Agriculture Commons^™

Misconceptions In Agriculture: The Role Of Public Relations To Communicate With And Educate The Public, Kimberly Taylor

Journalism

The following study aims to investigate the misconceptions in agricultural communications, why they exist, and what communicators can be doing to further the development, management and assessment of agricultural communication messaging. Agricultural issues are a source of media attention, from policy changes like Proposition 2 or Proposition 37 in California, to commercials such as the Dodge RAM Super Bowl spot in 2013. By studying what professionals are currently doing in the fields of public relations, marketing, and agricultural communications to reach and educate the consumers, it becomes clear the strategies that should be taken when presenting key messaging. This study …

Diversification And Ecosystem Services For Conservation Agriculture: Outcomes From Pastures And Integrated Crop–Livestock Systems, Matt A. Sanderson, David Archer, John Hendrickson, Scott Kronberg, Mark Liebig, Kris Nichols, Marty Schmer, Don Tanaka, Jonathan Aguilar

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

Conservation agricultural systems rely on three principles to enhance ecosystem services: (1) minimizing soil disturbance, (2) maximizing soil surface cover and (3) stimulating biological activity. In this paper, we explore the concept of diversity and its role in maximizing ecosystem services from managed grasslands and integrated agricultural systems (i.e., integrated crop–livestock–forage systems) at the field and farm level.We also examine trade-offs that may be involved in realizing greater ecosystem services. Previous research on livestock production systems, particularly in pastureland, has shown improvements in herbage productivity and reduced weed invasion with increased forage diversity but little response in terms of animal …

Lagoon Startup And Maintenance For Optimal Livestock Waste Treatment, Rhonda Miller, Jennifer Major

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes the importance of lagoon maintenance and maintenance for livestock waste treatment.

Irrigated Birdsfoot Trefoil Variety Trial: Forage Nutritive Value, Jennifer W. Macadam, Thomas C. Griggs

All Current Publications

Birdsfoot trefoil is a high-quality forage recommended for irrigated perennial pastures, either in mixtures with grasses or in pure stands. In this bulletin we report on the forage nutritive value of pure stands of birdsfoot trefoil harvested at 6- week intervals, and compare it to alfalfa harvested at the same intervals.

Irrigated Birdsfoot Trefoil Variety Trial: Forage Yield, Jennifer W. Macadam, Thomas C. Griggs

All Current Publications

Like alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil is a deep-rooted legume that fixes its own nitrogen. However, it contains a small amount of tannin which means that cattle and sheep will not bloat, even when grazing birdsfoot trefoil in pure stands. In this bulletin, we report on the dry matter production of a number of cultivars of birdsfoot trefoil and find that it yielded about two-thirds as much as alfalfa in pure stands.

U.S. Drought Monitor, February 26, 2013, Brian Fuchs

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for February 26, 2013 (2/26/13) 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: Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Overfishing: Economic Policies In Finite Resource Biological Pools, Abdullah Nasser

Undergraduate Economic Review

Common-property fishing is a classic example of the tragedy of the commons. Driven by competition, rational fishermen are forced to overfish to maintain marketplace viability. This shortsighted strategy will lead to the depletion of the common resource pool, and ultimately the destruction of the local fishing industry. In this paper, we present a dynamic differential system of a finite-resource fishing pool to model choices faced by average fishermen. We show that the situation mirrors a Prisonor’s Dilemma on the short- and long-terms, where overfishing is always the dominant Nash equilibrium strategy. Additionally, we use the model to analyze a multitude …

U.S. Drought Monitor, February 19, 2013, Brian Fuchs

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for February 19, 2013 (2/19/13) 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: Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

U.S. Drought Monitor, February 12, 2013, Michael J. Brewer, Liz Love-Brotak

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for February 12, 2013 (2/12/13) 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: Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

U.S. Drought Monitor, February 5, 2013, Michael J. Brewer, Liz Love-Brotak

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for February 5, 2013 (2/5/13) 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: Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Temperament Plays Key Role In Cattle Health, Sandra Avant

Agricultural Research Magazine

Do you know someone who’s temperamental? What about an animal? Amazingly, cattle can be temperamental too, which influences how they should be handled, how they perform, and even how they react to viruses that cause diseases.

For cattle, temperament is defined as the reactivity or fear response to humans or handling. Terms used to describe temperamental animals include “flighty,” “excitable,” and “high strung.” These animals can potentially injure themselves or their handlers.

Beef cattle experience stressful events during routine management practices— weaning, transportation, social mixing, and vaccination. These practices have been shown to induce secretion of the stress-related hormones cortisol …

Rolling Out Cover Crops For Higher Yields And Improved Soil Quality, Ted S. Kornecki

Agricultural Research Magazine

Growers who use cover crops are increasingly turning to a tool that can flatten out their actively growing fields, usually in a single pass. Known as a “roller/ crimper,” the technology can help reduce and sometimes eliminate the need for herbicides and is ideal for organic farmers and growers interested in reducing herbicide use.

Cover crops can improve soil quality; and in organic operations, they play a major role in keeping weeds in check. Crimpers boost those benefits. They have been used for years in South America and are beginning to catch on in the United States, says Ted Kornecki, …

Identifying Compounds To Help Control Bed Bugs, Mark Feldlaufer

Agricultural Research Magazine

When planning an attack on bothersome pests, it’s a good idea to know your enemies, especially if they happen to be bed bugs. These small, flat, blood-feeding insects—an uncommon problem since the 1950s—have once again become a menace in homes, apartments, hotels, shelters, and even places of work in the last 10 years.

Despite extensive efforts to determine whether bed bugs transmit disease-causing pathogens, no evidence indicates that they are a problem other than their biting, blood feeding, and dirty habits. However, some people have severe reactions to bed bug bites, and getting rid of the insects can be costly. …

Lifting All Boats With Organic And Conventional Research, Matt Smith

Agricultural Research Magazine

At first glance, the divide between organic and conventional farming appears to be of Grand Canyon proportions. But when it comes to research, the distance between organic and conventional farming practices is not nearly so great.

The Agricultural Research Service has a national program that specifically carries out studies aimed at helping organic farmers to compete in the marketplace by finding ways to cost-effectively produce abundant amounts of high-quality, safe products to meet consumer demands.

Consumer demand for organically produced goods has shown double-digit growth for well over a decade, providing market incentives for U.S. farmers across a broad range …

Studying Manure In Cows, In Feedlots, And In Fields, Lisa M. Durso, John Gilley, Ann Perry

Agricultural Research Magazine

Agricultural Research Service scientists at the Agroecosystems Management Research Unit in Lincoln, Nebraska, have been conducting some very thorough investigations on the microbes that dwell in cattle manure—what they are, where they thrive, where they struggle, and where they may end up. “When we look at potential pathogens that can cause foodborne illness, we need to look at the whole bacterial ecosystem,” says ARS microbiologist Lisa Durso. “For instance, some people used to think all cattle have the same bacteria in their gastrointestinal [GI] tracts. But we’ve found some big differences; so if we say, ‘Oh, it’s just manure,’ we …

State Department’S Gift Of Dogwoods To Japan In Honor Of 100th Anniversary Of Cherry Tree Gift, Richard Olsen, Sharon Durham

Agricultural Research Magazine

More than 100 years ago, the Japanese government presented flowering cherry trees as a gift to the U.S. government. Those wonderful living gifts have blossomed along the National Mall’s Tidal Basin, as well as at other locations around Washington, D.C., since then.

In April 2012, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a gift of 3,000 flowering dogwood trees to Japan to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Japan’s gift of cherry trees to the United States.

The job of finding the right dogwoods belongs to scientists at the U.S. National Arboretum, in Washington, D.C. Agricultural Research Service plant geneticist Richard Olsen …

February 2013- Locations Featured In This Magazine Issue

Agricultural Research Magazine

The Agricultural Research Service has about 100 labs all over the country.

Locations Featured in This Magazine Issue

U.S. Agricultural Research Station, Salinas, California 1 research unit ■ 51 employees

Pullman, Washington 6 research units ■ 136 employees

Akron, Colorado 1 research unit ■ 28 employees

Cropping Systems Research Laboratory, Lubbock, Texas 4 research units ■ 113 employees

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center, Clay Center, Nebraska 6 research units ■ 113 employees

Lincoln, Nebraska 2 research units ■ 81 employees

Auburn, Alabama 2 research units ■ 46 employees

Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, Ithaca, …

Robust Results From Long-Term Research On Organic Cover Cropping, Eric Brennan, Ann Perry

Agricultural Research Magazine

“We can obtain important results from short-term field studies, but they don’t always capture year-to year variability. Long-term research often provides more reliable results that farmers need,” says Agricultural Research Service horticulturist Eric Brennan.

Brennan speaks from personal experience. In 2003, he and a team of University of California-Davis collaborators began a 2-year field study that evolved into a unique long-term investigation of high value organic cropping. The project, the Salinas Organic Cropping Systems trial, is being conducted on an ARS research farm and is now in its 10th year of certified organic production. Brennan, who works in the ARS …

New Tools For Studying The Root Of The Matter, Leon V. Kochian, Dennis O’Brien

Agricultural Research Magazine

Like any structure, a root has its own architecture. Some roots burrow straight down into the soil. Others scatter web-like tentacles. However they turn out, root systems play a critical role in the health and survival of today’s crops. That’s why Agricultural Research Service scientists in Ithaca, New York, have developed a new tool for studying root architecture, one that brings them out in three-dimensional color. It’s a major step forward in a challenging field.

Studying root-system architecture can be extremely difficult because the opaque nature of soils makes it hard to capture and visualize the root structures. Also, field …

Travel Patterns Of Wind-Blown Soil Microbes, Veronica Acosta-Martinez, Dennis O’Brien

Agricultural Research Magazine

When strong winds carry away soil, microbes in the soil can act like hitchhikers and go along for the ride. With help from a wind tunnel and the latest DNA technology, Agricultural Research Service scientists are shedding light on the travel patterns of these soil-borne hitchhikers. The work has implications for soil health and could lead to management practices that minimize the damage to soils caused by wind erosion.

Scientists have been studying wind-eroded soils since the 1930s, but few studies have focused on wind’s effect on soil microbes. Microbes drive a number of critical processes, such as releasing enzymes …