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USDA Agricultural Research Service

Techniques for Managing Cover Crops
Wed, 03 Sep 2008 08:23:00 -0500
Read the magazine story to find out more. Rolling machines designed by ARS researchers may be the fastest way for farmers to prepare fields with cover crops for planting. Click the image for more information about it. Researchers roll out the rye to reign in weeds   Conservation tillage has immediate benefits   Lower CO2 loss in fall tillage Managing Cover Crops with Rolling and Crimping Techniques By Laura McGinnis September 3, 2008 Rolling hay, rye and other cover crops could be the fastest way for some farmers to prepare their fields for planting. That's thanks to rolling machines--developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists--that can quickly flatten mature, high-biomass cover crops such as rye. Each roller consists of a long cylinder adorned with a series of thick, blunt, steel crimping bars, each about one-quarter-inch thick. As a standard tractor pulls the roller over the field, pressure from the bars flattens and damages the cover crop without cutting or uprooting it. Within three weeks, the rolled cover crop dries out, forming a mat of dead biomass into which farmers can plant cash crops. Since 2001, ARS has been conducting research to find the best crimping roller design for conditions in the southeastern United States, and the benefits from this research are gaining recognition. ARS scientists Ted Kornecki and Randy Raper and their colleagues at the agency's National Soil Dynamics Laboratory (NSDL) in Auburn, Ala., compared three different roller designs. The first roller has a traditional design with long, straight, horizontal bars. The second has diagonal bars that curve around the roller. The third has a smooth drum attached to a crimping bar that mashes the rye as the machine moves forward. NSDL scientists, who developed the curved-bar and crimping roller designs, found that all three models killed enough rye--90 percent or more--to enable farmers to begin planting cash crops in the field within three weeks. The crimping-bar roller yielded the best results. The scientists also found that the curved-bar and the crimping rollers provided smoother rides than the traditional straight-bar roller. Future studies will help scientists maximize the efficiency and comfort of these machines. The one-pass process saves money, reduces soil erosion and runoff, helps control weeds, conserves water in the soil and decreases or eliminates the need for herbicides. Read more about the research in the September 2008 issue of Agricultural Research magazine. ARS is a scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
ARS Researchers Search for Casuarina Biological Control Agents
Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:48:00 -0500
Read the magazine story to find out more. Invasive Australian Pine, Casuarina equisetifolia. Photo courtesy of Forest & Kim Starr, U.S. Geological Survey, Bugwood.org. Foreign herbivores may be key to curbing invasive weeds   Alternate methods of whitefly control   Groundbreaking for new biological control lab ARS Researchers Search for Casuarina Biological Control Agents By Alfredo Flores September 2 , 2008 Australia's Outback and remote coastlines are home to insects that could be key biocontrols for a highly invasive weed threatening coastal areas of the United States, according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and cooperators. ARS entomologist Greg Wheeler and his ARS and university colleagues are touring the Outback and Australia's coastal areas in search of biological control agents for the highly invasive Casuarina species commonly called Australian pine. This weed is infiltrating U.S. coastal areas, especially in south Florida, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Known for its rapid growth and dense coverage, Australian pine inhibits the growth of native plants. The Australian pine problem includes three Casuarina species--C. equisetifolia (referred to in Australia as “coastal she-oak”), C. glauca (“swamp she-oak,” and arguably as big or a bigger problem than C. equisetifolia) and C. cunninghamiana (“river she-oak”). In the past few years, the Australian members of the team--Matthew Purcell and Bradley Brown, researchers at the ARS Australian Biological Control Laboratory in Indooroopilly, Queensland, and Gary Taylor from the University of Adelaide, Australia--conducted five separate trips throughout Australia. Purcell, Brown, Taylor and John Gaskin, research leader of the ARS Pest Management Research Unit in Sidney, Mont., collectively comprise a Casuarina research team. Wheeler served as the lead scientist for the project, coordinating the funding, surveys and plant-DNA testing. From a bounty of some 300 wasps, weevils, stem-borers, sap-suckers, seed-eaters and more, the scientists have narrowed the field of potential control agents to about 12 candidates. Not only do these top candidates attack C. equisetifolia, but many also attack C. glauca and C. cunninghamiana. Among the top finds were the seed-feeding wasp Bootanelleus orientalis, which is host-specific to Australian pine, and the defoliator moth Zauclophora pelodes. These insects are still undergoing testing by Purcell and colleagues in Australia to determine their suitability for use as biological control agents in the United States. Insects that decrease Casuarina reproduction and spread are being given the most attention. Read more about the research in the September 2008 issue of Agricultural Research magazine. ARS is a scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Diptera Database Developed
Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:23:00 -0500
Mexican fruit flies are just one of the species in the order Diptera, one of the four largest groups of living organisms on Earth. Click the image for more information about it. Fruit fly diversity is in the details   Fruit fly study provides insight into bee immune system   Virulent hessian flies renew attack on U.S. wheat Database Documents Names for More Than 150,000 Diptera Species By Ann Perry August 29, 2008 Distinguishing between insect pests and partners starts with an ironclad identification. So Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist Chris Thompson headed up efforts to accurately identify and name almost 157,000 flies, gnats, maggots, midges, mosquitoes and related species in the order Diptera. Diptera is one of the four largest groups of living organisms on Earth, and its members are critical components in virtually all non-marine ecosystems. Carl Linnaeus, who devised the scientific classification system still in use today, compiled the first index of Diptera species names in 1758. But even though an average of 800 new Diptera names are proposed every year, the nomenclature has not been comprehensively updated since 1805. Thompson works at the ARS Systematic Entomology Laboratory in Washington, D.C. For this research, he partnered with Neal Evenhuis, an entomologist at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii; Thomas Pape, an entomologist at the Natural History Museum of Denmark; and Adrian Pont, an entomologist at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History in Oxford, England. The group assembled the tenth edition of the Biosystematic Database of World Diptera (BDWD). This massive index contains nomenclature data for 156,599 living and extinct Diptera species in 154 families and 11,671 genera—around 10 percent of the known biodiversity in the world today. The BDWD, which is available at www.diptera.org, has two components. The Nomenclator allows users to check names, confirm species status, and obtain information about type, family classification and sources for all names in the collection. The Species database is being designed to answer queries about different species, including their distribution, biological associates and economic importance. The BDWD provides a framework for organizing and integrating current and future data that is accessible by researchers around the globe. Scientists can obtain a wealth of information that will help them fine-tune Diptera’s evolutionary tree and track the migration, increase and decline of economically-important Diptera species worldwide. The team presented their research at the 20th International Congress of Zoology in Paris, France, in August. ARS is a scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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Crop Science Society of Florida - Contains operations, meeting, and contact information.

Omgeving B.V. - Dutch center for advice and research at the interface between science and practice in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, and the environment.

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Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station - Information on services and resources provided as well as special events.
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Council for Agricultural Science and Technology - Assembles, interprets, and communicates science-based information regionally, nationally, and internationally on food, fiber, agricultural, natural resource, and related societal and environmental issues. Topics include animal science, food science, agricultural technology, education, plant and soil sciences, and plant protection.

Crop Science Society of America - An educational and scientific organization comprised of more than 4,700 members dedicated to the advancement of crop science. Members in more than 100 countries.

Doyle Foundation - Providing advocacy and support for the role of science in international development
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Dr. Prem Nath Agricultural Science Foundation - A charitable trust established to assist Indian agricultural scientists to address agricultural problems for the benefit of developing countries.

ESA - European Society for Agronomy - For agronomists, researchers and teachers who are concerned with basic and applied science in agronomy: the relationships between crops, soils, climates and agricultural practices, and between agriculture and the environment.
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European Federation for Information Technology in Agriculture - Includes organisation newsletters and archives, conference and event information,
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Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) - Site has many information resources and links on agricultural topics, as well as hunger, sustainable development, and related matters.
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Hyb Tech - Project set up to develop F1 breeding technology for crops. Plants being tested are rice, tomato, chicory and tobacco. Funded by a commission of six European countries. techniques.

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Industrial Agricultural Products Center (IAPC) - Created by the University of Nebraska's governing board. Purpose of group is to promote the development of new industrial products that are made totally or partly from agricultural commodities, such as renewable energy and biodegradable plastics. Page includes list of current research projects and staff.

Infoagrar - Information on International Agriculture - InfoAgrar is the agricultural information and documentation service of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
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404 Institute of Arable Crops Research - Gives research results, information for growers, calendar of events and training and education offered.

Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture - Promotes the sustainable development of agriculture, food security and the prosperity of rural communities. Includes information on trade, technology and education.
Meta Description: [ The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) is a specialized agency of the inter-American system, and its purposes are to encourage and support the efforts of its Member States to foster agricultural development and rural well-being in their territories, El Instituto Intera... ]

International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage - News, profile and publications of the non-profit organisation working to improve water and land management by the application of irrigation, drainage and flood management techniques, in English and French.
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International Network for Bamboo and Rattan - Knowledge dissemination for rural areas and industries on bamboo and rattan conservation and use.
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International Service for National Agricultural Research - ISNAR assists developing countries in improving the performance of their national agricultural research systems and organizations.

Landis International - Research and development management company specializing in registration and re-registration of agricultural compounds. We provide a turnkey solution from discovery to EPA registration.
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Pan American Federation for Information Technology in Agriculture - Brief information on the federation and its founding principles and statutes.

Research Institute of Animal Nutrition, Ltd. - Pohorelice, Czech Republic. Cattle nutrition, pig nutrition, animal nutrition physiology and feed biotechnologies research. Research is the company's main activity.

SFIAR: Agricultural Research for Development in Switzerland - Provides up-to-date information on agricultural research for development, mainly focused on Switzerland, and offers facilities to present information on the internet.
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Swiss Center for International Agriculture - Promotes and supports projects in international agricultural research, especially for the sustainable use of natural resources in agriculture and forestry in non-OECD countries.
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Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation - International agency advancing agricultural and rural development in African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries by promoting the transfer, exchange and utilisation of information. Features publications, news, and departments.

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