Agriculture Commons^™

Recent Cropping Frequency, Expansion, And Abandonment In Mato Grosso, Brazil Had Selective Land Characteristics, Stephanie A. Spera, Avery S. Cohn, Leah K. Vanwey, Jack F. Mustard, Bernardo F.T. Rudorff, Marcos Adami

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

This letter uses satellite remote sensing to examine patterns of cropland expansion, cropland abandonment, and changing cropping frequency in Mato Grosso, Brazil from 2001 to 2011. During this period, Mato Grosso emerged as a globally important center of agricultural production. In 2001, 3.3 million hectares of mechanized agriculture were cultivated in Mato Grosso, of which 500 000 hectares had two commercial crops per growing season (double cropping). By 2011, Mato Grosso had 5.8 million hectares of mechanized agriculture, of which 2.9 million hectares were double cropped. We found these agricultural changes to be selective with respect to land attributes —significant …

Effect Of Monetary Policy On Agricultural Sector In Nigeria, Elias A. Udeaja, Udoh A. Elijah

Economic and Financial Review

The study examinee the effect of monetary policy on agricultural sector in Nigeria, utilizing time series data for the periods spanning from 1970 to 2010. The study captures both monetary and non-monetary policy variables such as lending rate, commercial banks credit to agriculture, exchange rate, government expenditure in agriculture and inflation rate in examining the effect of monetary policy on agricultural output. The methodology adopted is the Auto- Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Bound Testing Approach. The results obtained shows that exchange rate and government expenditure had positive and significant effect on agricultural output and, hence agricultural sector in Nigeria. It …

Nebline, June 2014

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: Nurturing Unmarried Parents and Their Children

Food & Health

Family Living

Farm & Acreage

Home & Family Living

Horticulture

Pests & Wildlife

4-H & Youth

Extension Calendar

and other extension news and events

Grazing Method Effects On Forage Production, Utilization, And Animal Performance On Nebraska Sandhills Meadow, Miles D. Redden

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

Mob grazing using ultrahigh stocking densities is promoted as a tool to increase the health and productivity of grasslands by increasing nutrient cycling and soil organic matter. Mob grazing can be defined as a strategy in which area available to grazing animals is restricted to achieve stocking densities of 200,000 kg/ha or greater. Objectives were to determine herbage production, utilization, and cattle weight gains among ultrahigh stocking density grazing and more conventional grazing methods on a Sandhills subirrigated meadow. Treatments included two replications of each of the following: four-pasture rotational grazing with two occupations per pasture in an 80-day grazing …

Bee Colony Startup And Cost Analysis, Marisela Herrera

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The increase in demand for European Honey bee pollination along with colony collapse disorder has caused bee pollination rental fees to greatly increase. This project intended to determine how effective and economically feasible it would be for almond growers to begin raising their own hives for pollination. It was determined the biggest challenges were organizing and finding employees who were knowledgeable about bee keeping. When looking at the cost it was clear that even with the current cost per hive the startup costs were still less than the total rental fees for a single pollination season.

Once the hives have …

Project Proposal And Development Plan For A New Security Gate At Swanton Pacific Ranch, K. Morgan Perry

Agricultural Education and Communication

The purpose of this project was to develop a prototype gate for Cal Poly’s Swanton Pacific Ranch in Santa Cruz, CA. Swanton Pacific Ranch requested that the author design and build a 21’x5’ single-retractable gate for Swanton Pacific Ranch to help decrease the security issues that have recently arisen at the facility. The design and format of this project are focused towards the desires and goals set forth by Swanton Pacific Ranch and the Operations Manager, Steve Auten in order to obtain a certain outcome. This project provides an outline of what needs to be done in order to produce …

Synthesis Of The Effect Of Fire On Lesser Prairie‐Chickens, Eric Thacker, Dirac L. Twidwell Jr

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

In this synthesis, we reviewed the scientific literature pertaining to the effects of fire on lesser prairie‐chickens and their habitat. Overall, research is generally lacking that directly assesses relationships among fire, both as a regime and a discrete event, to its effect on lesser prairie‐chicken behavior and habitat value. Yet, research has quantified the effects of fire on vegetation throughout the distribution of the lesser prairie‐chicken, which has been linked to known metrics of habitat value and broad landscape‐level habitat requirements.

To summarize the literature, lesser prairie‐chickens require broad landscapes of fire‐dependent grass‐shrub vegetation. Changes in the eco‐evolutionary fire regime …

Characterizing The Face Value Of The "Buy Local" Movement, Kynda Curtis

All Current Publications

This fact sheet offers a few insights into the "buy local" movement, specifically the type of people who purchase specialty or differentiated food products, the rationale behind their purchases and their pricing expectations.

Chokecherry In The Garden, Sky Wiser, Tiffany Maughan, Brent Black

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes chokecherries, recommended varieties, how to grow them, pests and diseases, and uses.

Culturally Responsive 4-H Youth Development In Southeast Alaska, Deb Jones, Linda Skogrand

All Current Publications

No abstract provided.

Benefits Of Exposing Animals To Poor-Quality Foods Early In Life, Beth Burritt

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides research examples of how exposure early in life to poor-quality or high-toxin forages can increase intake and preference for certain forages and improve the productivity of livestock.

Edamame In The Garden, Dennis Worwood

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes edamame, or vegetable soybeans. It provides tips on planting, varieties, fertilization, irrigation, iron chlorosis, weed control, pests and diseases, harvest, cooking and storage, and nutrition.

U.S. Drought Monitor, May 27, 2014, Michael J. Brewer

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for May 27, 2014 (5/27/14) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Pinot Noirvana In The Willamette Valley, William "Rusty" Gaffney

William “Rusty” Gaffney (Prince of Pinot) Collection

Rusty Gaffney reviews Oregon's Willamette Valley in this article from his "Prince of Pinot" blog, volume 9, issue 42. Gaffney gives specific details of the area and the wines, as well as recent history in regards to the weather and its toll on the output of the industry in certain years. Gaffney encourages readers to explore the area and the wines offered.

Willamette Valley Epilogue, William "Rusty" Gaffney

William “Rusty” Gaffney (Prince of Pinot) Collection

Rusty Gaffney gives a brief overview of the culture of the wine industry in Oregon, focusing on the wineries of the Willamette Valley, in this article from his "Prince of Pinot" blog, volume 9, issue 42. Gaffney highlights information on the area, a travel guide with advice, and places not to miss.

Oregon Wine Board Meeting Minutes May 22, 2014, Oregon Wine Board

Oregon Wine Board Documents

These meeting minutes list individuals in attendance and missing from the May 22, 2014 Oregon Wine Board (OWB) meeting, held at the Willamette Wharf Building in Portland, Oregon. Updates were given from the finance, research, education, and marketing committees, and Dai Crisp and Chad Vargas reported on their trip to Washington, D.C. on behalf of the Northwest Center for Small Fruits Research. The Board revisited the OWB strategic plan objectives, and Laurent Montalieu presented an update on the Willamette Valley Wineries Association (WVWA). The meeting lasted 3 hours 27 minutes.

U.S. Drought Monitor, May 20, 2014, Michael J. Brewer

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for May 20, 2014 (5/20/14) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Farming: It's Not Just For Farmers Anymore, Jennifer Schmidt

Pomona Senior Theses

Agricultural education, originally the province of land grant institutions, has recently entered the liberal arts curriculum. This represents a profound shift from the origins of agricultural education, when it was intended primarily as vocational training for future farmers, and has important implications for the future of the American food system. The first chapter of this thesis addresses the history of agricultural education: what was it originally like, and why did it come to be heavily criticized in the late twentieth century? Formal agricultural education changed significantly in response to these criticisms, making it more environmentally sustainable and bringing it into …

Urban Farm And Community Garden Hybrid Models: A Case Study Of The Huerta Del Valle Community Garden, Leah Hochberg

Scripps Senior Theses

This study examines models of community gardens and urban farms and determined a successful hybrid model for future implementation at the Huerta del Valle Community Garden. This was accomplished through analyzing the unique benefits and drawbacks of community gardens and urban farms as defined by the author, and then determining the components of each model that would maximize Huerta del Valle’s social and economic potential. Community gardens are defined in this thesis as places where community members can grow their own food in individual plots, and these spaces often contribute to community building, hands-on gardening education, and improved food access. …

Biodynamic Agriculture: A Valuable Alternative To The Industrial Farming System, Eden K. Olsen

Scripps Senior Theses

Since the Scientific and Industrial revolutions, advancing technologies and cutting-edge science have enabled our society to continually promote a growing global economy. Industrial growth has increasingly become a top priority for most governments, notably in the agricultural realm. The advances towards agricultural industrialization began in the 17^th century and escalated during the Green Revolution, which examined the possibility of using synthetic fertilizers and mechanization in farming to decrease labor and improve yields. Although seen as economically beneficial, the shift from an agrarian lifestyle to industrial farming has created an ecological, economic, and ideological crisis to our modern world. This …