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Today's Top Stories

Economic Outlook: Recovery on the Horizon
2010 should hold a bright spot on the economic horizon, says Jason Henderson of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank.

Competition in Agriculture Workshop: A “Milestone”
Today marks the first time in history for the public and industry to discuss competition in agriculture.

Can You ID These Four Common Planter Problems?
Pop Quiz: Look at these photos to see if you can figure out what's wrong with these planter parts.

Monoslope Barns Protect Livestock

Learn the pros and cons of investing in this type of facility for your cattle operation.

Crop Comments
“We still have snow but can see some black now,” says a Sibley County, Minn., farmer.



 

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"House Ag Discusses Benefits of Expanding Trade with Cuba"

The House Ag Committee met Thursday to review U.S. agricultural sales to Cuba. Committee Chairman Collin Peterson introduced legislation to facilitate expanded U.S. ag trade with Cuba last month. The bipartisan bill is co-sponsored by nearly 40 other members of Congress - including Jerry Moran of Kansas, Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut and Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri. Peterson said Thursday that t
he restrictions on agricultural trade with Cuba have failed to achieve their stated goal - and instead have hand-delivered an export market in our own backyard to the Brazilians, the Europeans and our other competitors around the world.

Several ag and commodity groups were represented at the hearing. The Presidents of the American Farm Bureau Federation and National Farmers Union both testified. As did producers representing the U.S. Rice Producers Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Milk Producers Federation, National Corn Growers Association and American Soybean Association.


“FB President Testifies on Cuban Trade Issues”

In testimony before the House Agriculture Committee, the President of the American Farm Bureau Federation called on Congressional members to support the Travel Reform and Export Enhancement Act, or H.R. 4645.  Bob Stallman said this act would lift some key U.S.- imposed restrictions on trade with Cuba. The bill would reverse the restrictions on payment of cash in advance, eliminate the third country bank requirement and lift the ban on travel.

Because of the great market potential, Farm Bureau believes passage of the legislation would make agriculture a strong player in the Cuban market and increase U.S. agricultural exports. Stallman said - we have seen the promise the market holds. Unfortunately, because of restrictions on U.S exports to Cuba, U.S. farmers have not been able to benefit from the full potential of the market.

Since being allowed to trade with Cuba in 2000, on average the United States has exported roughly 320-million dollars in agricultural products per year, reaching a high of almost 700-million in 2008. Stallman pointed out - the United States is not viewed by Cuba as a reliable supplier. Our competitors do not have the same obstacles in trading with Cuba we face. Stallman said, - eliminating these restrictions will decrease the advantages the United States has given our competitors and restore the advantage to U.S. farmers.


“More Testimony on Cuban Trade-Travel”

Also, testifying before the House Committee on Agriculture concerning Cuban trade and travel issues were representatives of the National Farmers Union and American Soybean Association.  Leaders from both organizations voiced support for the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act.

NFU President Roger Johnson testified, saying – even though U.S. firms offer reliable trading partners, quality products and competitive prices, current U.S. policy hampers their ability to supply the Cuban market. He said - I can speak from firsthand experience on the importance of ending the Cuban embargo and establishing trade relations with Cuba in an effort to better the U.S. agriculture market.

ASA Board member Scott Fritz, a soybean producer from Winamac, Indiana, said - w
e can no longer sit on the sidelines and watch our competitors continue to supply a market where we have a natural advantage. Fritz added - if the travel ban is eliminated, the number of U.S. citizens traveling to Cuba annually would increase to between 500-thousand and 1 million. This growth in travel would bring in more hard currency, enabling the Cuban state-trading agency to buy more U.S. agricultural products.


 Silverado and Silverado HD

 “Farm Bureau Reports on Views of Young Farmers and Ranchers”

A survey conducted by the American Farm Bureau Federation indicates that profitability, increasing government regulations and the impact of activist groups are the top concerns of America’s leading young farmers and ranchers. Still, despite economic challenges, 80 percent of those responding to AFBF’s 18th annual survey of young farmers and ranchers say they are more optimistic than they were five years ago, while 82 percent say they are better off than they were five years ago.

The informal survey shows that 79 percent of young farmers and ranchers have a high or very high level of apprehension about government climate change regulations. 85 percent were concerned or very concerned about activist groups. Only 7 percent expressed little or no concern. 83 percent said they believe farm income should come totally from the marketplace, while only 17 percent said farm income should be supplemented by government farm program payments.

The Farm Bureau survey of young farmers and ranchers also shows that nearly 99 percent said they have access to and use the Internet, with 72 percent saying they have access to a high-speed Internet connection. Only 20 percent rely on dial-up connections. Nearly three-quarters of those surveyed have a Facebook page.

In addition, the Internet is an important tool for the group to access both general and farm news, with 84 percent saying they use the Web for that function. Seventy-two percent said they turn to the Internet to collect buying information for their operations. 96 percent say they consider themselves life-long farmers or ranchers.



“USDA Tightening Guidance on Pork Contracts”

Guidance currently in place for loans to contract poultry operations meant to protect them from questionable business practices will now be expanded to include contract pork operations. In making the announcement, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack explained - USDA currently provides guidance to county offices on the analysis and evaluation of applications for direct and guaranteed loans for contract poultry operations, and how those loans are serviced. The purpose is to avoid making loans that may exacerbate integrator business practices that have left some producers suddenly without contracts and unable to pay back their FSA loans.

Recent increases in energy and feed costs coupled with reductions in demand have affected profit margins and returns in the industry. In response to these conditions, some companies who contract with producers to supply poultry and pork have closed processing plants, reduced placements, and declined renew contracts. This has left some producers holding sizeable loans on their facilities.

In addition to the contracting guidance expansion to pork production, USDA's Farm Service Agency will issue an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to solicit input from the pork and poultry community regarding the prevalence of type of contracting situation. FSA will be soliciting proposals for the best way for USDA to address these contract situations in the long term.


“U.N. Climate Report To Be Reviewed”

The controversial report issued by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, will be reviewed by one of the world’s most credible scientific groups, the InterAcademy Council, made up of 15 nations’ national academies of science. Robert Kijkgraff, a Dutch mathematical physicist co-chairs the group. He says - we enter this process with no preconceived conclusions.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon asserted - there were a very small number of errors - in the 3-thousand pages of the beleaguered report. But those errors, which include projections of retreats in Himalayan glaciers, have put public confidence in the panel's work at risk, and have been seized on by climate skeptics opposed to the U.N.-led efforts to conclude a legal international agreement on global warming this year.

Among the questions being asked are whether the climate panel should use non-peer reviewed literature, how governments review IPCC material, and even how the IPCC communicates with the public. Dijkgraaf says his Netherlands-based group - will definitely not go over all the data, - but will instead focus on how the panel does its job. The group will pick a panel of experts and wrap up its independent review by the end of August.
 

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“POET Tightens Water Use”

POET plans to decrease water use in the production of ethanol by 22 percent over the next five years in the first goal of its sustainability imitative, ingreenuity. It intends to cut the company’s water used per gallon of ethanol from an average of 3 gallons to 2.33, an annual water savings of one billion gallons. In a presentation to employees, POET CEO Jeff Broin said the company is committed to producing ethanol as sustainably as possible and minimizing its impact on natural resources.

The reductions will come primarily through installing a proprietary process developed by POET engineers that recycles cooling water rather than discharging it. The Total Water Recovery process has recently been installed in three POET Biorefining locations – in Bingham Lake, Minnesota, Caro, Michigan and Hudson South Dakota. According to Broin, - those facilities now average 2 to 2.5 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol.

To kick off the initiative, Broin announced the POET Foundation has committed more than 420-thousand dollars to the non-profit Global Health Ministries over the same five-year period as POET’s water reduction goal. A portion of the funds will help repair, construct and maintain 90 wells in Nigeria that that will give more than 300-thousand people access to pure water.


“Idaho Considering Livestock Care Standards Board”

The Idaho Senate has approved a bill that would set up a Livestock Care Standards Board. The board would be similar to the one voted in last November in Ohio. Like Ohio, Idaho hopes to get ahead of any efforts by the Humane Society of the United States to influence animal welfare laws in the state.

The legislation has yet to pass the Idaho House.  If it goes into law it would create a 13-member committee that would include representatives from the Idaho State Department of Agriculture, statewide organizations for dairy, livestock and cattle professionals and legislators and would make recommendations on animal care.


“Animal Care Legislation Moving in Missouri"

In Missouri, a bill is moving through the Missouri General Assembly that would protect livestock care practices in that state. The Missourians for Animal Care Coalition supports the bill, because, as they say, it would - protect the right to raise animals in Missouri. The Coalition says there are animal rights extremist groups like the Humane Society of the United States trying to get a ballot initiative that would put severe limitations on the ability of anyone to own and raise animals.

The intent of the bill, according to Missouri Farm Bureau’s legislative director Leslie Holloway, is - to try to ensure that additional restrictions on raising animals, whether it be livestock or dogs or whatever the case may be, are under the jurisdiction of the General Assembly rather than interests that might come in from out of state such as the Humane Society of the United States.

If passed, the animal care constitutional amendment would join a HSUS-backed bill on this fall’s state-wide ballot that would crack down on dog breeders in the state.

 

 

 
Today's Top Stories
Focus on "Plantability" in 2010
Wheel tracks, ruts, planter pinch rows and more will be waiting once the ground thaws out and dries.

Canada Confirms 17th BSE Case
Canadian officials say another case of mad cow disease was confirmed Feb. 25 in an Alberta cow.

Legacy Tool: Fair vs. Equal Exercise
Learn how to determine when fair or equal is appropriate.

Modest Fuel-Price Increases This Year
A half-percentage point upward revision in economic growth for 2010 means increased fuel demand.

A Good Laugh
Jokes from Jay and Jimmy...

CALIFORNIA FINAL GRAPE CRUSH REPORT

SACRAMENTO – California’s 2009 crush totaled 4,095,297 tons, up 11 percent from the 2008 crush of 3,673,858 tons. This is only the second time that California’s crush has exceeded 4 million tons.

Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of all grapes crushed, at 2,078,121 tons, up 24 percent from 2008. The 2009 white wine variety crush totaled 1,624,910 tons, up 21 percent from 2008. Tons crushed of raisin type varieties totaled 307,360, down 38 percent from 2008, and tons crushed of table type varieties totaled 84,906, down 49 percent from 2008.
The entire Grape Crush Report is available online at www.nass.usda.gov/ca


2009-10 CALIFORNIA VALENCIA OBJECTIVE MEASUREMENT REPORT

VALENCIA ORANGE PRODUCTION FORECAST UP

The initial 2009-10 Valencia orange forecast is 34 million cartons, 21 percent above last season’s estimated total of 28 million cartons. This forecast is based on the results of the 2009-10 Valencia Orange Objective Measurement (O.M.) Survey, which was conducted from January 15 to February 24, 2010. Estimated fruit set per tree, fruit diameter, trees per acre, bearing acreage, and oranges per box were used in the statistical models estimating production. For more information, visit our website or contact our office:

http://www.nass.usda.gov/ca

 

AgCareers.com

http://www.agcareers.com/newsletters/agcareers_weekly.htm
 

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Feb. 25 Confirmation of BSE-Positive Cow Kept Secret

 

 

Yet again, R-CALF USA learned through the rumor mill yesterday that Canada had detected the country’s 18th case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a 72-month-old Angus cow. Although Canadian officials were purported to have notified the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) last week, a phone call this morning to OIE revealed that Canada had not yet notified OIE of this latest discovery. However, R-CALF USA Communications Coordinator Shae Dodson was told via telephone by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) that Canada, indeed, had discovered yet another case of BSE. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) later verified CFIA’s report.

 

“The CFIA said the BSE-positive case was confirmed Feb. 25, 2010, which means the CFIA and all other governments who knew about this latest BSE case kept it a secret from the public for almost two weeks, said R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard. “If we had not discovered this information, the public may never have known.”

 

At six years of age, this particular animal would have been born in 2003 or 2004, making her the 18th Canadian-born BSE case and the 11th BSE-positive animal eligible to be exported to the United States. In November 2007, USDA implemented the OTM (over-30-months) Rule that allows the U.S. to import into the U.S. these high-risk Canadian cattle over 30 months of age, as long as such cattle were born after March 1, 1999.

 

Already this year, well over 40,000 older Canadian cows and bulls have been imported into the United States for domestic slaughter.

 

LIVESTOCK NEWS


 
 

Quotes | Weather | Video

 

In This Issue:

Editorial Featured Article

 

Greg Henderson
Greg Henderson
Editor/Assoc.
Publisher
Drovers Magazine
 

A Voice Of Reason In... L.A.?

"Agriculture is a business. Farming without a financial motive is gardening."

On a daily basis, it seems, Americans are given another reason to be fearful of their food. Media outlets - print, broadcast and online - constantly produce stories about the hidden dangers of the modern food system.
More...



 

Business Article: by Bruce Blythe

USDA Boosts Forecasts For Cattle, Hog Prices, Projects Cheaper Corn

The nation’s beef and pork producers will see a twin boost to their bottom lines this year: higher cattle and pig prices coupled with cheaper corn.

That’s the message from a report today from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, analysts say. The USDA hiked cattle and hog price forecasts, citing tighter meat supplies that partly stem from harsh winter weather that hampered animals’ weight gain.
More...

Jim McNair Steps Down As President & CEO Of American Royal Assocation

The Board of Directors announced today that Jim McNair, President and CEO of the American Royal Association for the past three years, has tendered his resignation to the Board. Jim has agreed to serve the American Royal in his current capacity until a new CEO is named. More...

AMI Guest Editorial: Meat Industry Structure Serves Consumers Well

“���American exceptionalism’ is the notion that the United States occupies a special niche in the world in terms of its political, economic and historic development. Consistent with this notion is the unparalleled productivity and efficiency of America's food and agricultural system, as evidenced by the enviable bounty of our nation's Corn Belt,” says AMI President and CEO J. Patrick Boyle in a guest editorial in today’s The Des Moines Register. More...

Idaho Man Buys Cattle With Bad Checks

The Daily Item reports a man in Idaho has been charged for writing over $200,000 in bad checks for cattle. More...

 

Video: Sen. Johanns Discusses Beef Trade With Japan

According to Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., the Japanese should learn a lesson from how America has treated Japan fairly after reports of faulty Toyota vehicles and parts and should lift the ban on "safe U.S. beef and beef product" in response.
More...

Spot Prices

Name

Today

Previous

Chart

Live Cattle

93.88

94.40

Chart

Feeder Cattle

102.00

102.35

Chart

Corn

3.56

3.59

Chart

Est. Livestock Slaughter

120,000

123,000

Chart

Boxed Beef – Choice

149.49

149.50

Chart

Boxed Beef - Select

149.20

149.02

Chart

Boxed Beef –C/S Spread

0.29

0.49

Chart

Total Beef Loads

279

227

Chart

Daily Drop

10.01

9.98

Chart

Cutter Cow Cutout

121.35

121.02

Chart


 

Reports

U.S. Beef Exports: March Off To A Great Start

After a pretty sluggish February, beef exports up 92% over 4-week average.  More...

Weather

Weather Report: Precipitation Blankets The Country Delaying Fieldwork, Flooding Threatens The Corn Belt

A large, complex storm system currently centered over the western Corn Belt will drift slowly east, producing locally heavy showers and thunderstorms in the Midwest and Southeast, while rain and wet snow linger on the back side of the storm across the central Plains and western Corn Belt. More...

Find your local weather

Smithfield Foods Returns To 3rd-Quarter Profit

Meat processor Smithfield Foods Inc. said Thursday it returned to a profit in its fiscal third quarter, partly on continued strength in its packaged meats business as sales grew overseas. More...

Amish Farmer Wins Fight Over Registering Livestock

An Amish livestock farmer who refused to follow a 2005 Wisconsin law requiring him to register his land and livestock has won a legal battle with state regulators. More...

 

DTN AG NEWSWIRE

FRIDAY, MARCH 12th, 2010

The National Ski Joring Finals begin today in Red Lodge, Montana. You ask: "ski what?" Ski joring -- j-o-r-i-n-g. What happens is that a horse and rider tow a skier behind on a rope, something like water skiing. The idea started several hundred years ago in Scandinavia, with people who had to cover large distances in heavy snow. Now, competitors steer through slalom gates and off jumps that keep them airborne for up to 60 feet. It all adds up to winter fun in a sport that now holds events in five states. Across the U.S., more than 12 million people enjoy alpine and cross country skiing or the increasingly popular sport of snowboarding.

www.census.gov

****************************************************

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING U.S. AGRICULTURE. 

WANT ONE OR MORE????  CONTACT:  ggatley@sprynet.com

****************************************************

 

 

RESEARCH IN AGRICULTURE

 

Photo: Red arrow showing where a wild strawberry was collected from the flank of Russian volcano.
A wild strawberry collected from flank of the Atsunupuri Volcano (at red arrow) in Far Eastern Russia is now preserved in both the ARS National Plant Germplasm System and the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway. Photo courtesy of Andrey Sabitov, N.I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry.
Photo: Russian wild strawberry Fragaria iturupensis.
Seeds of the Russian wild strawberry Fragaria iturupensis were part of a shipment of 10,522 samples of seeds from ARS germplasm collections recently sent to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway. Photo courtesy of Andrey Sabitov, N.I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry.

ARS Sends Third Seed Shipment to

 Norway Seed Vault

A shipment of seed sent by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) earlier this month to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway included a wild Russian strawberry that an expeditionary team braved bears and volcanoes to collect.

The seed shipment—ARS’ third since January 2008—included wild and cultivated soybeans, semi-dwarf wheat and rice cultivars, and other samples maintained in the agency’s National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS). ARS’ goal, over the next 10 to 15 years, is have the majority of the system’s 511,000 collections stored in the vault, which is administered by Norway’s Nordic Genetic Resources Center together with the Global Crop Diversity Trust.

The vault itself is built into a mountainside on Spitsbergen Island, located midway between Norway’s northernmost coast and the North Pole. With this third U.S. shipment, the facility will house more than 500,000 plant accessions obtained from around the world. However, the total storage capacity is likely 10 times that amount, notes plant physiologist David Ellis with ARS’ National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation in Fort Collins, Colo. Ellis coordinates the shipments of seed obtained from multiple ARS locations.

Worldwide, there are about 1,400 operating genebanks. The Svalbard vault’s purpose isn’t to replace them, but rather to provide a secure remote backup location for the genetic diversity contained in the genebanks, should their collections be lost due to natural disaster or other reasons.

The ship containing ARS’ contributions “set sail” the last week of February and arrived the first week of March, adding 10,522 samples of seed to the Svalbard collection. Strawberry specimens included Fragaria iturupensis, a wild relative originally collected in 2003 from the island of Iturup in Far Eastern Russia by scientists from the N.I. Vavilov Institute of Plant Industry. Led by senior scientist Andrey Sabitov, an ARS collaborator, the team hiked for three days in bear territory to obtain the seeds from the Atsunupuri Volcano’s lower flank.

Horticulturist Kim Hummer of the ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository in Corvallis, Ore., received some of the seed, which may provide genes for new flavor components or pest resistance. This seed has now been sent to Svalbard for long-term preservation.

ARS is the principal intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The research supports the USDA priority of promoting international food security.

 

Photo: Cotton. Link to photo information
Applying naturally occurring plant hormones called cytokinins to cotton seeds or young cotton plants can increase yields 5 to 10 percent under drought conditions, according to new ARS research. Click the image for more information about it.

Plant Hormone Increases Cotton Yields

 in Drought Conditions

A naturally occurring class of plant hormones called cytokinins has been found to help increase cotton yields during drought conditions, according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists.

Cytokinins promote cell division and growth in plants. In cotton, cytokinins stimulate the growth of the main plant stem and branches. Commercially produced cytokinins are routinely applied in apple and pistachio orchards to promote fruit growth.

John Burke, director of the ARS Cropping Systems Research Laboratory in Lubbock, Texas, found that applying cytokinins to cotton crops can increase yields in water-limited environments with reduced irrigation or no irrigation. Burke was granted a patent for his discovery.

Half of the U.S.-produced cotton is grown in the arid high plains of Texas. In addition to a short growing season, 60 to 65 percent of the acreage in the area is dry land and relies on rainfall for soil moisture. Young cotton seedlings have small root systems, making it difficult for them to reach available soil water. Cytokinins trick the young plant's water stress defenses, prompting the plant to quickly build a bigger root system to access deep soil moisture. They also stimulate the growth of a protective wax on the surface of the plant that helps reduce water loss.

Tests conducted by Burke found one application of cytokinins produced a 5 to 10 percent increase in yields under water-reduced conditions. Additionally, tests determined that cytokinins didn't help or hinder yields under fully irrigated or rainy conditions, making it safe for use in all weather environments. There is also no extra work involved for the grower because cytokinins can be applied when conducting normal weed-management practices early in the season.

To be effective, the cytokinins should be applied at a relatively low concentration to cotton seeds or to cotton plants at an early stage of development. ARS is working closely with commercial companies to make this material available to cotton growers in the future.

ARS is the principal intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This research supports the USDA priority of responding to climate change.

 

Photo: Mosquito sucking blood from an arm. Link to photo information
Mosquitoes can detect a very fine chemical structure difference in octenol, a compound emitted by mammals, according to new research by ARS scientists. Click the image for more information about it.

ARS Study Provides a Better Understanding

 of How Mosquitoes Find a Host

The potentially deadly yellow-fever-transmitting Aedes aegypti mosquito detects the specific chemical structure of a compound called octenol as one way to find a mammalian host for a blood meal, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists report.

Scientists have long known that mosquitoes can detect octenol, but this most recent finding by ARS entomologists Joseph Dickens and Jonathan Bohbot explains in greater detail how Ae. aegypti—and possibly other mosquito species—accomplish this.

Dickens and Bohbot, at the ARS Invasive Insect Biocontrol and Behavior Laboratory in Beltsville, Md., have shown that Ae. aegypti taps into the "right-handed" and "left-handed" structural nature of octenol, which is emitted by people, cattle and other mammals. This ability to detect the "handedness" of molecules has been shown in mammals, but the discovery is the first case of scientists finding out how it works in an insect, according to the researchers.

When they hunt for a blood meal, mosquitoes hone in on a variety of chemicals, including carbon dioxide, lactic acid, ammonia and octenol. Octenol is one of many carbon-based compounds that have a molecular structure that can take on either a "right-handed" or "left-handed" form. Each form is a mirror image of the other, and a form's "handedness" is determined by how its molecular bonds are assembled.

The scientists used frog eggs to help them make their discovery. They injected RNA from Ae. aegypti into the frog eggs, allowing the egg membranes to mimic the mosquito's ability to detect octenol. Then they attached microelectrodes to the frog egg cell membranes, passed octenol over them and recorded the electrical signals stimulated by the odors.

They ran the tests using both the right- and left-handed forms of octenol. The scientists found heightened electrical activity when the membrane was exposed to the right-handed form, and weakened activity when it was exposed to the left-handed form.

There are many natural compounds that can take on either a right-handed or left-handed form. While the effects of those differences on many plants and animals remains a mystery, the report, published in PLoS ONE, shows the effects of octenol's dual structure on the yellow fever mosquito and adds to scientists' understanding of how mosquitoes sense the world around them. It also may open the door to speedier development of better mosquito repellents and traps, according to Dickens.

The team's research is being funded by the Department of Defense Deployed War Fighter Protection Research Program.

ARS is the principal intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

 

Geraniums Could Help Control Devastating Japanese Beetle

Photo: Japanese beetle on a geranium leaf.
ARS scientists have discovered that geraniums could be useful in helping control the Japanese beetle, a costly pest that feeds on nearly 300 plant species.
Link to video
Within 30 minutes of consuming geranium petals, the beetle rolls over on its back, its legs and antennae slowly twitch, and it remains paralyzed for several hours. The beetles typically recover within 24 hours, but they often succumb to death after predators spot and devour the beetles while they are helpless.

Geraniums may hold the key to controlling the devastating Japanese beetle, which feeds on nearly 300 plant species and costs the ornamental plant industry $450 million in damage each year, according to scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS).

The beetle, Popillia japonica Newman, can feast on a wide variety of plants, including ornamentals, soybean, maize, fruits and vegetables. But within 30 minutes of consuming geranium petals, the beetle rolls over on its back, its legs and antennae slowly twitch, and it remains paralyzed for several hours. The beetles typically recover within 24 hours when paralyzed under laboratory conditions, but they often succumb to death under field conditions after predators spot and devour the beetles while they are helpless.

ARS entomologist Chris Ranger at the agency’s Application Technology Research Unit in Wooster, Ohio, is working on developing a way to use geraniums to control the beetles.

Ohio and neighboring Michigan are some of the largest producers of horticultural plants, most of them grown in greenhouses. Other research to benefit the horticultural industry includes that of Susan Stieve, curator of Ohio State University’s Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center in Columbus, Ohio.

Stieve is working with OSU collaborators and horticulturist Jonathan Frantz of the ARS Greenhouse Production Research Group in Toledo, Ohio, to see whether a specialized breed of begonias can tolerate colder temperatures.

The scientists are screening the begonias at two production temperatures: 5 degrees Fahrenheit colder than normal, and 10 degrees F colder than normal. Begonias are found naturally in a wide variety of climates and altitudes—ecological clues that can be used to identify promising germplasm. Being able to grow begonias at cooler temperatures could reduce greenhouse heating bills for ornamental growers in northern climates.

ARS is U.S. Department of Agriculture’s principal intramural scientific research agency.

 

Photo: Cattle in a feedlot. Link to photo information
ARS is studying how the antibiotic oxytetracycline, which is used on livestock, breaks down in cattle manure. Click the image for more information about it.

Assessing Antibiotic Breakdown in Manure

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientist Scott Yates is studying how oxytetracycline (OTC), an antibiotic that is administered to animals, breaks down in cattle manure.

Livestock producers in the United States often use antibiotics to control disease in their animals, and confined U.S. livestock and poultry generate about 63.8 million tons of manure every year. The drugs are often only partially absorbed by the digestive tract, and the rest are excreted with their pharmaceutical activity intact.

Yates, who works at the ARS Contaminant Fate and Transport Research Unit in Riverside, Calif., found that in controlled laboratory conditions, OTC in cattle manure was degraded more quickly as temperatures increased and as the moisture content in the manure increased. But the OTC breakdown slowed as water saturation levels neared 100 percent. Yates concluded that this slowdown resulted when oxygen levels were not high enough to fuel the OTC biodegradation.

Yates also noted that OTC breaks down more quickly in manure than in soil. Compared to soil, manure has higher levels of organic material and moisture, which support the microorganisms that break down this pharmaceutical.

This laboratory research may be useful in designing studies that evaluate the potential effects of lagoons, holding ponds and manure pits on bacteria and antimicrobial resistance.

Livestock producers also might use the results from this study to maximize the breakdown of organic materials and potential antibiotics in manure by designing storage environments with optimum temperatures and moisture levels.

Results from this study were published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

ARS is the chief intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

    

Photo: Cattle grazing on rangeland. Link to photo information
Cattle grazing on rangeland with a taller canopy of plants with more and larger leaves take larger bites and meet their dietary needs with lower calorie expenditure, according to new research from ARS. Click the image for more information about it.

Cows Like Leaves

Their Tongues Can Wrap Around Easily

Lots of leaves growing in easy reach of a cow's tongue means less time and less land needed to raise beef cattle, according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and DairyNZ (New Zealand) scientists.

Ranchers may be able to tell how long to leave cattle in a pasture, and how large to make the pasture, by the height and leafiness of plants growing there, according to Stacey Gunter, research leader at the ARS Southern Plains Range Research Station in Woodward, Okla. He worked with former Ph.D. student Pablo Gregorini and colleagues at Woodward to demonstrate this approach with beef steers grazing in fenced-off corridors in wheat pastures.

The pastures were chosen to represent a range of natural variations in plant heights and upper plant leafiness. The steers were allowed to graze the corridors freely and were removed when they reached the end of the corridor, regardless of how much time the steers took. While grazing the corridors, each steer was videotaped and had two trained observers who counted bites and walking steps.

The reason for this real-life pasture study is that most studies of grazing behavior are done on "artificial seedings," specially planted pastures, or small plots that are fairly uniform. To provide the best possible recommendations to ranchers, Gunter and Gregorini integrated studies of the standard type with "in field" pasture conditions which are much less uniform.

Besides the taste and nutrition of large leaves, cattle like their food to be accessible, with leaves high on the plant and a minimum of stem interference with the cattle's tongues, which they use to wrap around and pull off leaves. Cattle faced with a nice canopy of luscious leaves took larger bites and were able to get their daily rations with lower calorie expenditure.

This resulted in greater eating efficiency. Gunter and Gregorini measured eating efficiency by dividing the total amount of pasture plants eaten per steer by the total eating time. This is known as herbage intake rate, a key determinant of weight gain for cattle grazing pasture.

The research was published in the Journal of Animal Science.

ARS is the principal intramural scientific research agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The research supports the USDA priority of promoting international food security.


 

Photo: Potatoes.
Five new potato breeding lines now being tested by ARS scientists and collaborators could provide the basis for varieties that can handle powdery scab and black dot diseases. Photo courtesy of Microsoft Clipart

Tough New Spuds Take on Double Trouble

Americans love potatoes, consuming about 130 pounds per person annually. But it's a wonder the spuds even make it to the dinner table, given the many fungal diseases that attack the tuber crop—powdery scab and black dot among them.

Now, five new potato breeding lines being tested by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and collaborators could open the door to new varieties of the crop that resist powdery scab and black dot diseases, caused by the fungi Spongospora subterranea and Colletotrichum coccodes, respectively.

These fungi often occur together in the same soil, attacking the potato plant's roots, tubers or stems. Outbreaks can cause yield losses of up to 25 percent and prevent tubers from reaching the sizes needed by the french fry and fast-food industry. Of the two fungi, only black dot can be chemically controlled with fungicides; however, multiple applications are needed, ratcheting up production costs to prohibitive levels. A more sustainable alternative is genetic resistance, according to geneticist Chuck Brown, with the ARS Vegetable and Forage Crops Production Research Laboratory in Prosser, Wash.

In studies conducted there since 2004 with Washington State University professor Dennis Johnson, assistant Tom F. Cummings and postdoctoral associate Nadav Nitzan, Brown screened an existing collection of wild and cultivated potatoes for sources of natural resistance to powdery scab and black dot in a local grower's infested field.

The effort ultimately led to five advanced potato breeding lines that had been developed from a wild species from Mexico, Solanum hougasii, and a recent commercial release, Summit Russet. In three years of field trials in Washington State and Idaho, the potato breeding lines consistently showed fewer disease symptoms—root galling for powdery scab and sclerotia-infected stems for black dot—than other lines and varieties tested.

The potato breeding lines themselves aren't intended for production. Instead, they'll be made available as seed for use in breeding programs aimed at developing the first commercial varieties with dual resistance to the fungal diseases, according to Brown, who discussed the research at the 48th Annual Washington State Potato Conference in January.

The research findings have been published in the journal Plant Disease.

ARS is the principal intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This research supports the USDA priority of promoting international food security.