“Comparative productivity of six bioenergy cropping systems on marginal lands in the Great Lakes Region, USA” with Dileepa Jayawardena. Bioenergy crops present a promising source for biofuel production, offering a potential solution to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. However, they face criticism for potentially encroaching on arable land essential for food production to sustain growing populations. To address this issue, there is a growing focus on utilizing marginal lands for growing...

“Key soil properties and their relationships with crop yields as affected by soil-landscape rehabilitation” with Dr. Sharon Schneider. Soil erosion is one of the major issues in agriculture that causes loss of the topsoil layer, reducing soil health and crop productivity. There are several ways to check soil erosion and its impacts on crop and soil health. One of the potential strategies to reduce the effect of past soil erosion is to reverse the soil erosion process by moving soil from...

“Recalibrating the Pennsylvania pre-sidedress soil nitrate test recommendations for modern corn production” with Charles White. Nitrogen management is one of the most important agronomic practices in modern crop production systems. The Pre-Sidedress Soil Nitrate Test, also known as the PSNT, gives farmers an estimation of plant available nitrogen in the soil, allowing them to calculate how much nitrogen the plants still need. The existing PSNT method was developed during the 1990’s. Now,...

“Precision nitrogen management for improving yield and protein content in wheat” with Dr. Olga Walsh. Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrients for crops, which is required in large amounts for crop production and demands precise nutrient management methods due to its highly mobile property in plants and soils and high chances of leaching. Precise nutrient management is also important for improving the yield and quality of grains, minimizing the input, and maximizing the efficiency....

“Nitrogen mitigation scenarios to reduce coastal eutrophication” with Wafa and Patrick. Eutrophication is a state of overgrowth of aquatic plants, such as algae and seaweeds, in water bodies due to the excessive pouring of nutrients from different sources like agriculture, industry, and human settlements, causing disturbances to the ecosystems. Coastal eutrophication is a major issue worldwide due to the increasing discharge of nutrient emissions from agricultural activities into coastal...

“Focusing the GWAS Lens on days to flower using latent variable phenotypes derived from global multienvironment trials” with Sandesh Neupane and Derek Wright. Lentil, a pivotal pulse crop, is recognized as an important part of food and nutrition security in the world. It has rich sources of important nutrients, is easy to cook, and thrives well on the farm. Due to its rich dietary benefits, lentil has been introduced to North America, especially in Canada. Originating as a warmer climate...

“Addressing conservation practice limitations and trade-offs for reducing phosphorus loss from agricultural fields” with Dr. Pete Kleinman, Research Leader, USDA, and Dr. Deanna Osmond, Professor, North Carolina State University. Conservation practices are important techniques that help us move towards a more sustainable planet. But when these tools are applied without proper testing and a holistic point of view, they can sometimes cause unintended consequences or tradeoffs that affect the...

“Genes and genetic mechanisms contributing to fall armyworm resistance in maize” with Sandra Woolfolk and Leigh Hawkins, research entomologist and molecular biologist (respectively) at USDA-ARS. Fall armyworm is a major pest around the world, causing millions of dollars in damages yearly. However, farmers are not alone in the fight against these invasive creatures, with plant breeders coming alongside to help develop more resistant plants. This episode, Drs. Sandra Woolfolk and Leigh Hawkins...

“Microplastics in Composts, Digestates and Food Wastes: A Review” with Kate Porterfield, PhD Candidate at University Vermont and Dr. Eric Roy, Associate Professor at University of Vermont. Diverting organic materials and food waste from landfills and recycling them for beneficial use in agriculture is a great way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, intermingled microplastics from packaging and other sources could make these recycled materials less beneficial than they otherwise...

“Genotypic and environmental effects on the compounds associated with garlic flavor, health-enhancing properties, and postharvest conservation” with Dr. Pablo Cavagnaro. Garlic is a widely consumed species used for culinary as well as therapeutic and medicinal purposes. Different compounds within garlic can affect its effectiveness for these purposes, which are also driving factors for the market value. These compounds' availability in the garlic bulbs along with the dry (solid) matter of...

“Partial recovery of microbial function in restored coastal marshes of Oregon, USA” with Amelia Fitch, PhD Candidate at Dartmouth College Draining or restoring a wetland has a significant impact on the land’s ability to store carbon. A lot of that has to do with the microbial communities that live within these wetlands, but when a wetland is restored, how long does it really take for those communities to shift and what does that mean for the land’s carbon storage capacity? This episode,...

“Pesticide trends in a tailwater recovery system in the Mississippi Delta” with Dr. Matt Moore, Supervisory Ecologist and Research Leader of the USDA-ARS Water Quality and Ecology Research Unit at the National Sedimentation Laboratory in Oxford, Mississippi Farmers in Mississippi have a two-fold problem. Agriculture requires a lot of water, leading to a water quantity problem, and agricultural runoff can cause environmental issues, leading to a water quality problem. One potential solution?...

It’s our birthday, our five-year anniversary, and our 100th episode, which means it’s time to paaaaarty! Join us for a brief interview with host Abby as she looks back on five years of podcasting, followed by our usual birthday blooper reel. Contact us at [email protected] or on Twitter @FieldLabEarth if you have comments, questions, or suggestions for show topics, and if you want more content like this don’t forget to subscribe. If you’d like to see old episodes or sign up for...

“Transitioning from conventional to cover crop systems with minimum tillage does not alter nutrient loading” with Drs. Joby Czarnecki and Beth Baker of Mississippi State University Cover crops are often lauded as agricultural heroes boasting of a variety of ecosystems services and benefits to farmers and the world. But are these crops always the best option and do they always provide benefits wherever they go? In this episode, Joby and Beth join us for a more nuanced look at the benefits of...

“Comparison of methods to recover amaranth weed seeds from manure” with Drs. Anthony Brusa and Melissa Wilson, Minnesota State University Palmer Amaranth is a pesky pest that can devastate crops, and when this sneaky pest’s seeds creep into animal feed, they can find their way into unsuspecting farmers’ fields. This episode, Drs. Anthony Brusa and Melissa Wilson give us the inside scoop on what farmers can do when they find out they’ve fed their animals contaminated feed. Tune in to learn: ...

“Global Dependence Upon Corn Belt Dent Maize Germplasm: Challenges and Opportunities” with Dr. Stephen Smith, Affiliate Professor at Iowa State University Plant breeders are constantly trying to find the best crosses to increase the traits farmers and consumers want. However, continually crossing the same varieties can decrease the genetic gene pool over time, making plants susceptible to certain pests, diseases, and other stressors. To help understand the depth of the gene pool and to...

“Controlled Freezing Studies as a Corollary Selection Method for Winterhardiness in Perennial Flax (Linum spp.)” with Neil Anderson, Professor & Interim Department Head at the Department of Horticultural Science, University of Minnesota Flax is an important crop worldwide for its many uses, but as with all plants, its global use is limited by the conditions in which it can grow. Enter Neil Anderson, a crop breeder focused on improving many breeding characteristics in flax including...

This time, we take a break from our regularly scheduled programming for a brief interview and sample episode from our sister podcast, Decode 6. Contact us at [email protected] or on Twitter @FieldLabEarth if you have comments, questions, or suggestions for show topics, and if you want more content like this don’t forget to subscribe. If you’d like to see old episodes or sign up for our newsletter, you can do so here: https://fieldlabearth.libsyn.com/. If you would like to reach...

Episode Title: Humor in the Classroom with Dr. Andrés Varhola Show notes: ““His lectures were like watching a show on Netflix”: A success story of laugh tracks in prerecorded undergraduate lessons” with Dr. Andrés Varhola. When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, teachers had to rapidly adapt to new, fully online teaching environments. For Andrés, who had a naturally humorous teaching style, he needed to not only find a way to teach his students well, but to do so in a way that still reflected his...

“Relationships between roots, the stay-green phenotype, and agronomic performance in barley and wheat grown in semi-arid conditions” with Dr. Maryse Bourgault and Jessica Williams. Roots are an important factor in drought-resistance as they are the primary way by which plants uptake the water they need to survive. However, measuring roots can be a difficult, time-consuming, and destructive process. In this episode, we discuss Dr. Maryse Bourgault and Jessica William’s work to better...

“Cost-effective, high-throughput phenotyping system for 3D reconstruction of fruit form” with Dr. Mitchell Feldmann Various research and breeding programs study phenotypical traits—or traits that can be discerned via the five senses—to evaluate the quality of their target crops. However, getting data on these traits, often via human-made measurements, can be time-consuming, subjective, and inaccurate, hampering research efforts. This episode of the Field, Lab, Earth podcast, Mitchell...

“How do pinching and plant density affect industrial hemp produced for cannabinoids in open field conditions?” with Dr. Josh Freeman. Industrial hemp has only recently been re-introduced in American production systems. Therefore, there’s a lot to learn about how to best produce this versatile crop in American climates. This episode of the Field, Lab, Earth podcast, Josh discusses his work testing current growing practices to see where improvements can be made. Tune in to learn: What are...

“Root Water Uptake of Biofuel Crops Revealed by Coupled Electrical Resistivity and Soil Water Content Measurements” with Dr. Alexandria Kuhl Biofuel crops can be used to create fuel from renewable plant materials. Corn is the most common example, but as research progresses, scientists are looking to expand their biofuel crop pool to include woody perennials and ornamental grasses. These plants have a lot of positives going for them, but with longer growing seasons going head-to-head with...

“Greenhouse gas mitigation strategies and opportunities for agriculture” with Dr. Hoyoung Kwon Agriculture and food systems can be strong contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and, in turn, climate change. However, in the midst of this reality, there are also abundant opportunities to improve our systems, reduce emissions, and move towards a more sustainable future…so long as we can identify those opportunities first. This episode, Hoyoung discusses his work studying agricultural...