Row spacing and seeding rate: management practices that influence flax production

Non-Peer ReviewedA three year study (1988-90) assessed the potential of row spacing and seeding rate to maintain flax yield in the presence of weeds. Flax seed yield was measured in three row spacings (9, 18, and 27 cm) and three seeding rates (300, 600, and 900 seeds m-2) of flax. Poor growing conditions in 1988 and 1989 resulted in small differences in flax seed yield among row spacings, seeding rates and types of weed competition. In 1990, a 900-seeds m-2 seeding rate increased seed yield in those types of weed competition that had the lowest average seed yield. A 9-cm row spacing increased seed yield in the absence of broadleaf weeds. Mechanisms of competition and practical implications of the results are discussed

Effect of agronomic treatments on foliar diseases of winter wheat in northeast Saskatchewan

Non-Peer ReviewedThe development of foliar plant diseases on winter wheat with differing agronomic treatments was studied. The foliar diseases included powdery mildew (Erysiphe graminis) and diseases of the Septoria complex (Septoria spp. and Pyrenophora tritici-repentis) . Agronomic treatments included: nitrogen fertility, cultivar, and seed rate/row spacing. High nitrogen fertility, short stature, and wide row spacing were found to favour the development of powdery mildew. Short stature and high seed rate were found to favour the development of Septoria

Effect of row spacings on yields of spring and winter wheats in central and northern Saskatchewan

Non-Peer ReviewedThe effect of row spacings on yields of HY320 and Neepawa spring wheats and Norstar and Norwin winter wheats was investigated at several locations in central and northern Saskatchewan. These results, although preliminary, indicated that yields increased as row spacings decreased. The effect of row spacing appeared to be greatest where yields were highest although significant row spacing effects were also noted at those sites where yields were lower. Data from a limited number of sites where counts of head numbers per m^2 were made indicated that much of the difference in yields between row spacings could be accounted for by increased numbers of heads being produced at narrower spacings

Social Change, Gender and Education: Exceptional Swedish Immigrant Women at North Park College, 1900-1920

The present study focused on the educational and career experiences of four selected Swedish immigrant women at North Park College in Chicago from 1900-1920. There is a gap in the extant literature with regard to the Swedish immigrant women experiences, and this study attempted to shed some light on this fascinating topic.The study examined the lives of three selected Swedish immigrant women students at the College and their lives afterwards as missionaries in China. It also examined the life of Lena Sahlstrom, a faculty member at North Park College during the same period. The four women were exceptional individuals, each in her own way a pioneer. Hilma Johnson studied business for one year at North Park College before becoming the Covenant Church\u27s first woman missionary to China in 1901, a commitment she maintained for 40 years. Hilda Rodberg was the first female graduate of the Swedish Covenant Hospital Nursing School in 1900, and she became a missionary in China for over thirty years. Victoria Welter was the first woman to graduate from North Park College\u27s Seminary Department in 1903, after which she, too, left for China to serve as a missionary, where she married John Sjoquist, a medical missionary. Welter was the only one of the four to marry, and after the death of her husband in 1917 she returned to Chicago to complete her children\u27s formal education.Caroline Lena Sahlstrom was the first female faculty member at North Park College. She was a teacher in the Primary Department and the Music Department, and she also served as the Dean of Women during part of her long tenure at North Park College. Her contributions to the school and the students were impressive, and she was a committed educator of her time.Each of the four women valued education and religion, and each was influenced in various ways by their experiences at North Park College. Hilma Johnson, Hilda Rodberg, and Victoria Welter chose professional careers as missionaries in China where they ministered to many people through teaching and health care. Influenced by her educational and religious background, Lena Sahlstrom chose to join the faculty at North Park College where her years of service and various roles impacted the lives of many students. While economic advancement was not a goal for any of the four, they all chose professional careers and lives of commitment that differed from the traditional roles filled by most women of their day. All four were role models who made a difference in many peoples lives

Laboratory capture, isolation and analysis of microparticles in aerogel: Preparation for the return of Stardust

We present observations from the laboratory capture of particles in aerogel. The paper focuses on a possible extraction technique and the bulk mineral characterization of the captured material using non-destructive analytical techniques

An evaluation of the vacuum/pressure moisturization technique of seed grains and oilseeds

Non-Peer Reviewe

Sphagnum restoration on degraded blanket and raised bogs in the UK using micropropagated source material: a review of progress

There is a growing demand for a supply of Sphagnum to re-introduce to degraded peatlands. However, available supplies of Sphagnum of the desired species are often limited. We describe the propagation of Sphagnum from vegetative material in sterile tissue culture and the introduction of juvenile mosses into the field. Sphagnum produced in the laboratory in three different forms (beads, gel and plugs) was introduced to different peatland surfaces on upland degraded blanket bog and lowland cut-over peatland in northern England. On degraded blanket bog, the establishment of mixed-species Sphagnum plugs was typically 99 % while the survival of beads was much lower, ranging from little above zero on bare eroding peat to a maximum of 12 % on stabilised peat surfaces. On lowland cut-over peatland, all trials took place on peat with an expanding cover of Eriophorum angustifolium and tested Sphagnum gel as well as beads and plugs. This work showed that survival and establishment of plugs was high (99 %) and greater than for beads. Sphagnum gel reached a cover of 95 % in two years. The vegetative micropropagation of Sphagnum offers an effective source of Sphagnum for re-introduction to degraded peatlands

Selection and enrichment of microbial species with an increased lignocellulolytic phenotype from a native soil microbiome by activity-based probing

Multi-omic analyses can provide information on the potential for activity within a microbial community but often lack specificity to link functions to cell, primarily offer potential for function or rely on annotated databases. Functional assays are necessary for understanding in situ microbial activity to better describe and improve microbiome biology. Targeting enzyme activity through activity-based protein profiling enhances the accuracy of functional studies. Here, we introduce a pipeline of coupling activity-based probing with fluorescence-activated cell sorting, culturing, and downstream activity assays to isolate and examine viable populations of cells expressing a function of interest. We applied our approach to a soil microbiome using two activity-based probes to enrich for communities with elevated activity for lignocellulose-degradation phenotypes as determined by four fluorogenic kinetic assays. Our approach efficiently separated and identified microbial members with heightened activity for glycosyl hydrolases, and by expanding this workflow to various probes for other function, this process can be applied to unique phenotype targets of interest.Bio-organic Synthesi

Early-branching gut fungi possess a large, comprehensive array of biomass-degrading enzymes

The fungal kingdom is the source of almost all industrial enzymes in use for lignocellulose bioprocessing. We developed a systems-level approach that integrates transcriptomic sequencing, proteomics, phenotype, and biochemical studies of relatively unexplored basal fungi. Anaerobic gut fungi isolated from herbivores produce a large array of biomass-degrading enzymes that synergistically degrade crude, untreated plant biomass and are competitive with optimized commercial preparations from Aspergillus and Trichoderma. Compared to these model platforms, gut fungal enzymes are unbiased in substrate preference due to a wealth of xylan-degrading enzymes. These enzymes are universally catabolite-repressed and are further regulated by a rich landscape of noncoding regulatory RNAs. Additionally, we identified several promising sequence-divergent enzyme candidates for lignocellulosic bioprocessing