Studies show that a stressed animal is more likely to be a sick, scrawny, infertile animal — hardly the formula for business success if you’re a rancher or dairyman.
Tag » Agricultural Sciences
January 23, 2013
Twice the Rice
Adding vitamin B1 may boost nutrition and immunity
A new breed of rice could fend off crop-damaging diseases and improve human health at the same time.
March 18, 2012
From concert hall to lecture hall
How music set the stage for a life in science
James Cassidy doesn’t fit the stereotypical image of a scientist. Two star-shaped earrings dangle from his left ear. A fetching fedora is perched on top of his head. He’s swapped his white lab coat for a charcoal sports jacket. A chic checkered shirt peeks out underneath. His alert grey eyes are framed by dark glasses. [...]
February 20, 2012
Green Evolution
Economists evaluate options for farming in a warmer world
East Africa’s farms feed millions, but production is likely to fall if temperatures rise and droughts become more common.
April 24, 2010
Fending Off a Fruit Menace
Extension videos teach you how to trap and identify the spotted wing Drosophila It’s a pest not much bigger than the head of a pin. But for Oregon farmers, the tiny fruit fly has the potential to take a giant bite out of yields — and profits. The spotted wing Drosophila has made its way [...]
March 23, 2010
From Margin to Mainstream
Scientists help farmers boost organic production
“The organic movement has evolved from a fringe element associated with a lost generation to a core business strategy of the world’s largest corporations.” –Reuters News Service, September 2008 When California-based Amy’s Kitchen opened a plant in Southern Oregon in 2006, the Oregon Department of Agriculture called it “a large feather in Oregon’s organic cap.” [...]
February 22, 2010
The Range Keepers
A perennial partnership of ecologists, hydrologists and ranchers is renewing Oregon’s grasslands
The Hatfield and McCormack ranch families of Brothers, Oregon, have partnered with OSU for generations to improve rangeland ecology. (Photo: Mark Reed)
January 22, 2010
Agricultural Sciences Welcomes New Dean
An agricultural leader from Purdue University became dean of the Oregon State University College of Agricultural Sciences in August.
November 22, 2009
Green Solutions
Farming that fosters ecological balance and biological diversity is the goal of OSU’sOrganic Agriculture Program in the Department of Horticulture. The program’s 29 researchers are investigating sustainable solutions for everything from weeds and soil-borne diseases to beetle infestations and livestock waste management. Here is a sampling of studies under way. Anita Azarenko The head of [...]
April 24, 2009
Where Grass Seed Is King
Oregon’s Willamette Valley is the undisputed “grass-seed capital of the world.” In close partnership with growers and scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, OSU researchers and agronomists have been at the forefront of an industry worth $500 million. Here are some of the milestones. 1909 Seed lab starts up on campus for research and [...]
April 24, 2009
Buzz About New Honeybee Specialist
Ramesh Sagili arrived in Corvallis in February to start a honeybee research program targeting mites, pesticides, stress and nutrition. The new OSU bee specialist is part of an initiative to help ensure that there are enough healthy honeybees to pollinate Oregon’s crops. Sagili says Varroa mites, nutritional deficiencies or other factors might be the cause [...]
February 24, 2009
Living Downwind
By collecting and testing the toxicity of particles in Northwest air samples, OSU Ph.D. student Julie Layshock is shedding light on the relative health threat posed by long-distance air pollution.
February 24, 2009
On Course
Rob Golembiewski isn't letting the grass grow under his feet
Rob Golembiewski wears a size-13 shoe, but that’s nothing compared with the shoes he has to fill. The former head of the golf and turf management program at the University of Minnesota’s Crookston campus has replaced Tom Cook as the director of Oregon State University’s turf management program. Thirty-one years ago, the hardworking and revered [...]
February 1, 2007
Canola Fuels Debate, Research
In the past couple of decades, canola has catapulted from obscurity to celebrity. The oilseed made its commercial debut in margarines and cooking oils, edging out more saturated-fat-laden competitors. Now it’s gaining stature as the ideal oil for yet another consumer product: biodiesel. But canola’s rising profile has not come without controversy. A type of [...]
July 23, 2006
Maps Help Plow New Ground for Oregon Grass
Two OSU scientists have produced the first collection of maps that show climate, soil characteristics and plant species suitability for the People’s Republic of China.
April 23, 2006
Amber Waves of SuperSoft Wheat
Wheat fields may have inspired Katherine Lee Bates to write a song about America’s beautiful “amber waves of grain,” but not all wheat is created equal.
