Agriculture Commons^™

Modeling The Response Of Black Walnut -Dominant Mixed Hardwoods To Seasonal Climate Effects With Uav-Based Hyperspectral Sensor And Aerial Photogrammetry, Tyler G. Bradford

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The development of compact sensors in recent years has inspired the use of UAS-based hyperspectral and aerial imaging techniques for small-scale remote sensing applications. With increasing concerns about climate change, spectrally-derived vegetation indices (VIs) have proven useful for quantifying stress-induced vegetation response. The goal of this study was to develop predictive models and assess methodology for modeling the biological response of a black walnut -dominant mixed hardwood stand to seasonal climate events using UAV-based hyperspectral remote-sensing. The derived VIs were evaluated against the means of four seasonal measures of climate calculated for a two-week period prior to the flight date. …

Classifying Interdependencies In The Food And Agriculture Critical Infrastructure Sector, John Doerpinghaus

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This work classifies examples of infrastructure interdependencies found in the food and agriculture critical infrastructure sector. Interdependencies are identified through an examination of rice and poultry agriculture throughout the state of Arkansas. The subtleties of interdependence examples in the food and agriculture sector are inadequately captured by the well-studied interdependence classification taxonomies. Through 39 interviews, we develop an understanding of the subtle temporal, geographic, and productivity scales of interdependence in over 100 examples and present five new, distinct classifications of interdependence: (1) dynamic physical, (2) dynamic geographic, (3) deadline, (4) delay, and (5) human, economic, and natural resource interdependencies. An …

Risk And Return Comparisons Of Pre-Harvest Marketing Strategies, John Leander Turner V

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper analyzes risk and returns associated with pre-harvest corn grain marketing strategies for the state of Arkansas. Farming is characterized by a volatile environment. Numerous risks are taken by producers in order to provide commodities that are bought and sold by various parties in the supply chain. Price, yield, and production costs vary daily and can have large variation between years. Risk and Return Comparisons of Pre-harvest Marketing Strategies examines the effectiveness of using pre-harvest marketing strategies to enhance returns and to mitigate inherent price risk in the Memphis cash corn market. Thirteen strategies are compared to the October …

Imperfect Produce Pricing: Relationships Between Price Percent Discount And Demographic Traits Of Customers, April Foster

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research sought to understand the impact of price reductions on consumer spending behaviors related to the purchase of imperfect produce. Additionally, the correlation between consumers’ demographics and their willingness to purchase imperfect produce at various price points was evaluated. The data was viewed with mindfulness toward reducing food loss as a function of the world food crisis. More specifically, the purpose of this study was to describe the relationship between Washington County, Arkansas consumers’ demographic traits and the percent discount at which they are willing to alter their behavior to purchase specific imperfect produce items. Using the Theory of …

Soil Health Effects And Stakeholder Perceptions Of Manure And Woody Biomass Application To Cropland In Nebraska, Linda R. Schott

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Organic products that have historically been viewed as waste products may improve soil health by adding carbon (C) and nutrients to soil. Two such products are woodchips, generated from forest or rangeland management activities, and livestock manure. In Nebraska, eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana L.) is a native but invasive tree species inhibiting rangeland productivity. Livestock manure that is underutilized while inorganic fertilizers are imported for crop production presents a water quality risk by contributing to local- and regional-scale nutrient imbalances. Increasing the responsible use of livestock manure in crop fertility programs to improve sustainability of both livestock and crop farms …

Understanding Spatial Dynamics Of Tallgrass Prairie Dominated By Tall Fescue, Callie Griffith

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

This study was conducted on restored tallgrass prairie and invaded tallgrass prairie located in the Grand River Grasslands of southern Iowa to determine differences in heterogeneity of plant structure and functional group composition at different scales. Restored tallgrass prairies were seeded with a species-rich seeding mixture and managed by burning the entire prairie, every three years. Data were collected in August 2014 and 2015 to compare heterogeneity of restoration of native plant structure and functional group composition to the heterogeneity of invaded tallgrass prairies that were managed with patch burning and conventionally grazed. Invaded tallgrass prairies were managed with patch-burning …

Generation And Evaluation Of Modified Opaque-2 (O2) Popcorn Suggests A Route To Quality Protein Popcorn (Qpp), Ying Ren

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

I have been working on a Quality Protein Popcorn breeding project where QPM conversion is carried out simultaneously for several elite popcorn germplasms. During my study in the graduate program, I led the following aspects of the Quality Protein Popcorn Breeding Project:

1. Identified suitable QPMs as opaque-2 allele donors.

2.Examined the feasibility of quick introgression of the opaque-2 allele into popcorn lines via marker-assisted selection.

3. Monitored modification by SDS-PAGE zein profiling and light box phenotypic selection to make sure multiple modifier loci for opaque-2 were incorporated each time generation advancement was carried out.

4. Carried out high throughput …

Impact Of Ethanol Process Changes On Distillers’ Grains For Beef Cattle, Shelby A. Garland

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Distillers grains plus solubles (DGS) have been widely utilized in beef cattle diets. Fractionation of the corn kernel pre- and post-fermentation has changed the composition of DGS and allowed for the production of other feed byproducts over time. The use of fractionated DGS and other feed byproducts from the ethanol industry has not been heavily researched in beef cattle diets. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of feeding high protein distillers grains (HiPro DDG) and corn bran plus solubles (Bran + Solubles) in beef cattle diets. Experiment 1 evaluated the effect of byproduct type on finishing performance and …

Quality Effects On Beef From Cattle Fed High-Protein Corn Distillers' Grains Or Other Ethanol By-Products, Kellen B. Hart

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of feeding high protein corn distillers grains on fresh beef quality. Steers (n = 300) were fed one of five diets (6 pens with 10 head/pen): a corn control, 40% high protein dry distillers grains plus solubles (HP-DDGS), 40% dry distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS), 40% wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS), or 40% bran plus solubles (Bran). Eighteen Choice carcasses (3 head/pen) were randomly selected within each treatment (n = 88). Strip loins were aged for 2, 9, or 23 d, after which steaks were placed under …

A Needs Assessment Of Arizona Agricultural Education Equine Science Curriculum, Emily Tobler

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Like any other agricultural industry, many different career paths in the equine field are becoming more technologically advanced. To adapt to technological progress, current standards need to be integrated into school-based agricultural education courses to properly train and teach students about current industry standards. In addition to equine science curriculum development, emphasis must also be focused on providing assistance to secondary-school-based agriculture teachers so they can effectively teach industry-based equine science objectives in their programs.

The equine curriculum objectives were measured in terms of perceived importance by equine professionals and post-secondary equine educators as well as Arizona school-based agriculture teachers. …

Surveillance And Evaluation Of Manure Treatment Practices For Mitigation Of The Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (Pedv) In A Commercial Swine Farm Setting, Erin Boyles

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The emergence of the porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) in the United States in 2013 resulted in billions of dollars in annual losses for the U.S. swine industry. Infection with PEDv causes severe diarrhea and vomiting in pigs, spreads rapidly through ingestion of infected manure, and produces nearly 100% mortality in pre-weaned piglets. Because swine manure slurry is a valuable crop nutrient source, concerns about virus persistence in stored manure remain a major barrier to proper manure management. Proper manure handling and application practices are necessary to control the risk of pathogen re-infection at affected production sites or infecting new …

Assessing Rice Consumers’ Preferences And Willingness To Pay In Haiti, Cleeford Pavilus

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the last 30 years, rice has become the number one food staple in Haiti, and rice imports have outpaced domestic production to supply the country’s increasing rice demand. Policy makers support the claim that increasing local rice supply will not only reduce the dependency on imported rice but also upheave the national economy. However, there is a lack of information on Haitian consumers’ preferences for rice to aid the development of the local rice supply chain. This research aims to bridge that gap by assessing Haitian consumer preferences and willingness to pay for selected rice quality characteristics. The results …

Business Sustainability: Moving From Thought To Action, Emily Skill, Roslynn Mccann

All Current Publications

This guide will help businesses develop a sustainability goal, understand the behavior changes necessary to meet goals, understand the behavior changes necessary to meet goals, provide successful techniques to achieve those behavior changes, and outline the implementation of a successful plan to reach those goals.

Business Sustainability: Moving From Thought To Action, Emily Skill, Roslynn Mccann

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes what a sustainable business is and will help businesses develop a sustainability goal, understand the behavior changes necessary to meet that goal, provide techniques to achieve those behavior changes, and outline the implementation of a successful plan.

Red Mite On Blackberry [Acalitus Essigi (Hassan)], Michael Caron, Sheriden M. Hansen, Taun Beddes, Ryan Davis, Ann Mull, Diane G. Alston, Claudia Nischwitz

All Current Publications

Redberry mite is a microscopic pest of blackberry that causes drupelets (small fruit sections) to remain hard and red (or less commonly hard and green) on an otherwise normally-ripened blackberry. The red drupelets can occur from a single drupelet to the entire berry. Redberry mite largely affects late-maturing blackberry varieties. Once it is detected, control is ineffective for that season's crop; control can be obtained in subsequent seasons by a variety of management practices. It was first reported in Utah in 2017 in Davis County

Size And Scope Of Box Elder County Agriculture 2018, Michael Pace, Joshua Dallin, Ryan Larsen

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes agriculture in Box Elder County, Utah, and includes location, land ownership, growing season, crop production, irrigation water, livestock production, disease and health concerns, marketing, farm income, and demographics.

Palm Trees For Southern Utah, Rick Heflebower

All Current Publications

This fact sheet gives information on selecting and growing the palm tree species recommended for the St. George area.

Cover Crops For Utah, Kristie Buckland, Earl Creech, Jennifer R. Reeve, Grant Cardon, Matt Yost, Deric Despain

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides the current state of knowledge on cover crop management for Utah based on USU research and local grower experience.

Successfully Inter-Seeding Legumes Into Existing Cool-Season Pastures, Jacob Briscoe, Earl Creech, Michael Peel, Blair Waldron, Grant Cardon, Kevin Heaton

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides research based guidance on the most effective way to inter-seed legumes into existing pasture which will create a more sustainable grazing system.

Premium Potential For Organic Wheat Products, Kynda R. Curtis, Tatiana Drugova, Haylea Thomason

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides an overview of the premiums consumers in the Western U.S. are willing to pay for organic wheat products, as well as their knowledge of organic production methods, and opinions and attitudes toward organic food products in general.