estimating Unsaturated Flow Properties In Coarse Conglomeratic Sediment, Michael James Thoma Jr.

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I address the lack of knowledge of unsaturated flow in coarse, conglomeratic sediment by determining if functional θ-ψ-K relationships, specifically van Genuchten-Mualem (VGM) relationships, developed to predict unsaturated flow in relatively fine-grained sediment can be directly applied to coarse, conglomeratic sediment. In the summer of 2011, a field-scale infiltration test was conducted at the Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site to determine if functional ψ-θ-K relationships could be applied to infiltration in coarse, conglomeratic sediment, and to estimate parameter values for the VGM relationships. Vertically and laterally distributed ψ(t) and θ( …

Go to article

A Regional Investigation Of In-Season Nitrogen Requirement For Maize Using Model And Sensor-Based Recommendation Approaches, Laura Joy Stevens May 2014

A Regional Investigation Of In-Season Nitrogen Requirement For Maize Using Model And Sensor-Based Recommendation Approaches, Laura Joy Stevens

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

N management for corn can be improved by applying a portion of the total N during the growing season, allowing for adjustments responsive to actual field conditions. This study was conducted to evaluate two approaches for determining in-season N rates: Maize-N model and active crop canopy sensor. Various sensor algorithms designed for making in-season N recommendations from crop canopy sensor data were evaluated. The effects of corn hybrid and planting population on recommendations with these two approaches were considered. In a 2-yr study, a total of twelve sites were evaluated over a 3-state region, including sites in Missouri, Nebraska, and …

Go to article

Spreading The Char: The Importance Of Local Compatibility In The Diffusion Of Biochar Systems To The Smallholder Agriculture Community Context, Laura C. V. Munoz May 2014

Spreading The Char: The Importance Of Local Compatibility In The Diffusion Of Biochar Systems To The Smallholder Agriculture Community Context, Laura C. V. Munoz

Pomona Senior Theses

This thesis enters the context of smallholder agriculture communities in the developing world. It explores the potentials of biochar and what biochar systems could bring to the smallholder communities while simultaneously bringing environmental benefits. It then acknowledges the challenges of diffusion –the spreading of an unfamiliar innovation. It seeks to answer the question of what will make diffusion of biochar systems more successful in the smallholder context, fixating on the characteristic of compatibility as well as the role local community members can play in making a new biochar system more visible to the rest of the communities.

Go to article

Soil Water Flux Estimates From Streaming Potential And Penta-Needle Heat Pulse Probe Measurements, Pawel J. Szafruga May 2014

Soil Water Flux Estimates From Streaming Potential And Penta-Needle Heat Pulse Probe Measurements, Pawel J. Szafruga

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Growing populations, coupled with climate change and resource depletion, have heightened concern about water management. The growing need to better manage agricultural systems, including irrigation and fertilizer application, as well the lasting consequences of excess application of nitrogen and other nutrients, could be remedied with an improved method to monitor soil water movement. Despite huge technological advances, a tool to measure soil water flow at the low rates found in the field has not been developed. Current methods lack the precision to provide the needed accuracy to fully understand soil-water dynamics, as well as the ability to provide instantaneous information. …

Go to article

Linking Montane Soil Moisture Measurements To Evapotranspiration Using Inverse Numerical Modeling, Ling Lv May 2014

Linking Montane Soil Moisture Measurements To Evapotranspiration Using Inverse Numerical Modeling, Ling Lv

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Evapotranspiration (ET) and soil moisture play important roles in annual water delivered from snowpack to reservoirs, lakes and streams. Indeed, ET and soil moisture are key factors dictating the performance of the regional climate models in the intermountain west (IMW) of the USA. Water resources management and climate modeling require accurate prediction of ET and areal soil moisture for reliable estimates of ongoing and future water needs. This research has examined ways to estimate ET from four common vegetation types in the IMW (aspen, conifer, grass and sage) using local soil moisture measurements from an advanced instrumentation network located in …

Go to article

Fertilizer Nitrogen Uptake Efficiency In Soft Red Winter Wheat And The Ability Of N-Star To Detect Alkaline Hydrolyzable Nitrogen In Crop Residues, Lana Aubrey Clark May 2014

Fertilizer Nitrogen Uptake Efficiency In Soft Red Winter Wheat And The Ability Of N-Star To Detect Alkaline Hydrolyzable Nitrogen In Crop Residues, Lana Aubrey Clark

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soil testing methods such as the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test (ISNT) and Direct Steam Distillation (DSD) have been developed which measure alkaline hydrolyzable-N (AH-N) as a means of estimating potentially mineralizable-N. Crop residues play an important role in N cycling. However, the ability of the ISNT and DSD methods to determine AH-N within crop residues is unknown. Therefore, the first objective of this study was to determine the ability of the ISNT and DSD to quantify potentially mineralizable-N within five different crop residues common to Arkansas. Corn (Zea mays L.), soybean (Glycine max, L.), wheat, rice (Oryza sativa, L.), and …

Go to article

First Prev Next Last