Organic bread-wheat in New England, USA

In October 2010, researchers, farmers and millers from Maine and Vermont, USA, organized a trip to Denmark, in order to learn about local bread wheat production, milling and use from their more experienced counterparts with climates similar to their own. They have received a grant over four years for the project antitled Enhancing Farmers’ Capacity to Produce High Quality Organic Bread Wheat in which they will carry out research, development and education to improve the production and quality of organic bread wheat in the two states

Crop/Livestock Integration Effects on Soil Quality, Crop Production, and Soil Nitrogen Dynamics

Regional integration of potato and dairy farms has developed in Maine through arrangements where manure, feed, and sometimes land, are exchanged between neighboring farms. The effects of integration on soil quality, crop production, nitrogen (N) cycling, and N loss were investigated in field and laboratory studies of contrasting amended (manure, compost, green manure, and supplemental fertilizer) and nonamended (fertilizer only) soil management systems within 2-year potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) rotations in the Maine Potato Cropping Systems Project (MPEP). Additionally, soil quality of 48 integrated and nonintegrated Maine potato and dairy farm fields was assessed. The MPEP’s amended soil system enhanced soil quality and demonstrated aspects of increased resilience for crop production and N cycling. The amended system produced higher and more stable potato yields than the nonamended system by reducing the impact of adverse growing conditions. It also demonstrated the potential to buffer excess N by retaining a greater proportion of net N inputs than the nonamended system. Possible mechanisms to explain increased N retention include better early-season synchrony between N release and crop uptake, as observed in in situ soil monitoring; carbon-enhanced immobilization of excess N, as observed in a laboratory study; increased recalcitrance of N sources; and physical protection. Nitrogen loss, in absolute terms, however, was higher in the amended system due to higher N inputs and a build-up of soil organic N. Soil amendment history had the largest impact on soil N mineralization capacity – fall nitrate levels were higher in the amended system in two of three years, and residual manure N contributed more N than predicted using the standard decay-series model – but it also reduced the availability of recently added N. As currently practiced in Maine, integrated potato systems appear to need greater increases in carbon inputs (preferably as sod crops and trap crops) and reductions in tillage to produce changes in soil carbon that can be detected at a landscape level. Future work should focus on finding balance points for soil organic matter content that enhance soil’s crop production and N cycling functions while avoiding N excesses and loss

Evaluating Split Nitrogen Applications and In-Season Tests for Organic Winter Bread Wheat

Achieving high grain yields and crude protein (CP) standards in organic winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is challenging because ensuring that adequate nitrogen (N) is available at key periods of wheat growth is difficult in organic systems. Split application regimes and in-season N management tests may improve organic production. In field trials conducted over four site-years in Maine and Vermont, USA, N application regimes were analyzed for their effects on organic winter wheat, N uptake, grain yield, and CP. Tiller density and tissue N tests were evaluated as in-season decision tools. Eight treatments arranged in a non-factorial design differed in terms of N application timing (pre-plant (PP), topdress at tillering (T1), and topdress at pre-stem extension (T2)) and N rate. Treatments were: (1) an untreated check, (2) pre-plant N at a low rate of 78 kg N ha−1(PPL), (3) pre-plant N at a high rate of 117 or 157 kg N ha−1 (PPH), (4) T178, (5) PPL + T139, (6) PPL + T239, (7) PPH + T239, and (8) PPL + T139 +T239. Responses to N treatments were variable among site-years, however some common results were identified. The PP-only treatments increased grain yields more than they increased CP. The T178 and PPH + T239 treatments were the most effective at increasing yield and CP, compared with the PP-only treatments. Tiller density and tissue N tests were good predictors of grain yield (r = 0.52, p < and CP (r = 0.75, p < 0.001) respectively. Future work should test in-season decision tools using a wider range of tiller densities, and topdress N rates against tissue N measurements

How Forming a Cooperative Network Improved Services and Outcomes for Farmers

The Beginning Farmer Resource Network of Maine (BFRN) is a model for maximizing resources and improving farmer services through increased statewide communication and collaboration among a diverse group of agricultural service providers. Formed in 2012, BFRN is a cooperative network with shared leadership and no financial overhead. In a 2018 survey regarding BFRN\u27s impacts, 92% of members (22 of 24 responding members) said they were more effective and efficient. The survey results also indicated that over 800 farmers had made positive changes as a result of members\u27 participation in BFRN. BFRN\u27s continuing high level of activity is a testament to the value this network model offers to participating organizations, agencies, and institutions

Using Farmer Storytelling to Build Understanding of Our New Weather Reality

A storytelling session was successful in raising awareness and understanding of the types of changes in weather patterns farmers are experiencing in Maine, what impacts those changes are having on their operations, and the changes farmers are making in response. Using an outreach approach rooted in farmer stories allowed us to bypass the controversy that often surrounds topics related to climate change. Likewise, focusing on the farmers\u27 experiences and avoiding corrective statements during this introductory session resulted in productive dialogue. We recommend replicating this approach within different agricultural sectors to increase understanding of sector-specific risks and strategies for adaptation

The Effects of a 12-Week Faculty and Staff Exercise Program on Health-Related Variables in a University Setting

International Journal of Exercise Science 8(1) : 49-56, 2015. The obesity epidemic has grown in the past decade due to physical inactivity (i.e., having a sedentary job) and an increase in caloric intake. This problem combined with the reluctance of many faculty and staff members exercising in the same environment as student’s presents a unique challenge in an academic setting. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a 12-week exercise program focused toward the faculty and staff in improving several health-related variables such as curl-ups, push-ups, sit-and-reach, and balance. Fifty-seven faculty and staff participated in the current study. Participants engaged in a variety of exercise classes taught by certified instructors three days a week for 12-weeks. Paired samples t-tests illustrated a significant (p \u3c 0.001) decrease in body mass and significant (p \u3c 0.001) improvements in curl-ups, push-ups, sit-and-reach, and balance. This data demonstrates that a 12-week faculty and staff exercise program has the potential to improve performance in several health-related variables such as curl-ups, push-ups, sit-and-reach, and balance. The ability of this program to improve health-related variables and possibly delay or prevent the development of overweight and/or obesity, sarcopenia, and other chronic diseases is encouraging

Northeast Organic Small Grain Disease and Insect Pest Scouting Report

A survey of small grain diseases and insect pests were conducted in Vermont, Maine, New York, and Massachusetts during the 2016 and 2017 growing seasons. The purpose of scouting was to determine what insect pests and plant diseases are prevalent in organic small grain production in the Northeast

MicroRNAs are exported from malignant cells in customized particles

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are released from cells in association with proteins or microvesicles. We previously reported that malignant transformation changes the assortment of released miRNAs by affecting whether a particular miRNA species is released or retained by the cell. How this selectivity occurs is unclear. Here we report that selectively exported miRNAs, whose release is increased in malignant cells, are packaged in structures that are different from those that carry neutrally released miRNAs (n-miRNAs), whose release is not affected by malignancy. By separating breast cancer cell microvesicles, we find that selectively released miRNAs associate with exosomes and nucleosomes. However, n-miRNAs of breast cancer cells associate with unconventional exosomes, which are larger than conventional exosomes and enriched in CD44, a protein relevant to breast cancer metastasis. Based on their large size, we call these vesicles L-exosomes. Contrary to the distribution of miRNAs among different microvesicles of breast cancer cells, normal cells release all measured miRNAs in a single type of vesicle. Our results suggest that malignant transformation alters the pathways through which specific miRNAs are exported from cells. These changes in the particles and their miRNA cargo could be used to detect the presence of malignant cells in the body

Corrigendum to “Environmental and life-history factors influence inter-colony multidimensional niche metrics of a breeding Arctic marine bird” [Sci. Total Environ. 796 (2021) 148935] (Science of the Total Environment (2021) 796, (S0048969721040079), (10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148935))

The authors regret that the printed version of the above article contained an omission of an individual deserving of co-authorship. The correct and final version follows. The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused. \u3c Reyd A. Smith1⁎, David J. Yurkowski2, Kyle J.L. Parkinson1, Jérôme Fort3, Holly L. Hennin4, H. Grant Gilchrist4, Keith A. Hobson5, Mark L. Mallory6, Paco Bustamante3, Jóhannis Danielsen7, Svend E. Garbus8, Sveinn A. Hanssen9, Jón Einar Jónsson10, Christopher J. Latty11, Ellen Magnúsdóttir10, Børge Moe9, Glen J. Parsons12, Christian Sonne8, Grigori Tertitski13, and Oliver P. Love1\u3e Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada, N9B 3P4 2 Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, R3T 2N6 3 Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS – La Rochelle University, La Rochelle, France, FR-17000 4 Environment and Climate Change Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K0A 1H0. 5 Western University, London, Ontario, Canada, N6A 3K7 6Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, B4P 2R6 7 Faroe Marine Research Institute, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, FO-110 8 Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark, DK-4000 9 Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Tromsø, Norway, N-9296 10 University of Iceland\u27s Research Centre at Snæfellsnes, Hafnargata 3, 340, Stykkishólmur, Iceland 11 Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Fairbanks, Alaska, United States, 99701 12 Nova Scotia Department of Lands and Forestry, Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada, B4N 4E5 13 Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia, 119017\u3