Scholarly Works, Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station

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VAES faculty are located at 11 Agricultural Research and Extension Centers in Virginia and three colleges at Virginia Tech (CALS, CNRE, and VMRCVM).

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In-Field Diadegma insulare (Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) Parasitism Rates of Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) in Virginia Cole Crops
Tomlinson, Taylore A.; Del Pozo-Valdivia, Alejandro I.; Kuhar, Thomas P. (MDPI, 2026-03-03)
The diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.), is a significant pest of brassica crops that is found across the globe. Due to the development of insecticide resistance, control tactics have shifted focus towards integrating pest management techniques such as biological control. Diadegma insulare (C.), Oomyzus sokolowskii (K.), and Microplites plutellae (M.) are parasitoids of P. xylostella found in the Eastern United States. From 2022 to 2025, we surveyed P. xylostella larvae and pupae in locations across Virginia to assess the current rates of parasitism in brassica fields. Specimens were brought to the laboratory and reared to assess parasitoid emergence rates. Only D. insulare specimens were found during the study. Adult P. xylostella, larvae and pupae, adult D. insulare, D. insulare pupae, unknown parasitoids, and unknown deaths were recorded and used to calculate the rates of parasitism at each location. We concluded that the parasitism rate varied by location and year, which was expected due to regional conditions and seasonality. Rates averaged between 30.1 and 65% by year, with the lowest individual rate being 15% in 2025 and the highest at 100% in 2022. This suggests that D. insulare is actively present in Virginia and could be a successful biological control agent when paired with other integrated pest management techniques to reduce P. xylostella populations.
Agroclimatic Sensing, Communication, and Computational Systems-Based Methods and Technologies for Precision Irrigation Management: Current State and Prospects
Sarr, Aminata; Chandel, Abhilash K.; Diop, Lamine; Soro, Yrébégnan Moussa; Tossa, Alain K.; Hota, Smrutilipi; Manimozhian, Arunachalam (MDPI, 2026-02-23)
Agriculture uses most of the world’s fresh water. Given that the worldwide population is expanding at an alarming rate, more land cultivation is apparently in demand. As a result, much more water would be required to irrigate cultivable lands. However, fresh water is becoming scarce at a faster rate due to climate uncertainties and over-exploitation. Several controlled irrigation techniques, such as drip and sprinkler irrigation, have been introduced to safeguard water resources. However, these techniques do not readily meet crop water demands and often end up causing overapplication of water. Under these circumstances, smart precision irrigation is the best solution. Smart irrigation techniques facilitate delivery of water in an amount that is required by the crop as per site/location and temporal requirements. Several studies have been carried out in this area, and remarkable progress has been observed. These studies range from making use of in situ sophisticated sensors that are low-cost and consume minimum energy up to the use of small unmanned aerial systems (SUAS) and satellite imagery for irrigation management. This review summarizes research studies that highlight the components of developing and deploying various precision irrigation technologies, their benefits, and their limitations. Specifically, the scientific value of this study lies in outlining implications of using different sensors, parameters, and equipment, the agroclimatic models, communication technologies, artificial intelligence, and the energy sources to implement automated irrigation systems. A future scope of precision irrigation is also discussed in accordance with cost-effectiveness and sustainability. This study should also act as a referring guideline for new researchers as well as technology manufacturers who seek to design and develop a futuristic yet efficient irrigation system. Overall, this review is aimed at contributing to the understanding of automated irrigation systems for their effective deployment towards enhanced agricultural production, conserved water resources, and sustainable use of energy sources.
Metabarcoding-based characterization of the boxwood root-zone soil microbiome
Li, Xiaoping; Weiland, Jerry E.; Ohkura, Mana; Luster, Douglas G.; Kong, Ping; Hong, Chuanxue (2026-01-16)
Background: Soil microbiomes are important for plant growth and health. The objectives of this study were to characterize boxwood root-zone microbial community and understand their associations with plant disease resistance and other horticultural traits. Soil samples were collected from four cultivars with three distinct boxwood blight tolerance at two geographically distant nursery locations in May, August, and November of 2021. Bacterial and fungal communities were characterized through DNA metabarcoding. Results: The dominant bacteria in the boxwood root-zone soil included Bacillus and several unknown genera of the order Gaiellales and families Xanthobacteraceae and Gemmatimonadaceae; the dominant fungi included Clonostachys, an unknown genus, Solicoccozyma, and Fusarium. Ceratobasidium, Hyaloscypha, and Sistotrema were also the dominant genera within the presumptive mycorrhizal fungi (PMF) group. Fungal community structure was distinct among cultivars with different blight tolerance in May and August, but the divergence of the bacterial community structure was only significant in the August samples. Community composition-wise, greater numbers of genera differed in abundance between the intermediate and the susceptible cultivars. Moreover, cross-kingdom network analysis showed a more connected network constructed from the intermediate cultivars and identified more hub taxa as module connectors compared with the other two cultivars. Some of the hub taxa, including bacterial genera Gaiella, Streptomyces, and Sphingomonas, and fungal genera Solicoccozyma and Pseudonectria were also among the 27 bacterial and 6 fungal core genera identified from all samples across four cultivars, two locations, and three seasons. Further, Volutella and Pseudonectria were negatively associated with 10 bacterial genera and all identified PMF-PMF connections were positive across all networks. Conclusions: Boxwood root-zone soil harbored diverse plant-beneficial microbes, including PMFs. Fungal community and microbial network connectivity also differed among the cultivars, suggesting the regulatory roles of plant phenotype and genotype in fungi recruitment and microbial interactions. Several keystone taxa were identified and may be crucial in maintaining the structure and communication within the boxwood root-zone microbiome. The negative associations between bacteria and Volutella/Pseudonectria provide a new insight into managing the rise of the boxwood Volutella blight. Together, this study offers several leads to enhancing plant resilience to disease and environmental stress.
Selecting and Managing Trees to Avoid Conflicts with Overhead Utility Lines
Wiseman, P. Eric; Fox, Laurie J.; Matiuk, Jonathan; Christensen, Brittany (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2024-08-31)
Overview of appropriate trees for use under utility lines to avoid conflict and comply with height restrictions.
Virginia Horticulture Production Trends: 2017-2022
Stallknecht, Eric J.; South, Kaylee (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2025-08-15)
Calculating and Using Daily Light Integral (DLI): An Introductory Guide
Stallknecht, Eric J. (2025)
Effect of maturity at harvest of small grain grasses on the nutritional composition of forage and ration formulation
Ferreira, Gonzalo; Teets, C. L.; Galyon, Hailey; Cappellina, Anna; Schultz, Milton; Payne, Kathryn; Stewart, Shamar; Thomason, Wade E. (2025-02-09)
We hypothesized that, relative to harvesting small-grain grasses at the soft dough stage (SFT) of maturity, harvesting small-grain grasses at the boot stage (BT) of maturity would result in less expensive dairy rations when commodity prices are high but not when commodity prices are low. Small plots of small-grain grasses were planted during the fall of 2020 and 2021 in Blacksburg, Blackstone, and Orange, Virginia. In each year and location, 2 varieties of barley, 2 varieties of rye, and 4 varieties of triticale were planted in plots replicated 6 times, yielding 288 plots. Within each year and location, we harvested half of the plots at BT and the other half at SFT. For each of the 6 small-grain grasses, we formulated 8 rations according to 8 different scenarios using the least-cost optimizer. The scenarios included high and low commodity prices, high and low dietary forage (60% and 40% forage, respectively), and the inclusion of small-grain grasses harvested at BT or SFT. Harvesting at SFT yielded 107% to 205% more DM than harvesting at BT. Relative to BT, small-grain grasses harvested at SFT had greater concentrations of OM, NDF, ADF, ADL, and starch but lower concentrations of CP. Relative to BT, small-grain grasses harvested at SFT also had a greater concentration of undegraded NDF (NDF basis). Species had minimal influence on the nutritional quality of small-grain grasses for silage. Under a low-price scenario, the ration formulation system ignored all 6 small-grain grass silages and included corn silage as the only forage source when we did not limit its inclusion. Under a high-price scenario, the ration formulation system included all 6 small-grain grass silages when formulating low-forage diets with unlimited corn silage. However, a preference between BT and SFT stages did not exist, with the optimizer not consistently selecting a specific maturity stage. After evaluating the yields, the chemical composition, and the effects on ration formulation in this study, future studies should aim to evaluate the influence of maturity at harvest of small-grain grasses on cow performance and environmental impacts.
Designing plant-transparent agrivoltaics
Stallknecht, Eric J.; Herrera, Christopher K.; Yang, Chenchen; King, Isaac; Sharkey, Thomas D.; Lunt, Richard R.; Runkle, Erik S. (Nature Portfolio, 2023-02-02)
Covering greenhouses and agricultural fields with photovoltaics has the potential to create multipurpose agricultural systems that generate revenue through conventional crop production as well as sustainable electrical energy. In this work, we evaluate the effects of wavelength-selective cutoffs of visible and near-infrared (biologically active) radiation using transparent photovoltaic (TPV) absorbers on the growth of three diverse, representative, and economically important crops: petunia, basil, and tomato. Despite the differences in TPV harvester absorption spectra, photon transmission of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; 400-700 nm) is the most dominant predictor of crop yield and quality. This indicates that different wavebands of blue, red, and green are essentially equally important to these plants. When the average photosynthetic daily light integral is > 12 mol m^-2 d^-1, basil and petunia yield and quality is acceptable for commercial production. However, even modest decreases in TPV transmission of PAR reduces tomato growth and fruit yield. These results identify crop-specific design requirements that exist for TPV harvester transmission and the necessity to maximize transmission of PAR to create the most broadly applicable TPV greenhouse harvesters for diverse crops and geographic locations. We determine that the deployment of 10% power conversion efficiency (PCE) plant-optimized TPVs over approximately 10% of total agricultural and pasture land in the U.S. would generate 7 TW, nearly double the entire energy demand of the U.S.
Incorporating the effect of the photon spectrum on biomass accumulation of lettuce using a dynamic growth model
Abedi, Mahyar; Tan, Xu; Stallknecht, Eric J.; Runkle, Erik S.; Klausner, James F.; Murillo, Michael S.; Benard, Andre (Frontiers, 2023-05-23)
Cultivation studies in specialty crop optimization utilize models to estimate the fresh and dry mass yield. However, the spectral distribution and photon flux density (μmol m-2 s-1) affect plant photosynthetic rate and morphology, which is usually not incorporated in plant growth models. In this study, using data for indoor-grown lettuce (Lactuca sativa) cultivated under different light spectra, a mathematical model that incorporates these effects is presented. Different experimental cases are used to obtain a modified quantum use efficiency coefficient that varies with the spectral distribution. Several models for this coefficient are fitted using experimental data. Comparing the accuracy of these models, a simple first- or second-order linear model for light-use efficiency coefficient has about 6 to 8 percent uncertainty, while a fourth-order model has a 2 percent average error in prediction. In addition, normalizing overall spectral distribution leads to a more accurate prediction of the investigated parameter. A novel mathematical model based on normalized spectral irradiance integrated over wavelength for photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) wavebands and the far-red waveband is presented in this study. It accurately predicts lettuce dry mass grown indoors under different light spectra.
An Experimental Red Fluorescent Film Has Cultivar-specific Effects on Lettuce Yield and Morphology
Stallknecht, Eric J.; Runkle, Erik S. (American Society for Horticultural Science, 2025-07)
Glazing and covering materials used in protected cultivation (PC) are primarily selected based on cost, longevity, heat retention, and light transmission. They can also be engineered to modify transmission of the solar spectrum by the incorporation of fluorescent pigments. Fluorescent pigments typically absorb blue (B; 400–499 nm) and/or green (G; 500–599 nm) photons and emit longer wavelength red (R; 600–699 nm) and, to a lesser extent, far-red (FR; 700–750 nm) photons. However, the incorporation of fluorescent pigments into plastics typically decreases its transmission of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; 400–700 nm). In small-scale studies, ‘Butter Crunch’ lettuce (Lactuca sativa) shoot fresh mass (SFM) increased by as much as 22% when grown under a red fluorescent (RF) film compared with that grown under an unpigmented film with approximately 25% greater transmission of PAR. The objective of this research was to quantify variation among five lettuce cultivars when grown under a similar experimental RF film in a small-scale and larger-scale greenhouse experiment. Lettuce was grown under an RF film or neutral-density shade that provided a 15% to 24% greater average daily light integral (DLI). The SFM of lettuce increased by up to 45% and yield (SFM per m2) increased by up to 37% when grown under the RF film, but the magnitude of increase was cultivar-specific. The SFM increase was linearly correlated with the increase in single leaf area but not projected canopy area. This work demonstrates the potential of an RF film to increase the yield of some (but not all) lettuce cultivars compared with neutral-density shade materials. However, further research is necessary to explore potential benefits for other greenhouse crops and changes to crop morphology.
Influence of Supraoptimal Air Temperature and Cultivar on Yield, Morphology, and Production Considerations of Green Leaf Lettuce in Greenhouses
Stallknecht, Eric J. (American Society for Horticultural Science, 2026-01-15)
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is an economically important leafy green widely grown in greenhouses, yet there are limited data on the interaction between lettuce cultivar and air temperature for many cultivars currently marketed for commercial greenhouse production. Even in climate-controlled greenhouses, internal air temperature can exceed general recommendations, leading to bolting, excessive stem elongation, bitter flavors, and reduced yields. This study aimed to generate benchmark yield and morphological data for 20 lettuce cultivars grown hydroponically in a greenhouse during a fall (20 C mean air temperature) and summer (28 C mean air temperature) production cycle, with harvests at 9 (juvenile stage) and 21 (mature stage) days after transplanting (DAT). For both fall and summer, lettuce grew in a common nutrient film technique system with an average pH and EC of 5.6 and 1.5 dS·m21, respectively, with greenhouse air temperature setpoints of 21 C (day) and 18 C (night), and a target average daily light integral of 17 mol·m22·d21. The experiment was set up as a randomized complete block design with two blocks. Depending on the cultivar, air temperature, and harvest time, lettuce yield and top projected canopy area (TPCA) were significantly different. However, regardless of the cultivar or harvest time, yield (kg·m22·year21) was almost always greater at 20 C (fall) than 28 C (summer). Supraoptimal air temperatures increased TPCA at both 9 and 21 DAT. Supraoptimal air temperatures decreased specific leaf area, resulting in thicker leaf lamina. Chlorophyll concentration was more affected by cultivar than harvest date or air temperature, but prolonged supraoptimal air temperatures decreased chlorophyll concentration at 21 DAT. Benchmarking yield and morphology across cultivars and seasons provides a tool for growers to improve crop selection and production strategies, while informing breeding efforts for improved controlled environment performance with regard to plant architecture and leaf morphology for greenhouses using automated harvesting and packaging.
Selecting and Using Plant Growth Regulators on Floriculture Crops
Latimer, Joyce G.; Whipker, Brian; Stallknecht, Eric J. (Virginia Cooperative Extension, 2025-01-10)
Factors affecting plant-to-plant spread of Calonectria pseudonaviculata through pruning shears
Hong, Chuanxue (Scientific Societies, 2025-12-09)
Calonectria pseudonaviculata (Cps), a causal agent of boxwood blight, produces sticky conidia as dispersal and infective propagules. These conidia readily adhere to tools that come in contact with diseased plant materials. However, plant-to-plant spread via pruning shears has been considered inefficient. Here we used hand-held pruners and two susceptible cultivars – Buxus sempervirens ‘Justin Brouwers’ and ‘Suffruticosa’ as detector plants to further evaluate the efficiency of this pathway. This study demonstrated that wetting inoculum plant foliage increased Cps spread onto detector plants via pruners. The spread further increased with increasing number of cuts on inoculum plants prior to cutting detector plants. Between two highly susceptible detector cultivars, Suffruticosa, with much more new growth and leaves at the time of this study, had greater blighted leaf counts than Justin Brouwers. These results suggest that Cps spread via pruners could be highly efficient, depending upon the wetness of and number of cuts on inoculum plants, and the amount of new growth on detector plants. These findings advance Cps dispersal biology with important practical implications, particularly in gardening and ground maintenance as boxwood requires regular pruning for prized use as hedges, parterres, landscape groupings, and topiaries.
Economic, environmental, and societal impacts of the Boxwood Blight Insight Group research
Hall, Charles R.; Hong, Chuanxue; Daughtrey, Margery L.; Luster, Douglas G. (Scientific Societies, 2025-12-10)
Boxwood blight threatens the United States’ leading evergreen ornamental shrub and the broader green-industry economy it anchors. This study synthesizes four years of research outputs from the Boxwood Blight Insight Group (BBIG)—a transdisciplinary, systems-based consortium—to quantify the economic, environmental, and societal returns generated by research-driven diagnostics, risk tools, resistant cultivars, microbiome-based interventions, and best management practices. Using a structured benefit inventory that avoids double counting, empirically grounded adoption curves, and standard public‐sector discounting (3%), along with monetization of externalities (e.g., social cost of carbon), the analysis translates 100+ documented journal articles and impact statements into defensible monetary values. Direct producer benefits—higher net margins, avoided crop losses, and lower input costs—approach a net present value (NPV) of $1.2 billion over 10 years, with the largest contributions from cultivar resistance, precision sanitation, and weather-based spray optimization. Adding monetized environmental and regulatory savings increases NPV by $180 million; when consumer and societal spillovers are included, aggregate benefits rise to $1.6–$2.1 billion. Even under conservative uptake (30%) and excluding “soft” benefits, the program yields a 21:1 benefit–cost ratio relative to cumulative research investment. These findings demonstrate that embedding economic analyses within plant health R&D can accelerate adoption, guide policy and cost-share design, and safeguard an iconic landscape plant whose wholesale value exceeds $140.9 million annually and supports a much larger downstream market. BBIG provides a repeatable template for integrating disease biology with economic evaluation to capture the full public return to specialty-crop research.
Broadcasting cover crops at corn harvest can maximize biomass and reduce nitrogen leaching
Lipford Zahed, Mary Michael; Haymaker, Joseph; Mott, Joshua; Abaye, Azenegashe Ozzie ; Reiter, Mark S. (Elsevier, 2026-07-01)
Mitigating nitrogen (N) leaching from agricultural fields is critical for improving water quality in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Because N mineralization continues after corn (Zea mays L.) uptake ceases, losses may occur between harvest and cover crop (CC) establishment. The objectives of this study were to identify effective establishment methods and CC species for N uptake and biomass production; determine whether planting at harvest enhances N scavenging compared to delayed planting; and assess impacts on corn yield. Four seeding methods were evaluated: (1) broadcasting with incorporation at corn harvest, (2) broadcasting without incorporation at corn harvest, (3) broadcasting with incorporation four weeks post-harvest, and (4) drilling four weeks post-harvest, using cereal rye (Secale cereale L.), hairy vetch (Vicia villosa Roth), rapeseed (Brassica napus L.), and a three-species mix. In Year 2, fall soil nitrate concentrations at 0–15 cm depth in post-harvest treatments (11.4–11.8 mg kg−1) were more than double that of at-harvest treatments (5.2 mg kg−1), with at-harvest incorporated rye showing the lowest winter nitrate (1.7 mg kg−1). At-harvest mix and hairy vetch accumulated the most N in aboveground biomass (181–208 kg ha−1). Year 1 corn yield increased following at-harvest hairy vetch (11,022–11,384 kg ha−1) and incorporated mix (11,587 kg ha−1) compared to the control (8895 kg ha−1), though not in Year 2. Incorporation did not significantly affect outcomes compared to non-incorporated treatments. Planting CCs at corn harvest maximized N accumulation, biomass, and nitrate reduction, offering a practical strategy to mitigate N leaching.
Evaluation of selected foliar insectcides against stink bugs in edamame, 2022
Bradley, Sierra E.; Sutton, Kemper L.; Doughty, Helene; Zhang, Bo; McIntyre, Kelly; Kuhar, Thomas P. (Oxford University Press, 2023-01-01)
Impact of irrigation levels on herbicide activity in the cotton production system
Makkar, Jasleen; Saini, Rupinder; Bajwa, Preetaman; Singh, Sukhbir; Slaughter, Lindsey; Ritchie, Glen (Cambridge University Press, 2026)
Cotton production in the Texas High Plains faces significant challenges due to water scarcity resulting from uneven rainfall patterns and declining levels of the Ogallala aquifer. Deficit or reduced irrigation is one of the most common water management strategies to increase water use efficiency and cotton productivity in the region. However, deficit irrigation can affect herbicide efficacy on weeds. This study investigates how varying irrigation levels affect herbicide efficacy on weeds in cotton production systems. A two-year field study was conducted at Texas Tech University Quaker Research Farm in 2023 and 2024. The experiment was randomized three times in a split-plot design with two irrigation levels: I1 [100% crop evapotranspiration (ETc) replacement] and I2 [50% ETc replacement] as the main plot factor and different pre-emergent and post-emergent herbicide combinations as the subplot factor. Results indicated that reducing the irrigation level to I2 did not affect the total weed density or biomass production but resulted in decreased Palmer amaranth height and biomass production compared to I1. Among herbicide treatments, acetochlor, prometryn, or smetolachlor PRE fb glyphosate + acetochlor, prometryn, or s-metolachlor POST provided the most effective weed control, reducing total weed density, Palmer amaranth weed density and biomass compared to the untreated control and to PRE alone. Although I2 resulted in lower plant height in both years than I1, it produced comparable cotton biomass and lint yield. Among the herbicide treatments, PRE fb glyphosate + residual herbicide POST yielded significantly higher lint yield than the untreated control in both years. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that deficit irrigation is an effective water conservation technique that maintains cotton yield and herbicide efficacy. Additionally, using PRE fb POST herbicide combinations, farmers can achieve effective weed control and sustain cotton productivity in semi-arid regions.
Production performance, nutrient digestibility, and milk fatty acid profile of lactating dairy cows fed diets containing triticale silage of different maturities and different dietary forage levels
Schultz, M. E.; Corl, Benjamin A.; Payne, Kathryn M.; Stewart, Shamar L.; Thomason, Wade E.; Ferreira, Gonzalo (Elsevier, 2025-09)
This study aimed to evaluate the production performance, the milk fatty acid profile, and the nutrient digestibility of high-producing dairy cows fed high-forage (HF) or low-forage (LF) diets containing triticale silages harvested at either the boot stage (BT) or the soft-dough stage (SFT) of maturity. A 10-ha field was seeded with 105 kg/ha of triticale. Half of the field was harvested at BT and the other half at SFT. The harvested forage was ensiled in separate concrete-walled bunker silos for at least 60 d. The BT silage had 97.0% OM, 9.6% CP, 61.0% NDF, 42.0% ADF, 8.9% ADL, and 1.6% starch, whereas the SFT silage had 97.3% OM, 8.3% CP, 63.0% NDF, 44.0% ADF, 10.2% ADL, and 3.7% starch. The similar nutritional compositions of the 2 silages might be related to splitting the field in 2 halves that reflected differences in growing conditions of the crop. The animal study involved 8 primiparous (584 ± 21 kg BW and 105 ± 11 DIM) and 16 multiparous (710 ± 57 kg BW and 105 ± 18 DIM) Holstein cows. The experiment was a replicated 4 × 4 Latin square design with 21-d periods, with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. The HF diets were formulated to contain 55% dietary forage, and the LF diets were formulated to contain 38% dietary forage. Cows were housed in a freestall barn and fed once daily. Cows fed BT and SFT diets had similar DMI, but cows fed LF diets had higher DMI than cows fed HF diets. Feeding BT diets resulted in more milk production (43.5 vs. 42.4 kg/d) and higher milk protein (1.30 vs. 1.23 kg/d) and lactose yields (2.13 vs. 2.04 kg/d) compared with feeding SFT diets. Energy-corrected milk yield did not differ between BT and SFT diets. Cows fed HF diets produced less milk (41.1 vs. 43.0 kg/d) but tended to increase milk fat concentration (4.56% vs. 4.37%) compared with cows fed LF diets. Milk protein concentration was similar between cows fed HF and LF diets, but cows fed HF diets increased lactose concentration (5.02% vs. 4.80%). Triticale maturity did not affect NDF digestibility, but LF diets improved NDF digestibility (45.2 vs. 41.7%). No difference existed in de novo fatty acids between cows fed the BT and SFT diets despite the higher concentrations of CLA trans-10, cis-12 fatty acid and slightly higher concentrations of C18:1 trans-10 fatty acid. Under the conditions of this study, production performance did not appear to be sensitive to diets with triticale silage harvested at different maturity stages, and this occurred with both HF and LF diets.
Registration of 'Avalon' winter malt barley
Brooks, Wynse; Griffey, Carl; Sabadin, Felipe; Vaughn, Mark; Liu, Limei; Seago, John; Thomason, Wade E.; Light, Jon; Rucker, Elizabeth; Browning, Phillip; McMaster, Niki; Schmale, David G. III; Saville, Brooks; Hardiman, Thomas; Custis, J. Tommy; Jones, Karl; Jones, Ned; Lillard, Gregory; Marshall, David; Fountain, Myron; Tuong, Tan; Lee, Michelle; Oakes, Joseph; Mott, Joshua; Martens, Christopher; Walling, Jason; Bettenhausen, Harmonie; Macleod, Aaron; Santantonio, Nicholas (Wiley, 2024-12-25)
‘Avalon’ (Reg. no. CV-383, PI 700308) is the first two-row, winter malt barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivar developed by the Virginia Agricultural Experimental Station. Avalon was released in May 2020. Prior to being named, Avalon was tested under the experimental designation VA16M-81. Avalon was evaluated from 2018 to 2023 in the Eastern Malt Barley Trials (EMBT) at one to three locations in three states and in the Winter Malt Barley Trial (WMBT) from 2020 to 2023 in six to 15 states. In the EMBT in Virginia, mean grain yield (5604 kg ha⁻¹) of Avalon was higher to cultivar ‘Violetta’, but lower than those of ‘Flavia’, ‘Calypso’, and ‘Thoroughbred’. Average grain volume weight of Avalon (64.9 kg hL⁻¹) was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher than the check cultivars, except Violetta. Head emergence of Avalon was 3 days earlier than Flavia and Calypso and 1 to 2 days later than Violetta and Thoroughbred, respectively. Avalon was developed primarily as a malt barley cultivar. On the basis of malting evaluations, Avalon has acceptable quality profiles with specific quality traits including high extract, low protein content, and low beta-glucan for the years tested. Avalon provides malt barley producers and end users in the eastern United States with excellent malt quality and a unique and distinct flavor profile having good to moderate resistance to all diseases prevalent in the eastern United States. It is moderately susceptible to Fusarium head blight but has moderately low deoxynivalenol accumulation in the grain.
Combining soil conservation with phosphorus drawdown can confront legacy phosphorus accumulation and transfer
Mott, Joshua; Simpson, Zachary P.; Bolster, Carl H.; Faulkner, Joshua; King, Kevin; Osterholz, William; Williams, Mark; Dalzell, Brent; Feyereisen, Gary W.; Dolph, Christine L.; Miner, Grace L.; Duriancik, Lisa F.; Kleinman, Peter J. A. (Taylor & Francis, 2025-07)
Legacy phosphorus (P) in agricultural soils (i.e., P that derives from historical human activities) can resist conventional nutrient management strategies to improve water quality (e.g., placement, rate, source, and timing of application). Further, soil conservation practices such as reduced tillage, while potentially beneficial for improving soil health and minimizing erosion, can promote dissolved P loss. Comprehensive legacy P management requires targeted mitigation strategies that consider the sources and processes involved in P mobilization and transport. We modeled trade-offs and interactions of nutrient management and soil conservation strategies in legacy P mitigation efforts at three key sites in the northern United States where legacy P contributions to water quality are a concern. The Annual Phosphorus Loss Estimator (APLE) model was used to simulate generalized management scenarios at each site: current site-specific practices, conventional conservation practices (no-till and manure injection), and P drawdown (curtailing fertilizer P additions and extracting P from soils via crop uptake and harvest). Modeled results highlight that the effects of legacy P are not always obvious; even at sites near the range of agronomic optimum, losses of legacy P in runoff can be significant. Phosphorus drawdown via crop uptake and removal offers the potential to deplete legacy P stores but requires dedication and time. In model simulations, no-till reduced total P losses due to reductions in sediment transport. Coupling drawdown strategies with appropriate conservation management to avoid inadvertent P losses can reduce both dissolved and particulate P losses. Focusing on either soil conservation or soil P drawdown alone is insufficient to meet water quality goals. Phosphorus drawdown strategies must be accompanied by practices supporting soil conservation to ensure that legacy P management benefits water quality in the short and long term.

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