Greenwood Grafting.

4 p

The Aquatic Biota and Groundwater Quality of Springs in the Lincoln Hills, Wisconsin Driftless, and Northern till Plains Sections of Illinois

ID: 8307INHS Technical Report prepared for Environmental Protection Trust Fund Commission and Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Energy and Environmental AssessmentU of I OnlyRestriction applied due to concern over geolocation information of springs on private property

Greenwood Grafting.

4 p

Vegetation and Flora of the Sand Deposits of the Mississippi River Valley in Northwestern Illinois

This study was undertaken to determine vascular plant species composition, vegetation structure, and floristic quality of the major plant communities in the windblown sand deposits of northwestern Illinois during the growing seasons of 2002 through 2005. The major plant communities of the Ayers Sand Prairie Nature Preserve in Carroll County, Big River State Forest in Henderson County, Lost Mound Unit of the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife and Fish Refuge in Carroll and Jo Daviess counties, and the Thomson-Fulton Sand Prairie Nature Preserve located in Whiteside County were examined and the importance values determined for the plant species present. Located on broad terraces of the Mississippi River, these nature preserves and natural areas are remnants of a larger grassland/savanna/forest complex that contained extensive marsh; wet, mesic, and dry sand prairie; sand savanna; and sand forest communities. Most of the sand deposits are now cultivated and the original vegetation is found only in protected remnants, some of which are relatively large. The mature dry sand prairies were dominated by Schizachyrium scoparium; other important species were Opuntia macrorhiza, Dichanthelium villosissimum, Ambrosia psilostachya, and Tephrosia virginiana. Other assemblages of prairie and exotic species were encountered in successional sand prairie communities. Generally, the mature prairie communities in these preserves and natural areas had 35 or more species present in the study plots. Savanna and closed canopy forest communities were also examined. The dry sand savannas were dominated by Quercus velutina and Q. marilandica, dry sand forests were dominated by Q. velutina, and dry-mesic sand forests were dominated by Q. alba and Q. velutina.Illinois Department of Natural Resources; Illinois Nature Preserves Commissionpublished or submitted for publicationis peer reviewe

Effect of Corn Bran and Corn Steep Inclusion in Finishing Diets on Diet Digestibility and Fiber Disappearance

University of Florida, Gainesville, FL Eight ruminally cannulated heifers were used in a replicated 4 x 4 Latin square to determine the effects of replacing dry rolled corn with corn bran or a combination of corn bran and corn steep, on diet digestibility and rumen environment. Heifers received diets including 0% bran, 30% bran, 30% bran/15% steep and 45% bran/ 15% steep. Byproduct diets were effective in reducing acidosis and had lower dry matter and organic matter digestibilities than the control diet, regardless of steep inclusion. Fiber digestion and microbial efficiency may have been promoted with the inclusion of corn bran and steep in the diet. Feeding a diet containing corn bran and steep may be valuable for improving nutrient utilization in the rumen

Sulfate-Reducing Microorganisms in Wetlands – Fameless Actors in Carbon Cycling and Climate Change

Freshwater wetlands are a major source of the greenhouse gas methane but at the same time can function as carbon sink. Their response to global warming and environmental pollution is one of the largest unknowns in the upcoming decades to centuries. In this review, we highlight the role of sulfate-reducing microorganisms (SRM) in the intertwined element cycles of wetlands. Although regarded primarily as methanogenic environments, biogeochemical studies have revealed a previously hidden sulfur cycle in wetlands that can sustain rapid renewal of the small standing pools of sulfate. Thus, dissimilatory sulfate reduction, which frequently occurs at rates comparable to marine surface sediments, can contribute up to 36–50% to anaerobic carbon mineralization in these ecosystems. Since sulfate reduction is thermodynamically favored relative to fermentative processes and methanogenesis, it effectively decreases gross methane production thereby mitigating the flux of methane to the atmosphere. However, very little is known about wetland SRM. Molecular analyses using dsrAB [encoding subunit A and B of the dissimilatory (bi)sulfite reductase] as marker genes demonstrated that members of novel phylogenetic lineages, which are unrelated to recognized SRM, dominate dsrAB richness and, if tested, are also abundant among the dsrAB-containing wetland microbiota. These discoveries point toward the existence of so far unknown SRM that are an important part of the autochthonous wetland microbiota. In addition to these numerically dominant microorganisms, a recent stable isotope probing study of SRM in a German peatland indicated that rare biosphere members might be highly active in situ and have a considerable stake in wetland sulfate reduction. The hidden sulfur cycle in wetlands and the fact that wetland SRM are not well represented by described SRM species explains their so far neglected role as important actors in carbon cycling and climate change

Effect of Corn Bran and Corn Steep Inclusion in Finishing Diets on Diet Digestibility and Fiber Disappearance

University of Florida, Gainesville, FL Eight ruminally cannulated heifers were used in a replicated 4 x 4 Latin square to determine the effects of replacing dry rolled corn with corn bran or a combination of corn bran and corn steep, on diet digestibility and rumen environment. Heifers received diets including 0% bran, 30% bran, 30% bran/15% steep and 45% bran/ 15% steep. Byproduct diets were effective in reducing acidosis and had lower dry matter and organic matter digestibilities than the control diet, regardless of steep inclusion. Fiber digestion and microbial efficiency may have been promoted with the inclusion of corn bran and steep in the diet. Feeding a diet containing corn bran and steep may be valuable for improving nutrient utilization in the rumen

Beef Cattle Feeding in a Deep-Bedded Hoop Barn: Year One

A three-year study evaluating the performance of yearling steers in a deep-bedded hoop barn has completed the first year. A 50 × 120 foot hoop barn was constructed at the ISU Armstrong Research Farm in the late fall of 2004. The comparison feedlot is an outside lot with shelter that includes a drive-through feed alley. For the first year of the three-year study, two groups of yearling steers were fed. The first group (Group 1) was put on test August 5, 2005 and marketed on November 15, 2005 for a summer/fall feeding period. The second group (Group 2) was put on test December 21, 2005 and marketed in two drafts on April 4, 2006 and May 10, 2006 for a winter/spring feeding period. Overall the cattle performed similarly with similar carcass data for both housing systems. The information presented is the first year of a three-year study. The cattle had a lower mud score in the hoop barn, particularly for the winter/spring feeding period. As expected the deep-bedded hoop system used more bedding than the semi-confinement lots. The bedded hoop barn required about 5 to 6 lb of cornstalk bedding per head per day that the steers were on feed