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NCCC031: Ecophysiological Aspects of Forage Management

Annual/Termination Reports (SAES-422): [05/06/2011] [09/06/2012]

Date of Annual Report: 05/06/2011

Report Information:
  • Annual Meeting Dates: 03/29/11 to 03/31/11
  • Period the Report Covers: 10/2009 to 09/2010

    • Participants:
    Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting:
    Minutes of annual meeting (recorded by Xuejun Dong):

    Ecophysiological Aspects of Forage Management Time: Wednesday, March 30, 2011 to Thursday, March 31, 2011 Place: Becker Center of Agriculture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN

    Wednesday, March 30, 2011 8:20 a.m. Chair Bill Lamp called meeting to order

    Ø Introduction

    Ø Welcome remark by Linda Lee, Associate Head, Department of Agronomy, Purdue University

    Ø Administration update by Jim Kells: Jim said that this is his second meeting to NCCC31. The project has been renewed and good for 5 years. There is requirement for mid-term report, but this year will be an easy year for the group. Jim reminded the group to submit the annual report within 90 days following the meeting. He also pointed out that if the next meeting is going to be held out of the region (North-central regions), a strong justification is needed for doing that.

    Ø Bill Lamp appointed the following personnel to serve on respective committees:

    ü Location committee: Mark Sulc, Anowar Islam, and Francisco Contreras

    ü Nomination committee: Paul Peterson, Joe Mayer, and Tom Griggs

    ü Resolution committee: Ken Albrecht, Ben Tracy, and Marvin Hall

    Ø Other discussions:

    ü Jeff Volenec indicated that he has been serving on the NCCC31 group for 30 years and happy to see its continued growth

    ü Bill Lamp suggested to recruit more female members (now there three of them); Linda is the contact person for updating names

    ü Jeff Volenec suggested to consider recruiting new members from 1890 schools to increase diversity

    ü Bill Lamp said he would like to contact Vance Owen (SD) and John Grabber (WI) to come back to the annual meetings

    ü Jim Kells reminded the group that new faculty members are encouraged to join NCCC31, but there is only on official representative for each state State reports

    Ø 9:00 a.m Wisconsin: Ken Ablbrecht highlighted an ongoing research entitled Stocker steer performance on tall fescue and meadow fescue with nitrogen fertilizer or in mixture with white clover. The purpose was to gain information on livestock performance on tall fescue and meadow fescue pastures and to determine the role that white clover can play as a replacement of N fertilizer. Data collected started 2010 and the experiment will run through the 2012 growing season. Ken also outlined several completed studies including applying kura clover living mulch in corn production. Ø 9:23 a.m. New Mexico: Francisco Contreras reviewed main issues in forage research in Southeastern New Mexico. Several completed/ongoing projects were highlighted: (a) in using warm-season annual legumes for forage production, it was found that lablab performed better than cowpea in Southern high plains by providing higher dry matter yield and nutritive value; (b) winter small grains for silage can be harvested at soft dough maturity stage without affecting significantly nutritive value, and barley and winter wheat had better nutritive value than winter triticale; (c) first year data of alfalfa samples were used to calibrate PEAQ and indicated usefulness in predicting alfalfa nutritive value in southwest USA.

    Ø 9:42 a.m. North Dakota: Xuejun Dong reported an ongoing greenhouse study comparing the effect of drought on biomass partitions between two introduced grasses (Kentucky bluegrass and smooth brome) and two native grasses (western wheatgrass and green needlegrass), suggesting that under drought stress the biomass investment to roots decreased in two introduced grasses but increased in two native grasses. However, drought responses in biomass investment in belowground rhizomes and shoot base (crowns) are similar between the two groups of grasses. He also reported his effort of summarizing CO2 flux from managed U.S. grasslands, suggesting a tight linkage between CO2 source/sink strength and precipitation.

    Ø 10:20 a.m. West Virginia: Tom Griggs reported an ongoing study on impacts of winter grazing and hay feeding on the reproductive performance of heifers in West Virginia. This is an intensively managed grazing system over the year-round grazing cycle on a perennial cool-season pasture considering animal performance and herbage production. A higher fall ADG was obtained under higher herbage allowance treatment, compared with lower allowance one. However, there was limited impact of herbage allowance on herfer reproduction performance. In addition, the common winter grazing season and intake compensation in following spring and summer grazing may have diluted the effect of herbage limitation in prior season on AGD and animal reproduction. The work illustrates the role of proper growing season pasture management and stockpiling for winter-season hay feeding, which can reduce the cost of winter feeding.

    Ø 10:45 a.m. Pennsylvania-PSU: Marvin Hall introduced the newly built biomass harvester at Penn state University- College of Agriculture. Enabled with a weigh system and able to harvest an 8 ft wide swath of tall grasses, the harvester has the maneuverability of harvesting small biomass plots for reducing variability in the research and maximizing the ability for detecting treatment effects. Marvin also introduced several other ongoing studies including (a) a warm-season grass production trial on abandoned strip mines in order to increase land productivity while improving the environment; (b) using slow release nitrogen fertilizer for orchardgrass; (c) determining the cost of delaying spring cool-season grass harvest; and (d) the evaluation of a portable NIR instrument for rapid monitoring of forage quality.

    Ø 11:05 a.m. Pennsylvania-USDA: Howard Skinner reported an ongoing study on the effect of nitrogen fertilizer application on net ecosystem exchange (NEE) from two long-term maintained perennial pastures in Pennsylvania. Past 6 years of data suggests that the pasture was almost carbon neutral. However, with nitrogen application in 2009 and 2010 at a rate of 200 kg N/ha/yr, both gross production and ecosystem respiration increased, but the former increased more, enabling the fertilized pasture to change from a slight carbon source of 33 g CO2 m-1 yr-1 to a net sink of -101 33 g CO2 m-1 yr-1. The study is to be continued for another year.

    Ø 11:25 a.m. Indianna: Jeff Volenec updated study trials on miscanthus, switchgrass, and sorghum. Sorghum has remarkably higher nitrogen use efficiency than miscanthus. Sorghum also has high water use efficiency and high heat tolerance. Jeff also introduced a project of water quality study: productivity and environmental impact of US cropping systems and heighted the trade-off between increased crop production and reductions in environmental pollution. Water use efficiency is a major issue, with higher biomass closely scaling with high water use; to a large extent, energy problem is a water problem. Finally, the ongoing studies at his lab are integrating experimental data with modeling and scaling field plot data to landscapes.

    Ø 1:00 p.m. Michigan: Jim Kells and Rich Leep gave a report entitled Effect of weed management following round-up-ready (RR) alfalfa stand establishment on forage productivity and stand longevity. The field treatment was started on August 13, 2003 by applying glyphosate and hexazinane (Velpar). The weed removal had positive effect (???) on forage quality, but did not impact stand persistence. Can continued weed removal from established alfalfa increase the productive life of the stand? The answer from this study is probably NOT.

    Ø 1:20 p.m. Wyoming: Anowar Islam highlighted his field trail of evaluating Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) in Wyoming. Aside of its values as food ingredient with multitude of health benefits, Fenugreek has high nutritive value at all growth stages and does not create the bloat problem. As a result, it is potentially an attractive forage crop. Unfortunately, information on its cultivation in central high plains of Wyoming is lacking. In 2010, a trial was setup in two locations in Wyoming by planting seeds of 13 genotypes/accessions collected from Canada. The plants were gown under both irrigated and dryland conditions. Preliminary data in 2010 give information that lines F80 and IT give higher forage yield under irrigated and dryland condition, respectively. Anowar also introduced his cool-season grass trials under irrigation and dryland condition, as well as the first year result of the tall fescue-alfalfa mixtures in Wyoming, which suggest that 0.5/0.5 [all fescue/alfalfa] mixture gave the highest production in 2010.

    Ø 1:50 p.m. Maryland: Bill Lamp reported his studies using molecular biology techniques to further our understanding of biochemical mechanisms involved in potato leafhoppers feeding on alfalfa plants. By sequencing the salivary gland transcriptome of potato leafhoppers, his research group found that the leafhoppers saliva contains some important enzymes with anti-microbial and anti-oxidant properties, and those that can break down cellulose and starch into small molecules. This provide basis for further testing of the roles that different enzymes play in plant wound responses known as hopperburn. Another related study tested the effect of late injury of leafhopper on nitrogen fixation of alfalfa plants. It was found that later injury did not impact biomass accumulation, but did have reduced nitrogen content of alfalfa leaves. Furthermore, an ongoing study has used antibiotics to effectively manipulate salivary gland symbionts level in order to further study the alfalfas response to leafhopper feeding.

    Ø 2:10 p.m. Kansas: Joe Moyer reported an ongoing study of dried distillers grain (DDG) supplementation to grazing cattle in smooth bromegrass pastures. The purpose is to see if delayed DDG supplementation until forage quality declines can improve its effectiveness. Results show that both full grazing phase and delayed supplementations resulted in higher grazing gains, compared with no supplement. Compared with full supplementation, delayed supplementation resulted in deceased DDG intake. Although steers received no supplementation in 2009 had higher finishing gains than those with supplementation while grazing, data of 2010 suggest that steers with DDG supplementation had higher overall gains than those without supplement during the grazing phase. Joe also reported on a project of establishing legumes in grass pastures.

    Ø 2:25 p.m. Minnesota: Paul Peterson reported research results on alfalfa/tall fescue mixtures. Data of 2001 indicate (a) alfalfa was more dominant, but tall fescue came up later in the season; (b) 0.25 alfalfa/0.75 tall fescue mixture would give 0.5/0.5 dry matter yield. Paul raised a question of whether to use visual or hand sorting to separate grass, legume and weed components upon harvesting in the tall fescue-alfalfa mixture common experiment. He also updated an alfalfa/grass mixture trial at 3 locations in MN with four harvests.

    Ø 3:10 p.m. Virginia: Ben Tracy reported studies on biodiversity in native warm-season pastures (NWSP). The main aims are to test the biodiversity-productivity relationship, as well as the complementary effects of C3 and C4 species due to their differences in biomass peak growth. Results show that increasing sown NWSP diversity leaded to (a) higher forage yield and cover, (b) lower weeds cover and weeds richness, (c) lower CP but higher NDF and ADF. Grazing tended to increase amount of weeds and may reduce NWSP forage production. The effect of biodiversity of productivity was separated into selection effects (SE) and complementarity effects (CE). Three years data indicate that CE and SE can dominate in different years depending on climate and species succession.

    Ø 3:35 p.m. Ohio: Dave Barker reported a study using modified Gompertz equation to predict pasture mass accumulation. The key eco-physiological issue here is the proper canopy measurement to optimize digestible dry matter accumulation in pastures. Various field measurements, such as weekly monitoring of herbage mass using rising plate meter, forage quality, as well as morphological composition of the sward (stems, leaves, dead materials, etc.), conducted in both Ohio and Wisconsin, were used to support this modeling work. Furthermore, by analyzing the fitted curves, the range of total available herbage biomass corresponding to the maximum instantaneous herbage growth rate can be determined.

    Ø 4:06 p.m. Arkansas: Chuck West reported a study on switchgrass growth simulation, responses to nitrogen, and use in cotton intercropping. The main effort was to calibrate the ALMANAC model for use in switchgrass. The model simulates N, P, K, and water dynamics, as well as ash, and total energy. It has a fully functional web support and can be easily downloaded. One can specify exact county location (in USA), crop type, management (grazing, fertilization, etc.), and nearest weather station. Chuck and his group are also conducting further development to expand the models capability.

    Thursday, March 31, 2011

    8:00 a.m. - 10: 30 a.m. Committee reports and discussion lead by Bill Lamp

    Ø Committee reports

    ü Location: Mark Sulc represented location committee (Mark Sulc, Anowar Islam, and Francisco Contreras) to suggest Minnesota as next meeting place; members suggested to meet in June (specific dates to be decided later). All agreed on the location committees suggestion. Paul Peterson agreed to serve as local host in the next meeting and he suggested St. Paul campus as het meeting place.

    ü Nomination: Paul Peterson represented nomination committee (Paul Peterson, Joe Mayer, and Tom Griggs) and suggested to appoint both the next chair and next secretary. Jim Kells mentioned that this will be an easy year to serve as chair and encouraged members to volunteer. Following a brief discussion, Xuejun Dong was appointed as next chair, and Marvin Hall as secretary. As usual, the secretary is to be the chair in the following year. All supported the two nominations and both Xuejun and Marvin agreed to serve.

    ü Resolution: Marvin Hall represented resolution committee (Ken Albrecht, Ben Tracy and Marvin Hall ) to make the following resolution statements:

    " Whereas members of the NCCC-31 committee enjoyed a stimulating exchange of information and ideas on 29-31, March 2011 at the excellent meeting facilities at Purdue University; be it hereby resolved that we are deeply grateful to Jeff Volenec for making local arrangements.

    " Whereas Rich Leep has been a faithful member of the NCCC-31 committee for nearly 15 years and whereas Rich has announced his impending retirement; be it hereby resolved that the members deeply appreciate Richs scientific contributions, excellent leadership, and professional fellowship over the years. The resolutions were approved unanimously.

    Ø Discussion

    ü Jim Kells pointed out that there will be a mid-period report for this group, which is one year from now. Regarding the annual report, Jim reminded the members that the annual report contains only a synopsis of the report for each state, and that the longer one (full report) is not for official report. Chuck West suggested that the longer report is not to be posted on public domain either.

    ü Ben Tracy lead a discussion with six other members (Bill Lamp, Anowar Islam, Ken Albrecht, Paul Peterson, Howard Skinner, and Xuejun Dong) to update sampling protocols for the alfalfa-tall fescue common experiment, for which there are eight participating locations within the NCCC31 group (Jennifer MacAdam was not able to come this year at Purdue). After a discussion, it was agreed that hand sorting (instead of visual sorting) is to be used to separate groups of plants upon harvesting, and a complete set of data from all sites for one year (in 2011) will be used to write an article, while beyond that, additional data collections for further collaborations are encouraged. Ben said he would send updated experimental protocols and procedures to participating members soon following this meeting.

    ü Bill Lamp lead a discussion to familiarized the members with the functionality of the NIMSS website, featuring the NCCC31 group. Bill emphasized that in addition to routine documentation of meeting activities, the website also shows the money devoted to this groups activity (professional year allocation for each member). The photo album located on this website can be used to post relevant pictures, or slide series that have public education value, or can be used by ourselves.

    ü Chuck West lead a discussion on the regional integrated CAP proposal, for which participating members had discussed on March 29, 2011 at the same location at Purdue before the main NCCC31 meeting. This planning proposal had also been discussed among relevant members in the ASA meeting in Long Beach, November 2010. With input from NCCC31 members, Chuck updated and fine-tuned the match between main objectives and corresponding personnel/partners. Chuck also introduced a newly available online graduate course on agricultural sustainability lead by five institutions, of which he was part. He said that life cycle analysis is part of the online course, which emphasizes the relevant skills and knowledge base for farm sustainability.

    ü Jeff Volenec introduce the members a new web-based tool on nanotechnology called: NANOhub.org. It is tool and data oriented online simulation system (with > 160 tools, including those relevant to agriculture). Also, it includes various courses useful for agronomy and agriculture.

    ü Bill Lamp reminded the group that this year there is a new NNF graduate program that has focus on integrated training in multi-disciplinary aspects, with a deadline line of June 1. With multiple institutions, each of them can submit separately with one institution leading. Jeff Volenec said he would send to the group a copy of his proposal as a sample. Ø 10:30 a.m. Meeting adjourned

    Accomplishments:
    As this is the first year of our renewed project, accomplishments are few. We are planning for submission of a major grant proposal, and obtained funding for the planning process. In addition, we are meeting with producer groups and organizations to find out their perspectives on climate change, and their anticipation of information needs in the future. Our research also builds on past accomplishments as identified in the impact statements below.

    Impact Statements:
    1. New production practices developed by NCCC-31 scientists are demonstrating environmental benefits. For example, corn production in kura clover living mulch resulted in important water quality benefits, reducing nitrate-N leaching by 31 to 74% relative to conventional monoculture corn production. The living mulch also provides valuable soil cover in corn production systems where both grain and stover are harvested. Thus, the kura clover living mulch system has potential to improve the sustainability of whole plant corn harvest, whether for livestock feed or for bioenergy.
    2. New crops and management systems are being developed for harsh environments by NCCC-31 scientists. For example, warm-season annual legumes like lablab beans can produce high DM yield with good nutritive value in southeastern NM. Also, winter small grains for silage can be harvested at soft dough maturity stage without affecting significantly nutritive value. In this study, winter barley and winter wheat had better nutritive value than winter triticale.
    3. NCCC-31 scientists are improving tools to assess forage quality for producers. Alfalfa samples for PEAQ calibration indicates that PEAQ could be used to predict alfalfa nutritive value in the southwest as it currently does for other regions.
    4. NCCC-31 scientists are involved with greenhouse gas emissions from forage crops and pastures. For example, scientists summarized and synthesized current progress on grassland management effects on carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide flux from managed grasslands in the US. This can support studies on climate change mitigation that has long-term societal benefits.
    5. NCCC-31 research outcomes will include information necessary for better management of pastures and mitigation of impacts of beef cattle production systems on climate change. The research also will generate information that beef cattle producers can use to minimize nitrogen inputs and production costs and improve economic sustainability through feeding of co-products derived from the ethanol industry. Adoption by producers of strategies/practices that ensure efficient use of N will have a positive influence on environmental quality.
    6. NCCC-31 scientists are actively involved with providing useful information to producers. For example, WV scientists have stimulated interest among producers in 1) the potential for beef heifers to feed themselves for part of the winter on pastures with stockpiled forage, thereby reducing costs associated with producing and feeding hay; and 2) the importance of appropriate pasture and grazing management during the growing season to successful stockpiling of cool-season perennial pasture for use during the dormant season.
    7. Pest management research is demonstrating molecular interactions between forage crops and pests. For example, potato leafhopper, Empoasca fabae, is unique among legume-feeding herbivores because of its ability to disrupt normal plant physiological functions through the insertion of saliva into its host plant. Current research focuses on the plant-insect interaction at the molecular and physiological level that causes the hopperburn response, and represents an interdisciplinary approach that will provide understanding necessary to develop plants that are able to tolerate leafhopper injury.
    8. Investigations of grazing practices relate both economic value and environmental consequences. For example, deferred grazing appears to be advantageous from an economic standpoint, but may pose some serious environmental effects. Also, compaction from grazing may alter nutrient cycling.
    9. NCCC-31 researchers have made significant progress with fungal endophyte infection in tall fescue. Recent research has found that the endophyte can have substantial ecosystem-level effects and that this symbiosis is likely to respond to future changes in climate. This knowledge aids in our understanding of the role this important symbiosis plays in regional ecosystem dynamics now and the role it is likely to play in the future. In addition, research aims to contribute to natural resource management and conservation by identifying the factors that control tall fescues ability to invade and persist in native prairie ecosystems.
    10. Optimum forage harvesting and grazing management have been investigated by NCCC-31 researchers using mathematical models. In OH, a mathematical model (Gompertz equation) was developed for predicting herbage accumulation rate from herbage mass. This equation was incorporated into a defoliation model that provides a unifying mechanism for predicting forage production for an infinite range of forage harvesting options. If improved grazing practice from application of this model could increase stocking rate by 5%, this would increase the cow herd in OH alone by 60,000 cows, and increase farm revenue by $20 million.
    Last Modified: 09-May-2011

    Date of Annual Report: 09/06/2012

    Report Information:
  • Annual Meeting Dates: 06/19/12 to 06/21/12
  • Period the Report Covers: 10/2010 to 09/2011

    • Participants:
    Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting:
    The meeting was held at Ramada-Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota from June 19 to 21, 2012. There were 32 participants.

    Tuesday Morning, June, 19, 2012:

    Sub-committee for the regional coordinated agricultural project on tall fescue held a discussion. In the afternoon, Chuck West reported to the NCCC-31 group the outcome of the discussion.

    NCCC31 meeting started Tuesday afternoon at 1:00 PM. Greg Cuomo was the local host, Xuejun Dong the chairperson. As Marvin Hall (this year's Secretary) was not able to attend the meeting, Steve Barnhart volunteered to take the minutes (see attached file).

    Administrative Advisor Dr. Jim Kells gave updates on the current status of the NCCC-31, as well as instructions for the upcoming mid-term review in early 2013. He indicated that the impact statement will need to be revised and posted on the NIMSS website based on past two years' activity impacts. Rebecca McCulley volunteered to lead this revision effort. Jim reminded to group to submit this year's annual report within 90 days of the meeting.

    Beth Nelson, President of both the National Alfalfa & Forage Alliance and Midwest Forage Association, gave a report on some of the coordinated lobbying efforts of the associations she represents for funding and support for forage research and activities.

    Xuejun Dong appointed three working committees: Locations: Jennifer MacAdam, Howard Skinner, and Matt Sanderson. Nominations: Bill Lamp, Rebecca McCulley, and Ben Tracy. Resolutions: Dave Barker, Jeff Volenec and Todd White.

    Howard Skinner (PA), Tom Griggs (WV), Rebecca McCulley (KY), and Kim Cassida (MI) delivered their state reports (each 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes discussion).

    Wednesday, June 20, 2012

    The following six researchers delivered their state reports: Craig Sheaffer (MN), Chuck West (AR), Ben Tracy (VA), Todd White (KS), Anowar Islam (WY) and Jeff Volenec (IN).

    The group attended a one-hour video conference with Dr. Jim Dobrowolski on Ag budget and funding with NIFA. This was followed by a field tour featuring ongoing forage studies by scientists at University of Minnesota and UDSA-ARS.

    Thursday, June 21, 2012:

    Chuck West gave a brief description of the on-line bioenergy course coordinated by the U. of Arkansas.

    The three committees gave their reports:

    The Locations Committee recommended next NCCC-31 meeting to be held in Kentucky, with dates to be determined.

    The Nomination Committee proposed that Tom Griggs be appointed as Secretary for 2013 with expected advancement to Chair in 2014.

    The Resolutions Committee recognized the tremendous efforts of Greg Cuomo, Paul Peterson and others at UMN and USDA-ARS Twin Cities, for their gracious and effective hosts. Also recognized were Xuejun Dong's leadership as this year's chairperson, and Jim Kell's extra-ordinary assistance as advisor of the NCCC-31 group.

    All these decisions were approved unanimously by those present.

    The following six researchers gave their state reports: Bill Lamp (MD), Jennifer MacAdam (UT), Steve Barnhart (IA), Matt Sanderson (ARS, Mandan, ND), Dave Barker (OH), and Xuejun Dong (NDSU). The meeting adjourned at 11:45 AM.


    URL: Copy of minutes

    Accomplishments:
    1. NCCC-31 scientists continued the active communication and information exchange among members, which has been a tradition for this group in past 60 years. Given the accelerated pace of scientific advancement and rapid expanding of literature in the area of eco-physiology-based forage management, the timely face-to-face communication and information exchange during the NCCC-31 annual meeting becomes of paramount importance for individual members to avoid duplicating research efforts in problems that have already been solved but not been published, and to consolidate individual research efforts to unique, most important research questions. Interaction of the NCCC-31 group with Dr. Jim Dobrowolski, National Program Leader of NIFA's Division of Environmental Systems, and Beth Nelson, National Alfalfa Improvement Association (NAIA), reinforced the group's involvement in national panels for forage funding and research planning. Interaction of the group with Fae Holin, Editor of Hay & Forage Grower magazine, provided possibility for connecting research findings of NCCC-31 scientists directly with producer groups.

    2. The information exchange fostered efficient coordination and fruitful collaboration among members and led to the birth of two highly coordinated research activities involving a number of members of this group: (a) a common alfalfa-tall fescue mixture experiment across the north-central USA involving seven NCCC-31 members representing seven states; (b) a regional integrated Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP) planning grant ($50,000) to coordinate the development of a full proposal, in which several NCCC-31 members serve as core writers with involvement of the region's leading researchers in life cycle analysis, soil science and climate change modelers. See below for impact statements.

    3. During this reporting period, NCCC-31 researchers published 80 peer-reviewed journal papers, eight book chapters, one edited book, 36 extension papers, 59 conference abstracts/posters, eight reports/proceedings, and six referred popular articles.

    Impact Statements:
    1. Tall fescue is the most widely utilized forage species from the central Corn Belt to the southeastern U.S. and supports large, forage-based beef and dairy numbers. The regional integrated CAP planning project led by NCCC-31 researchers is channeling the region‘s leading scientific resource into the quest of guiding principles for optimally managing the livestock grazing systems in the humid east region to enhance soil carbon (C) sequestration, improve water and nutrient storage, mitigate the climate-forcing effect of fossil fuel combustion, and potentially provide producers with C credit income.
    2. The cost of nitrogen fertilizers and weed control constrain sustained forage production. A common alfalfa-tall fescue mixture experiment across seven states in the North-central USA has been implemented by NCCC-31 researchers and data collected are being analyzed for nitrogen replacement value and for the effect of grass-legume mixtures in deterring weed invasion. This coordinated study will also quantify the variability of production of the tall fescue-alfalfa mixtures across north-central USA, which is difficult to fathom based on meta-analysis of published individual studies.
    3. NCCC-31 researchers continued to provide scientific information useful for forage producers. Examples include (a) the finding by Virginia researchers that forage productivity in cool-season regions could be improved with minimal external inputs by adding pastures sown with moderately diverse (n=4-10 species) prairie plant mixtures; (b) the recommendation made by Arkansas researchers that broadcast establishment for crimson clover appeared to result in less establishment risk than no-till drill establishment, but the opposite was true for white clover; (c) a systematic survey by Minnesota and Wisconsin researchers for farm utilization practices of kura clover in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa.
    4. The mathematical model (Gompertz equation) developed by NCCC-31 researchers is applicable for predicting pasture mass growth under a wide array of management scenarios. It validates recommendations for the monitoring of forage mass by producers (e.g., with a rising plate meter). The model has been presented to three grazing meetings within USA during 2011 and will be incorporated into future advanced grazing workshops. A related article has been published in Agronomy Journal.
    5. NCCC-31 researcher in Mandan, ND led a national multi-agency effort in the development of a literature synthesis summarizing the science behind the conservation practices applied to pasture and forage lands. Facilitated by the American Forage and Grassland Council (AFGC), the result of this synthesis will be published as a book in the third quarter of 2012 (will also be available electronically).
    6. NCCC-31 researcher in Wyoming selected well-adapted high performing accessions/lines of various legumes for the development of cultivars that will be specifically suitable for Wyoming and neighboring states. This will eventually contribute to the improvement of productivity of local and regional producers and in the long-run, with potential economic benefits.
    7. Responses of managed grasslands and pasturelands to future climate changes involve the interactions of multiple factors with complex feed-back/feed forward mechanisms. A clear understanding of the responses of grassland to changed climate scenarios is needed for both agricultural planning for environmental sustainability. A study by NCCC-31 researcher in the mesic grassland in Kentucky suggests that a 3 oC increase in air temperature is likely to reduce soil carbon storage and flux, but this effect may be offset or reversed if increased growing season precipitation occurs concurrently.
    8. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) alfalfa offers growers new options for weed control in alfalfa. A study by NCCC-31 researcher in Michigan cautioned that weed removal does not always result in improvement of relative feed quality or stand persistence of established glyphosate-resistant alfalfa. The study also demonstrates the improved relative forage quality of GR alfalfa under a high-intensity harvesting system (4 to 5 harvests yr-1) than it was with a moderate intensity harvesting system (3 to 4 harvests yr-1).
    9. NCCC-31 researchers in Arkansas demonstrated that much of the negative effect of the toxic endophyte on cow-calf production could be alleviated by using fall calving instead of spring calving, and (or) by replacing a limited amount of the access time to tall fescue with nontoxic (novel)-endophyte tall fescue during the critical breeding period.
    10. Extending grazing season‘s length and lowering the cost of grazing management are among the perennial quests by ranchers. NCCC-31 researcher in West Virginia has demonstrated the potentially negative impact of early-spring grazing under rotational stocking on subsequent pasture productivity, as well as the potential for beef heifers to feed themselves for part of the winter on pastures with stockpiled forage, thereby reducing costs associated with producing and feeding hay.
    11. Despite its popularity as an innovative pasture management system, mob grazing and its pros and cons remain to be largely anecdotal. NCCC-31 researchers in Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska are pursuing science-based answers to this problem through systematic studies taking into consideration soil and animal health, range sustainability, environmental quality impacts and long-term economic profits.
    12. Studies by NCCC-31 researchers in both Nebraska and Kansas demonstrate the benefits of using dried distillers grains (DDG) supplementation to increase grazing gains for beef cattle/steers while decreasing the use of commercial N fertilizers or increasing N use efficiency. The Nebraska study also demonstrates that DDG supplementation can provide resistance to annual weed invasion to pastures.
    13. NCCC31 researchers in Utah provided direct economic impact in $ amount for cattle grazing on monoculture birdsfoot trefoil pastures (stocking density 2 steers per acre). Using average daily gains of 3 to 3.5 lbs./day, a 900 lb. spring-born steer grazing for 90 days from June through August would reach 1170 to 1215 lbs. Production costs on irrigated pasture estimated from Neibergs and Nelson (2009) are $158/head or $316/acre. These cattle may not grade choice, but will fetch an offsetting premium as natural pasture-fed beef. If these two steers are sold in September (at $90.40/cwt; Ellis, 2011), gross return per acre would be about $1800 less the investment in the steers. An alternative use of agricultural land in this region would be to raise 6 tons of premium ($225/ton) alfalfa hay/acre at a cost of $500/acre, for a profit of $850/acre.
    14. NCCC-31 researchers in Arkansas cautioned that benefiting from the N-fertilizer-sparing effect of pasture legumes requires diligence and long-term commitment by producers.
    15. Balancing agricultural production and conservation has always been an issue vexing both forage scientists and the general public. NCCC-31 researchers illustrated this balance using context specific studies. One study in Iowa demonstrated through an economic budget model-based study that grazing prairie is most profitable for grazers when a rental rate is offered by land owners to provide a service of disturbance to the prairie. One study in Wisconsin highlighted the significant benefits of using kura clover living mulch and winter rye to reduce soil erosion and nutrient runoff in corn silage production.
    16. Using molecular biology techniques, NCCC-31 researcher and graduate student in Maryland detected a myriad array of salivary enzymes in the sialotranscriptome of the potato leafhopper grazing on alfalfa. As the first comprehensive study of the salivary components of the potato leafhopper, this work will allow others to build on further studies on how individual saliva components incite plant wound responses.
    17. Responding to society‘s needs for science-based evaluation of the economic and environmental feasibility of using cellulosic feedstocks for biofuels, NCCC-31 researcher in Indiana provided the first comprehensive economic and lifecycle analysis on corn stover, Miscanthus and switchgrass for biofuel conversion costs, considering both biochemical and thermochemical pathways. The study is expected to inform decision-making for future biofuel policies.
    18. There is possibility of increasing the carbon sequestration potential of mature pastures through nitrogen fertilizer application. However, NCCC-31 researcher in Pennsylvania found from a 3-year study that the applied N fertilizer boosted both the gross primary productivity and ecosystem respiration, resulting in no change in net ecosystem carbon exchange.
    19. Soil respiration partitioning is a critical step for understanding the regulation mechanisms of carbon flux from forage production systems but is prone to errors if using directly measured respiration rates from the field plots. NCCC-31 researchers in Pennsylvania and North Dakota conducted successful respiration partitioning in their respective forage systems, using natural abundance of 13C signature between C3 and C4 plant species and the field trenching plus modeling methods, respectively.
    20. Alfalfa winter survival continued to be the research focus of NCCC-31 scientists. Researchers in Minnesota and North Dakota are testing modern alfalfa varieties in order to establish updated recommendation for alfalfa winter survival. By relating alfalfa taproot C and N reserves and gene expression to the influence of P and K fertilization, researchers in Indiana help to deepen our understanding of the "secret" of eco-physiological mechanisms of alfalfa winter survival and yield persistence.
    21. NCCC-31 researchers have identified and illuminated a number of ecophysiological mechanisms underlying droguht stress responses and adaptations of major forage/bioenergy crops. Examples include (a) the molecular marker-based analysis to screen drought resistance genes in tall fescue (Wyoming/Oklahoma); (b) the study to further test the benefit of fungal endophyte symbiosis in tall fescue‘s response to climate change and abiotic stresses (Kentucky); (c) the analysis of season-long water and N use efficiencies for bioenergy sorghum production as influenced by land use change (Indiana); (d) the study to compare drought strategies of selected native and invasive grasses in terms of biomass partitioning (North Dakota/Minnesota); and (e) the study to increase pasture drought resistance through managing plant diversity (Pennsylvania).
    Last Modified: 06-Sep-2012
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