Due Process in Administrative Hearings in Pennsylvania: The Commingling of Functions Under \u3cem\u3eFeeser\u3c/em\u3e and \u3cem\u3eDussia\u3c/em\u3e

The writer surveys recent developments in case law in the Commonwealth which define the breadth of due process requirements in administrative hearings, with particular focus on the role of counsel in agency adjudication. Under his analysis, the commonwealth court\u27s approach to the problem of commingling of functions goes beyond federal constitutional standards and is not necessarily mandated by Pennsylvania Supreme Court decisions. The author essays to apply due process standards to four hypothetical situations in which agency counsels\u27 participation may appear to be troublesome

Student Perceptions of Condensed Courses and Motivations for Enrolling: Are Some Students Scared To Enroll?

Condensed courses are now being offered at many colleges and universities. Most research indicates that condensed courses result in equal or better student learning outcomes when compared with the outcomes of full term courses. However, because all the previous studies only examined students who self-selected to enroll in condensed courses there may be a serious selection bias and their results may not be generalizable to all students. This study attempted to examine whether there are differences between students who have taken condensed courses and those who have not. A survey was given to 102 students of which 45 had never enrolled in a condensed course. The survey measured general perceptions of condensed courses and assessed the willingness of students to enroll in a condensed course in the future. Students who had never taken a condensed course were found to be less willing to enroll in a condensed course in the future, less interested in seeing more condensed classes offered, and less willing to take a condensed course while simultaneously enrolled in a full-term course. Students who had never taken a condensed course were also found to perceive condensed courses as more difficult than students who had taken condensed courses. These results indicate that there are differences between students who have taken condensed courses and students who have never enrolled in one. The findings of this study suggest that the findings of previous studies regarding differences in outcomes between condensed courses and full term courses may be impacted by differences in the population of each course

Restoration Manual for Annual Grassland Systems in California

Widespread development and massive degradation are quickly eroding the persistence and health of annual grassland systems. This guide was developed to give practitioners of any experience level an overview of considerations for grassland restoration design and application that will be right for their situation. Here you’ll find ways to effectively improve grassland conditions in monetarily and logistically feasible ways. This publication focuses on restoration species choice, because species identity can be the dominant driver of achieving a restoration goal—included is an extensive appendix matching geographic area and soil type to appropriate species for consideration. The techniques presented are the result of years of experience from research scientists and non-academic practitioners and synthesizes published and unpublished data in one handy source. Sections include: Identifying Restoration Goals and Desired Outcomes: Biodiversity Pollinator Habitat Wildlife Habitat Erosion Control Forage for Grazing Animals Carbon Storage/Nutrient Cycling Pre-Vegetation Techniques Plant Materials Revegetation Techniques Discussion of 83 species with brief description of pros and cons Extensive reference

The use of strip-seeding for management of two late-season invasive plants

The spread and persistence of weedy plants in rangelands highlight the need for refinement of existing management techniques and development of novel strategies to address invasions. Strip-seeding - the strategic seeding of a portion of an invaded area to reduce costs and enhance success - is an underutilized management approach that holds promise for reducing weed dominance in grassland habitats. A strip-seeding experiment was established in 2011 in a California grassland where portions (between 0-100%) of invaded plots were seeded with native grasses. In 2016, we assessed the height, above-ground biomass and flower production of two late-season invasive plants: field bindweed and prickly lettuce. We found significant reductions in plant height and flower production (for both target invasives), and biomass (for field bindweed) in many of the seeded strips compared to the unseeded strips. Smaller seed applications demonstrated similar or better utility for weed control compared to greater seed applications, suggesting that this approach can be effective while reducing labor and materials cost of typical restoration management approaches. We did not find evidence that seeded strips provided invasion resistance to unseeded strips. This is possibly due to the lag in native species dispersal and establishment into contiguous unseeded strips, and suggests that strip-seeding might not provide invasion resistance to unseeded strips on timescales that are relevant to managers. However, this work does suggest that strip-seeding native species that overlap in phenology with target invasives can reduce late-season weed dominance on rangelands.USDA-NIFA, Rangeland Research Program [CA-D-PLS-2119-CG]; Universidade de Sao Paulo, BrazilOpen access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Use of Auto-Germ to Model Germination Timing in the Sagebrush-Steppe

Germination timing has a strong influence on direct seeding efforts, and therefore is a closely tracked demographic stage in a wide variety of wildland and agricultural settings. Predictive seed germination models, based on soil moisture and temperature data in the seed zone are an efficient method of estimating germination timing. We utilized Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) to create Auto‐Germ, which is an Excel workbook that allows a user to estimate field germination timing based on wet‐thermal accumulation models and field temperature and soil moisture data. To demonstrate the capabilities of Auto‐Germ, we calculated various germination indices and modeled germination timing for 11 different species, across 6 years, and 10 Artemisia‐steppe sites in the Great Basin of North America to identify the planting date required for 50% or more of the simulated population to germinate in spring (1 March or later), which is when conditions are predicted to be more conducive for plant establishment. Both between and within the species, germination models indicated that there was high temporal and spatial variability in the planting date required for spring germination to occur. However, some general trends were identified, with species falling roughly into three categories, where seeds could be planted on average in either fall (Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis and Leymus cinereus), early winter (Festuca idahoensis, Poa secunda, Elymus lanceolatus, Elymus elymoides, and Linum lewisii), or mid‐winter (Achillea millefolium, Elymus wawawaiensis, and Pseudoroegneria spicata) and still not run the risk of germination during winter. These predictions made through Auto‐Germ demonstrate that fall may not be an optimal time period for sowing seeds for most non‐dormant species if the desired goal is to have seeds germinate in spring

Forage seeding in rangelands increases production and prevents weed invasion

Increasing forage productivity in the Sierra foothill rangelands would help sustain the livestock industry as land availability shrinks and lease rates rise, but hardly any studies have been done on forage selections. From 2009 to 2014, in one of the first long-term and replicated studies of seeding Northern California's Mediterranean annual rangeland, we compared the cover of 22 diverse forages to determine their establishment and survivability over time. Among the annual herbs, forage brassica (Brassica napus L.) and chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) proved viable options. Among the annual grasses, soft brome (Bromus hordeaceus) and annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) performed well. However, these species will likely require frequent reseeding to maintain dominance. Long-term goals of sustained dominant cover (> 3 years) are best achieved with perennial grasses. Perennial grasses that persisted with greater than 50% cover were Berber orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata), Flecha tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum) and several varieties of hardinggrass (Phalaris aquatica L., Perla koleagrass, Holdfast, Advanced AT). In 2014, these successful perennials produced over three times more dry matter (pounds per acre) than the unseeded control and also suppressed annual grasses and yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis L.) cover

Soil health perspectives of Arizona rangeland stakeholder

Soil health is broadly defined as the capacity of soil to support a vital living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals and humans. Soil health is related to many functions of natural and managed ecosystems such as water holding capacity, erosion control, nutrient cycling and plant growth. Soil health collectively refers to a large set of physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil systems and how they operate and function together. Accordingly, considering soil health is a rather holistic approach to evaluating soil function in terrestrial ecosystems, either in native or cultivated conditions. Soil health is quickly becoming recognized as a valuable approach of assessment of agricultural productivity and environmental well-being. Unfortunately, climate change is quickly degrading soils worldwide, rendering large swaths of previously productive landscapes unsuitable for plant and animal growth

Estrategias para la Jardinería y la Restauración con Pelotas de Semillas en Paisajes Áridos

Las pelotas de semillas (también conocidas como bolas de semillas o bombas de semillas) son estructuras típicamente hechas de arcilla, abono, agua y semillas (pero pueden incluir gran variedad de ingredientes como tierra, polvo de rocas, arena para gatos, granos de café, pimienta de cayena, arena, humus de lombriz y hongos micorrícicos). Estas estructuras pueden mitigar las condiciones que contribuyen a la mala restauración de las tierras áridas (Madsen et al. 2016), incluida la sequedad que exacerba el estrés por desecación de las semillas, y crea capas de tierra seca que limitan el crecimiento de las plántulas, así como la pérdida de semillas por depredación (típicamente por roedores y hormigas). Las pelotas de semillas también sirven para mejorar el contacto de las semillas con el suelo y reducir la redistribución de las semillas por el viento. En teoría, las semillas están protegidas por la estructura hasta que la lluvia elimina la arcilla que las envuelve y una pequeña bolsa de nutrientes con abono de la bola de semillas nutre a las plántulas a medida que emergen. Las pelotas de semillas son baratas y fáciles de hacer y pueden mejorar la germinación de las especies sembradas

Estrategias para la jardinería y la restauración con pelotas de semillas en paisajes áridos

Las pelotas de semillas (también conocidas como bolas de semillas o bombas de semillas) son estructuras típicamente hechas de arcilla, abono, agua y semillas (pero pueden incluir gran variedad de ingredientes como tierra, polvo de rocas, arena para gatos, granos de café, pimienta de cayena, arena, humus de lombriz y hongos micorrícicos). Estas estructuras pueden mitigar las condiciones que contribuyen a la mala restauración de las tierras áridas (Madsen et al. 2016), incluida la sequedad que exacerba el estrés por desecación de las semillas, y crea capas de tierra seca que limitan el crecimiento de las plántulas, así como la pérdida de semillas por depredación (típicamente por roedores y hormigas). Las pelotas de semillas también sirven para mejorar el contacto de las semillas con el suelo y reducir la redistribución de las semillas por el viento. En teoría, las semillas están protegidas por la estructura hasta que la lluvia elimina la arcilla que las envuelve y una pequeña bolsa de nutrientes con abono de la bola de semillas nutre a las plántulas a medida que emergen. Las pelotas de semillas son baratas y fáciles de hacer y pueden mejorar la germinación de las especies sembradas