Agronomic and Economic Performance Characteristics of Conventional and Low-External-Input Cropping Systems

A 22-acre field experiment was conducted in Boone, IA, from 2003–2006 to test the hypothesis that low-external-input(LEI) cropping systems can produce yields and profits that match or exceed those obtained from conventional systems. A conventionally managed 2-year rotation system [corn (Zea mays L.)/soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.)] was compared with a 3-year LEI rotation system [corn/soybean/small grain + red clover (Trifolium pratense L.)], and a 4-year LEI rotation system [corn/soybean/small grain + alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)/alfalfa]. Triticale (× Triticosecale Wittmack) was used as the small grain in 2003–2005; oat (Avena sativa L.) was used in 2006. Over the period of 2003– 2006, synthetic N fertilizer use was 59% and 74% lower in the 3- and 4-year systems, respectively, compared with the 2-year system. Similarly, herbicide use was reduced 76% and 82% in the 3- and 4-year systems

The Effect of Natural Mulches on Crop Performance, Weed Suppression and Biochemical Constituents of Catnip and St. John\u27s Wort

Because of expanding markets for high-value niche crops, opportunities have increased for the production of medicinal herbs in the USA. An experiment was conducted in 2001 and 2002 near Gilbert, IA, to study crop performance, weed suppression, and environmental conditions associated with the use of several organic mulches in the production of two herbs, catnip (Nepeta cataria L.) and St. John\u27s wort (Hypericum perforatum L. ‘Helos’). Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design and included a positive (hand-weeded) control, a negative (nonweeded) control, oat straw, a flax straw mat, and a nonwoven wool mat. Catnip plant height was significantly greater in the oat straw than the other treatments at 4 wk through 6 wk in 2001; at 4 to 8 wk in 2002, catnip plant height and width was significantly lower in the negative control compared with the other treatments. Catnip yield was significantly higher in the flax straw mat than all other treatments in 2001. In 2002, St. John\u27s wort yields were not statistically different in any treatments. All weed management treatments had significantly fewer weeds than the non-weeded rows in 2002. Total weed density comparisons in each crop from 2 yr showed fewer weeds present in the flax straw and wool mat treatments compared with positive control plots. There was no significant weed management treatment effect on the concentration of the target compounds, nepetalactone in catnip and pseudohypericin–hypericin in St. John\u27s wort, although there was a trend toward higher concentrations in the flax straw treatment

Experimental and theoretical study of the structures and enthalpies of formation of the synthetic reagents l,3-thiazolidine-2-thione and l,3-oxazolidine-2-thione

This paper reports an experimental and a theoretical study of the structures and standard (po = 0.1 MPa) molar enthalpies of formation of the synthetic reagents 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione [CAS 96-53-7] and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione [CAS 5840-81-3]. The enthalpies of combustion and sublimation were measured by rotary bomb combustion calorimetry, and the Knudsen effusion technique and gas-phase enthalpies of formation values at T = 298.15 K of (97.1 ± 4.0) and −(74.4 ± 4.6) kJ·mol−1 for 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione, respectively, were determined. G3-calculated enthalpies of formation are in reasonable agreement with the experimental values. In the solid state, 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione exists in two polymorphic forms (monoclinic and triclinic) and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione exits in the triclinic form. The isostructural nature of these compounds and comparison of their molecular and crystal structures have been analyzed. The experimental X-ray powder diffractograms have been compared with the calculated patterns from their structures for identification of the polymorphic samples used in this study. A comparison of our results with literature thermochemical and structural data for related compounds is also reported.M.T. would like to thank MEC/SEUI, FPU AP2002-0603, Spain, for financial support. A.V.D. thanks the National Science Foundation (CHE-0547566) and the American Heart Association (0855743G) for financial support of this research. The support of the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia under Projects CTQ2007-60895/BQU and CTQ2006-10178/BQU is gratefully acknowledged

pH and rate of ‘dark’ events in toad retinal rods : test of a hypothesis on the molecular origin of photoreceptor noise

Thermal activation of the visual pigment constitutes a fundamental constraint on visual sensitivity. Its electrical correlate in the membrane current of dark-adapted rods are randomly occurring discrete ‘dark events’ indistinguishable from responses to single photons. It has been proposed that thermal activation occurs in a small subpopulation of rhodopsin molecules where the Schiff base linking the chromophore to the protein part is unprotonated. On this hypothesis, rates of thermal activation should increase strongly with rising pH. The hypothesis has been tested by measuring the effect of pH changes on the frequency of discrete dark events in red rods of the common toad Bufo bufo. Dark noise was recorded from isolated rods using the suction pipette technique. Changes in cytoplasmic pH upon manipulations of extracellular pH were quantified by measuring, using fast single-cell microspectrophotometry, the pH-dependent metarhodopsin I–metarhodopsin II equilibrium and subsequent metarhodopsin III formation. These measurements show that, in the conditions of the electrophysiological experiments, changing perfusion pH from 6.5 to 9.3 resulted in a cytoplasmic pH shift from 7.6 to 8.5 that was readily sensed by the rhodopsin. This shift, which implies an 8-fold decrease in cytoplasmic [H+], did not increase the rate of dark events. The results contradict the hypothesis that thermal pigment activation depends on prior deprotonation of the Schiff base

Prairie strips improve biodiversity and the delivery of multiple ecosystem services from corn–soybean croplands

Loss of biodiversity and degradation of ecosystem services from agricultural lands remain important challenges in the United States despite decades of spending on natural resource management. To date, conservation investment has emphasized engineering practices or vegetative strategies centered on monocultural plantings of nonnative plants, largely excluding native species from cropland. In a catchment-scale experiment, we quantified the multiple effects of integrating strips of native prairie species amid corn and soybean crops, with prairie strips arranged to arrest run-off on slopes. Replacing 10% of cropland with prairie strips increased biodiversity and ecosystem services with minimal impacts on crop production. Compared with catchments containing only crops, integrating prairie strips into cropland led to greater catchment-level insect taxa richness (2.6-fold), pollinator abundance (3.5-fold), native bird species richness (2.1-fold), and abundance of bird species of greatest conservation need (2.1-fold). Use of prairie strips also reduced total water runoff from catchments by 37%, resulting in retention of 20 times more soil and 4.3 times more phosphorus. Corn and soybean yields for catchments with prairie strips decreased only by the amount of the area taken out of crop production. Social survey results indicated demand among both farming and nonfarming populations for the environmental outcomes produced by prairie strips. If federal and state policies were aligned to promote prairie strips, the practice would be applicable to 3.9 million ha of cropland in Iowa alone

Widespread Gene Conversion in Centromere Cores

Data from maize show that centromeres strongly suppress crossing over and instead undergo frequent genetic exchange in the form of gene conversion

Experimental and Theoretical Study of the Structures and Enthalpies of Formation of the Synthetic Reagents 1,3-Thiazolidine-2-thione and 1,3-Oxazolidine-2-thione

This paper reports an experimental and a theoretical study of the structures and standard (p o ) 0.1 MPa) molar enthalpies of formation of the synthetic reagents 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione . The enthalpies of combustion and sublimation were measured by rotary bomb combustion calorimetry, and the Knudsen effusion technique and gas-phase enthalpies of formation values at T ) 298.15 K of (97.1 ( 4.0) and -(74.4 ( 4.6) kJ · mol -1 for 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione, respectively, were determined. G3-calculated enthalpies of formation are in reasonable agreement with the experimental values. In the solid state, 1,3-thiazolidine-2-thione exists in two polymorphic forms (monoclinic and triclinic) and 1,3-oxazolidine-2-thione exits in the triclinic form. The isostructural nature of these compounds and comparison of their molecular and crystal structures have been analyzed. The experimental X-ray powder diffractograms have been compared with the calculated patterns from their structures for identification of the polymorphic samples used in this study. A comparison of our results with literature thermochemical and structural data for related compounds is also reported