Agriculture Commons^™

Evaluating The Impact Of Grafting On Local Tomato Production In Nebraska, Raihanah Hassim

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

Vegetable grafting has been known to improve plant production under both biotic and abiotic stresses. With an increase in interest among local growers towards grafting production, it is important to provide enough vegetable grafting information. Therefore, the objective of this study is to assess the impact of grafting, rootstock cultivar, and local conditions and management on the yield and quality of tomato across the diverse growing and environmental conditions, specifically in Nebraska. Three open-field and one limited growing condition study were conducted between 2018 and 2019 across Nebraska. In the open-field trial, two determinant fresh market tomatoes, ‘Nebraska Wedding’ and …

The Surveillance Of Gastrointestinal Parasitic Nematodes Of Northwest Arkansas Dairy Cattle Using Traditional And Genetic Parasitological Identification Procedures, Eva M. Wray

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Traditional and genetic parasitological identification procedures were compared using naturaland artificial nematode parasite infections in Holstein steer calves. The traditional parasitological procedures measured fecal egg counts, coprocultures with subsequent larval collection and adult nematodes collected at necropsy. The genetic identification procedures measured ITS-2 sequences extracted from different stages of nematode development: raw feces, concentrated nematode eggs, third stage larvae and adults. The primary nematodes observed were Cooperia oncophora, Cooperia punctata and Ostertagia ostertagi. The traditional techniques were not significantly different from one another, while the genetic sequencing showed variation amongst the different procedures. The raw feces sequences showed the most …

Investigating The Potential Of Microbial Metabolites And Mtor Signaling On Chicken Necrotic Enteritis, Mohit Bansal

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Necrotic enteritis (NE), caused by C. perfringens and coccidiosis, is responsible for substantial economic loss annually. In the first chapter, we investigated the effect of secondary bile acid on necrotic enteritis. Day-old broiler chicks were randomly assigned to 5 groups of diets supplemented with 0 (basal diet), 0.8, 1.0, and 1.5 g/kg (on top of basal diet) deoxycholic acid (DCA). The birds were challenged with Eimeria maxima (20,000 oocysts/bird) at d 18 and C. perfringens (109CFU/bird/day) at d 23 and d 24 to induce NE. Birds were sacrificed at d 26, and ileal tissue and digesta samples were collected. DCA …

Effect Of Feed Additives And Toxic Elements On Swine Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, Immune Function And Reproductive Performance, Richard A. Mudarra Hernández

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To evaluate the effects of peptide in combination of zinc oxide (Zno) or acidifiers (Exp 1), and gossypol (G) from cottonseed meal (CSM) ( Exp 2&3) on growth performance, complete blood cell counts (Exp 1, 2&3), nutrient digestibility (Exp 1), plasma gossypol (Exp 2&3) and semen quality (Exp 3), weaned pigs (Exp 1), growing gilts (Exp 2) and growing boars (Exp 3) were randomly allotted to dietary treatments. Treatments for Exp 1 during phase 1&2 were: (1) Positive Control (PC), formulated to meet NRC (2012) nutrient requirements; (2) Negative control (NC), fish meal was reduced to achieve -0.13% SID lysine; …

Effect Of Marketing Through Value Added And Video Sales On Feeder Cattle Prices, Amanda Trotter

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Feeder cattle marketing opportunities for producers in Missouri continue to expand. Missouri ranks within the top ten U.S. States in beef cow inventory and is a major feeder calf exporter. Selecting the appropriate marketing opportunity can have a dramatic impact on the income of the cattle producer. Feeder cattle marketing opportunities include value-added program sales, video auctions, as well as the traditional live cattle auction. A long-term study comparing these marketing opportunities in a single livestock market in Missouri has not been conducted. The objective of this study is to analyze cattle characteristics that can influence market price in feeder …

Prospects For Enhancing The Market For Goat Meat Products: Analysis Of The 2019 Goat Meat Survey, Ashton M. Light

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The objective of this study was to identify goat meat product attributes and sociodemographic drivers of consumers’ willingness to buy to goat meat products. To do so the study used a nationwide consumer survey on goat meat preferences. A binary logit model was used to examine the factors affecting willingness to buy. Results show that gender, age, region, primary shopper, and product attribute preference for quality, price, leanness, cholesterol, and freshness significantly affect consumer willingness to buy goat sausage, jerky, burger, and patties.

Predictors Of Student Success In An Upper Division Agriculture Chemistry Class, Maddison V. May

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

To attempt to find what made students successful within a higher division class at Missouri State University’s (MSU) Darr College of Agriculture, de-identified academic records of 172 students enrolled in AGR 300 - Food and Agriculture Chemistry were studied over four semesters. Deidentified data were collected and compared to final letter grade received at the end of the class using correlation coefficients, analysis of variance, and stepwise regression. Analysis of variance was used to evaluate the influence of semester on letter grade. Correlation coefficients were used to determine and evaluate relationships between the variables and final grade. Stepwise regression was …

Entry-Level Workplace Competencies Needed By Graduates Of A Community College Agriculture Program: A Midwest Case Study Using The Delphi Technique, Blake Colclasure

Journal of Research in Technical Careers

Community colleges have a strong history of providing vocational education and occupational training to meet changing workforce demands of local industries. In the Midwest, agricultural industries have expressed an expanding need for middle-skilled workers with postsecondary, prebaccalaureate credentials. The 21st century agricultural landscape has changed as a result of the need for efficiency and sustainability, and resulting emergent agricultural technologies. Community colleges will be integral to establishing a qualified agriculture workforce for entry-level, middle-skilled positions. This study utilized a modified Delphi approach to identify entry-level workplace competencies needed by graduates of a community college agriculture program. Delphi panel experts represented …

Leadership Styles And Barriers To Leadership For Women In Agriculture: A Mixed Methods Study, Erica Ramsey Louder

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Women are a growing demographic in agriculture, yet women holding positions in agricultural leadership is limited. This research sought to identify the ways women in agriculture lead by examining their leadership styles and the barriers they face as they strive to advance within their professions.

The results show that women are relationship-based leaders and that there are significant barriers that inhibit women’s advancement in agriculture. Many of these barriers are related to gender bias, self-perception, and life issues such as stress and workload.

Soil Management Systems To Overcome Multiple Constraints For Dryland Crops On Deep Sands In A Water Limited Environment On The South Coast Of Western Australia, David J. Hall, Stephen L. Davies, Richard W. Bell, Tom Edwards

Grain and Other Field Crops Research Articles

Deep sands on the south coast sandplain of Western Australia (WA) have multiple soil constraints including water repellence, high soil strength, low nutrient levels and subsoil acidity. The aim of the study was to test contrasting methods of managing water repellence and to assess their impacts on one or more soil constraints to crop production. These methods included seeding tyne design (knife point, winged points, paired row), soil wetting agent addition, strategic inversion tillage (rotary spading, mouldboard ploughing to 0.35 m) and clay-rich subsoil addition (170 t ha−1 with incorporation by spading to 0.20 or 0.35 m). Limesand (2 t …

Evaluating The Untapped Potential Of U.S. Conservation Investments To Improve Soil And Environmental Health, Andrea Basche, Katherine Tully, Nora L. Alvarez-Berrios, Julian Reyes, Laura Lengnick, Tabitha Brown, Jennifer M. Moore, Rachel E. Schattman, Lana Koepke Johnson, Gabrielle Roesch-Mcnally

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

There is increasing enthusiasm around the concept of soil health, and as a result, new public and private initiatives are being developed to increase soil health-related practices on working lands in the United States. In addition, billions of U.S. public dollars are dedicated annually toward soil conservation programs, and yet, it is not well quantified how investment in conservation programs improve soil health and, more broadly, environmental health. The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is one of the major U.S. public conservation programs administered on privately managed lands for which public data are available. In this research, we developed a …

Managing Suckers Around Fruit Trees, Samuel Johnson, Teryl Roper, Xin Dai

All Current Publications

Many types of fruit trees produce suckers around the base of the tree. Crown suckers arise in the area immediately surrounding the tree trunk (Photo 1), and root suckers can arise from roots further away from the trunk. Not only are suckers around trees unsightly, but they can also harbor insect pests like wooly apple aphid and provide points of entry for diseases like fire blight. If suckers are profuse, they interfere with in-row weed management and can absorb systemic herbicides such as glyphosate. Some rootstocks used for fruit trees such as M.7 for apples and Mazzard for cherries are …

2020 Seedless Pickling Cucumber Variety Trial, Ben Phillips, Hilda Mcshane

Midwest Vegetable Trial Reports

A pickling cucumber variety trial was planted at the Saginaw Valley Research and Extension Center (43.399097, -83.694497, Frankenmuth, Michigan). Bejo (BJ), Nunhems (NU), and Rijk Zwaan (RZ) seed companies donated parthenocarpic (seedless) varieties for mechanical once-over harvest.

Market Trends In Food Consumption Expenditures Away From Home Prior To The Covid-19 Pandemic, Rebecca Weir

Undergraduate Economic Review

U.S. food consumption expenditures away from home increased from 19 percent of total food expenditures in 1955 to 48 percent in 2015. Simultaneously, female participation in the labor force grew by 52.7 million women from 35 to 57 percent, signifying increased opportunity cost for women to prepare meals at home. This research uses an ordinary least squares regression to examine socioeconomic factors influencing the rise in U.S. food consumption expenditures away from home in 2018. Results inform food production and service industries’ marketing strategies, and set the stage for whether a new pattern emerges in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Northern Giant Hornet (Vespa Mandarinia) And Yellow-Legged Hornet (Vespa Velutina), Potential Pests Of Honey Bees, Benjamin Andrew Powell

Agricultural Education

Exotic hornets present a significant threat to apiculture. Recent introductions of the yellow-legged hornet to Europe and the asian giant hornet to North America have made it critical that regulators, beekeepers and the general public be able to detect and identify these exotic hornets and to understand their biology to minimize the potential impacts to apiculture in South Carolina were they to be introduced.

2020 Nebraska Ballot Issues – Election Results, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

This publication provides educational information regarding the two constitutional amendments recommended by the Unicameral to Nebraska voters and the four citizen ballot initiatives on the November 2020 general election ballot.

Sustainable Management Of Groundwater In Louisiana, Dependra Bhatta

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The common property nature of the Mississippi River Alluvial Aquifer (MRAA) results in the formation of a cone of depression in the southern portion of the aquifer encompassing Concordia parish, Louisiana. Excessive groundwater withdrawal and the resulting cone of depression formation have caused some wells to go dry and others to be affected by saltwater intrusion. The depleting groundwater stock can be managed optimally using different groundwater management policies. The findings of this dissertation are relevant to both policymakers and researchers to understand the effects of policies to keep the aquifer sustainable.

My dissertation is written in a three-essay format. …

Measured And Simulated Carbon Dynamics In Midwestern U.S. Corn‐Soybean Rotations, C Dold, K M. Wacha, T J. Sauer, J L. Hatfield, J H. Prueger

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) production dominate Midwestern U.S. agriculture and impact the regional carbon and nitrogen cycles. Sustaining soil carbon is important for corn‐soybean production (CS); however, quantifying soil carbon changes requires long‐term field measurements and/or model simulations. In this study, changes in soil organic (SOC), inorganic (SIC), and total (TC) carbon; pH; total nitrogen (TN); and net ecosystem production (NEP) were measured in a conventional corn‐soybean rotation in central Iowa. Soil samples (n = 42; 0–120 cm depth) were collected from two adjacent fields in 2005 and 2016. Eddy‐flux stations set up in …

The Impact Of Hemp Cropping Systems On Soil Quality In Western Kentucky, Jack Eaker

Scholars Week

Recently, hemp farming systems are increasingly popular in Kentucky replacing tobacco cropping systems. However, the study on the impacts of hemp cropping on soil properties is rarely conducted, resulting in limited data on soil’s behavior/changes under these management practices. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine soil characteristics including compaction, acidity level, moisture level, and water retention. The measurements were collected from three different hemp fields, three crop rotation studies ( in 2020 - corn, soybean and tobacco) and a bare field adjacent to these fields. All fields are located at Murray State University West Farm, Calloway County, …

Seed Quality And Dormancy Of Hemp (Cannabis Sativa L.), Sabry G. Elias, Yea-Ching Wu, David C. Stimpson

Journal of Agricultural Hemp Research

Hemp has great potential as cash crop for growers in the US because of its multiple uses in food, pharmaceutical, and industrial products. Seed quality and dormancy research had been put off for decades. The indeterminate flowering pattern of hemp results in harvesting seeds with varying maturity levels, affecting their quality. The objectives of this study were to: 1) investigate the differences in quality of seeds harvested from different locations on the same plant, 2) determine suitable viability and vigor tests for evaluating hemp seeds, and 3) examine the extent of dormancy in newly harvested seeds and develop a dormancy-breaking …