• HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
Monday, March 1, 2021
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News

UTIA researchers work to improve eastern grasslands

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
February 5, 2021
in Science News
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

NIFA grant should improve productivity, sustainability and resiliency of grassland agroecosystems

IMAGE

Credit: Photo by Rebekah Norman, UT Extension agent and county director, Montgomery County, Tennessee.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Researchers at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture have been awarded nearly $500,000 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture to improve productivity, resiliency and overall health of eastern grasslands. While grasslands comprise the largest agricultural land use in the U.S., there is room to improve their productivity and ability to remain vigorous during drought and heat. Pat Keyser, a professor of forestry, wildlife and fisheries who also directs the UTIA Center for Native Grasslands Management, and his colleagues are seeking to change the overall health of these ecosystems by studying novel grassland systems across the eastern U.S.

The problem lies with tall fescue, Schedonorus arundinaceus. This species of grass is a go-to candidate for many farmers and ranchers who need to provide forage for cattle. Native to Europe, tall fescue is a cool-season grass that experiences what many producers call a “summer slump.” During hot months growth slows a great deal, and productivity is limited. When the grass cannot replenish itself enough to keep up with grazing pressure, it becomes overgrazed and stressed. Pastures become degraded as root systems are weakened.

Additionally, tall fescue contains a fungal endophyte that produces toxins that can cause a myriad of health problems when consumed by cattle or other livestock. Common issues include weight fluctuations, digestive and reproductive problems and reduced milk production.

Through the grant, Keyser and his colleagues will implement large-scale field experiments at three locations: the UT East Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center in Knoxville, Tennessee; the University of Missouri’s Forage Systems Research Center in Linneus, Missouri; and the Dale Bumpers Small Farms Research Center in Booneville, Arkansas. Each site will host tall fescue as well as native warm-season grasses: big bluestem and indiangrass blends or eastern gamagrass. The systems will then be evaluated to determine how those with warm-season grasses compare to the traditional, tall fescue-only system. In particular, the researchers will evaluate productivity, profitability, sustainability, animal health and ecosystem health.

Keyser says, “Innovation has been the life-blood of modern agriculture. This research explores a major opportunity to innovate our approach to managing eastern grasslands for cattle production. While producing more pounds of beef at a lower cost is a key measure of success, we also want to evaluate how this innovation can affect soil health, water quality, really, all of our natural resources.”

Over the three-year grant period, the researchers hypothesize that the novel grazing systems will improve beef production, soil and water quality and overall process sustainability.

The UT Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries is part of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT AgResearch and UT Extension at the UT Institute of Agriculture. The curricula focus on a mastery learning approach, emphasizing practical, hands-on experiences. FWF’s faculty, staff and students conduct research and extension that advances the science and sustainable management of our natural resources. For more information, visit fwf.tennessee.edu.

Through its land-grant mission of research, teaching and extension, the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. utia.tennessee.edu.

Media Contact
Patricia McDaniels
[email protected]

Original Source

https://utianews.tennessee.edu/utia-researchers-work-to-improve-eastern-grasslands/

Tags: Agricultural Production/EconomicsAgricultureEcology/EnvironmentPlant Sciences
Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

IMAGE

Acute breakdown of the glial network in epilepsy

March 1, 2021
IMAGE

The human brain grew as a result of the extinction of large animals

March 1, 2021

Paper addresses research needed to understand smoking and COVID-19

March 1, 2021

Scoot over! Study reveals E-scooter use in Washington D.C.

March 1, 2021

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

POPULAR NEWS

  • IMAGE

    Terahertz accelerates beyond 5G towards 6G

    650 shares
    Share 260 Tweet 163
  • People living with HIV face premature heart disease and barriers to care

    82 shares
    Share 33 Tweet 21
  • Global analysis suggests COVID-19 is seasonal

    38 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 10
  • HIV: an innovative therapeutic breakthrough to optimize the immune system

    35 shares
    Share 14 Tweet 9

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Tags

BiologycancerMedicine/HealthInfectious/Emerging DiseasesTechnology/Engineering/Computer SciencePublic HealthEcology/EnvironmentClimate ChangeGeneticsChemistry/Physics/Materials SciencesMaterialsCell Biology

Recent Posts

  • Acute breakdown of the glial network in epilepsy
  • The human brain grew as a result of the extinction of large animals
  • Paper addresses research needed to understand smoking and COVID-19
  • Scoot over! Study reveals E-scooter use in Washington D.C.
  • Contact Us

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In