The Effect of a Prescribed Pre-season Weight-training Program Upon a Select Group of Varsity Baseball Candidates

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of six-week weight-training program on the running, hitting, and throwing skills of baseball. Six exercises were sued in the program, and a plan of ten executions of each exercise was utilized. An experimental group of fifteen varsity baseball candidates at South Dakota State College participated in the weight-training program during the winter quarter of 1961. Training sessions for this weight-training program were held three times per week, for six weeks. An attempt was made to maintain a training schedule in which training periods were not held two days in succession. Tests to measure running speed as well as swinging a bat or throwing a ball were administered before and after the weight-training program. The initial tests were administered during the fall quarter, 1961, and the final tests were administered during the spring quarter, 1962. The testing data were recorded and analyzed to determine whether the speed of the actions involved had been increased following the weight-training program. The initial test scores were compared with the final test scores to determine if any significant different could be attributed to the training program which was used. The speed of swinging a bat was improved to a degree which was significant at the 0.05 level. Although running and throwing speed were improved, the degree of improvement was not sufficient to be significant

The Transiometer : An Alternative Method of Soil Moisture Measurement in Slowly Permeable Soils

The union of pressure transducer and tensiometer ceramic cup was termed transiometer . Construction and installation procedures for a transiometer were presented. The transiorneter can be used in both saturated and unsaturated conditions. In saturated conditions, it has a faster response than a piezometer, making it very useful in fine-textured, slowly permeable soils. The primary transiometer study site, at the RCWP Master site, consisted of four replications each of transiometers installed at depths of 1.22 m, 1.83 m, 3.66 m, and 6.10 m, along with a sensor without the ceramic cup installed at a depth of 3.66 m. The sensors placed within 2 m of the ground surface were in the unsaturated zone. A piezometer, placed at a depth of 6.10 m, and neutron probe access tubes, for soil moisture monitoring to a depth of 5.18 m, were also installed in each of the four plots. Thermistors were installed in one plot at depths of 15, 30, 61, and 91 crn. An auxiliary site was established with a transiorneter placed at a depth of 5.03 m, piezometers placed at depths of 2.26 m and 3.76 m, and a neutron probe access tube to monitor soil moisture to a depth of 3.35 m. ii Random error of the measuring system of transiometer, digital voltmeter, and scanner was typically 2.8 cm with a maximum of 11.5 cm. The two most significant components of measuring system random error were the potential created at the connection terminals of the scanner and the imprecision of the transducer calibrations. The transiometer was very sensitive to atmospheric pressure fluctuations, with the response to atmospheric pressure changes increasing with depth of installation. Saturated hydraulic conductivity of the glacial till monitored was 10-7 to 10-8 m s-l, while the drainable porosity was .025-.035

Best Management Practices for Corn Production in South Dakota: Irrigation and Salt Management

In South Dakota, average annual precipitation ranges from less than 13 inches to nearly 30 inches, generally increasing from west to east (fig. 6.1). However, all regions of South Dakota can experience drought. Irrigation can reduce a crop’s dependence on natural rainfall and improve yields. To best capitalize on investment in irrigation equipment, it has been suggested that one should increase plant populations on irrigated land by 2,000 to 3,000 plants per acre (Aldrich et al. 1975). This chapter discusses how much irrigation water to apply and how to manage the salts contained in the water. If you are planning a new system or expanding an existing system, equipment and management options should be discussed with your local irrigation equipment dealer or Extension educator. A permit may be required to irrigate in South Dakota. For permit requirements, contact the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)

Filtration: a basic component for SDI to avoid clogging hazards

Presented at the 15th annual Central Plains irrigation conference and exposition proceedings on February 4-5, 2003 at the City Limits Convention Center in Colby, Kansas.Includes bibliographical references

Best Management Practices for Corn Production in South Dakota: Seasonal Hazards—Frost, Hail, Drought, and Flooding

Conclusion: Weather conditions such as frost, hail, flood, or drought can severely reduce yields. Effects from these events are manageable to a certain extent, but loss can be expected when these events occur. The degree of loss depends on the severity of the event. Crop insurance has become a common component of corn production in the U.S.; the insurance provides the producer economic protection for uncontrollable events. Producers should consider crop insurance based on the consequences of crop loss

An Efficient Irrigation Technology for Alfalfa Growers

A trial on the suitability of subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) for alfalfa (Medicago sativa L) was conducted on a producer\u27s field. The soil is sandy loam. The treatments included drip tape spacing of 60, 40, and 30 inches, placed at 18- and 12-inch depth. A nearby center pivot sprinkler irrigated plot was seeded to alfalfa as a control. Seedling emergence and yield was adversely affected at 60-inch spacing. The depth of placement of drip tapes (18 and 12 inch) showed no effect. The site served for Extension education and allowed comparison between SDI tape spacing and center pivot system

Proceedings of the 23rd annual Central Plains irrigation conference

Presented at Proceedings of the 23rd annual Central Plains irrigation conference held in Burlington, Colorado on February 22-23, 2011.Includes bibliographical references

Do Synergistic Relationships between Nitrogen and Water Influence the Ability of Corn to Use Nitrogen Derived from Fertilizer and Soil?

To improve site-specific N recommendations a more complete understanding of the mechanisms responsible for synergistic relationships between N and water is needed. Th e objective of this research was to determine the influence of soil water regime on the ability of corn (Zea mays L.) to use N derived from fertilizer and soil. A randomized split-block experiment was conducted in 2002, 2003, and 2004. Soil at the site was a Brandt silty clay loam (fine-silty, mixed, superactive frigid Calcic Hapludoll). Blocks were split into moderate (natural rainfall) and high (natural + supplemental irrigation) water regimes. Nitrogen rates were 0, 56, 112, and 168 kg urea-N ha–1 that was surface applied. Water, soil N, and N fertilizer use efficiencies were determined. Plant utilization of soil N was determined by mass balance in the unfertilized control plots and by using the δ15N approach in fertilized plots. Findings showed that: (i) plants responded to N and water simultaneously; (ii) N fertilizer increased water use efficiency (170 kg vs. 223 kg grain cm–1 in 0 and 112 kg N ha–1 treatments, respectively); and (iii) water increased the ability of corn to use N derived from soil (67.7 and 61.6% efficient in high and moderate water regimes, respectively, P = 0.002) and fertilizer (48 and 44% efficient in high and moderate water regimes, respectively, P = 0.10). Higher N use efficiency in the high water regime was attributed to two interrelated factors. First, total growth and evapotranspiration (ET) were higher in the high than the moderate water regime. Second, N transport to the root increased with water transpired. For precision farming, results indicate that: (i) the amount of N fertilizer needed to produce a kg of grain is related to the yield loss due to water stress; and (ii) the rate constant used in yield goal equations can be replaced with a variable

Comparison of Construction Costs for Vegetated Treatment Systems in the Midwest

Vegetated treatment systems (VTSs) provide an alternative to containment basin systems for beef feedlot runoff control. Beef producers in the Midwestern United States have shown an increasing interest in using VTSs as a perceived lower cost option to containment basin systems. This paper reports the actual construction costs associated with 21 VTSs (eight on permitted Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) and 13 on non permitted Animal Feeding Operations (AFOs)) located within Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Nebraska. The VTS construction costs are reported on a per head basis in 2009 adjusted dollars for each system. Cost comparisons are presented between CAFO and AFO facilities, by location and by system type. Additionally, estimated construction cost comparisons between open feedlots with VTS systems, open feedlots with containment basins, monoslope barns and hoop structure beef production systems are provided. Results from the cost comparison indicate that monoslope barns with concrete floors are the highest cost at $621 per head on average followed by hoop structures at$395 per head. Vegetated Treatment Systems designed for CAFO facilities ($77 per head avg.) are less expensive to construct than a traditional containment basin ($129 per head avg.) The same results indicated that an AFO VTS ($62 per head avg.) was less expensive to build than a containment basin on a similar facility ($195 per head). The data indicated that the least expensive VTS for an AFO is a sloped or sloped and level VTA ($42 per head avg.) followed by a pump sloped VTA ($68 per head avg.) and a sprinkler VTS ($87 per head avg.)

Using livestock wastewater with SDI: a status report after three seasons

Presented at the Central Plains irrigation short course and exposition on February 5-6, 2001 at the Holiday Inn in Kearney, Nebraska.Using subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) with lagoon wastewater has many potential advantages. The challenge is to design and manage the SDI system to prevent emitter clogging. A study was initiated in 1998 to test the performance of five types of driplines (with emitter flow rates of 0.15, 0.24, 0.40, 0.60, and 0.92 gal/hr-emitter) with lagoon wastewater. A disk filter (200 mesh, with openings of 0.003 inches) was used and shock treatments of chlorine and acid were injected periodically. Over the course of three seasons (1998-2000) a total of approximately 52 inches of irrigation water has been applied through the SDI system. The flow rates of the two smallest emitter sizes, 0.15 gal/hr-emitter and 0.24 gal/hr-emitter have decreased approximately 30% during the three seasons, indicating some emitter clogging. The three largest driplines (0.40, 0.60, and 0.92 gal/hr-emitters) have had less than 5% reduction in flow rate. The disk filter and automatic backflush controller have performed adequately with the beef livestock wastewater in all three years. Based on these results, the use of SDI with beef lagoon wastewater shows promise. However, the smaller emitter sizes normally used with groundwater sources in western Kansas may be risky for use with lagoon wastewater and the long-term (> 3 growing seasons) effects are untested