scholarly journals Economics of Utilizing Alternative Containers in Ornamental Crop Production Systems

2015 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin G. Brumfield ◽  
Alyssa J. DeVincentis ◽  
Xueni Wang ◽  
R. Thomas Fernandez ◽  
Susmitha Nambuthiri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
The United States ◽  
Plant Production ◽  
Water Demands ◽  
Process Use ◽  
Shipping Costs ◽  
Current Production ◽  
Cost Of Production ◽  
The Cost

As high-input systems, plant production facilities for liner and container plants use large quantities of water, fertilizers, chemical pesticides, plastics, and labor. The use of renewable and biodegradable inputs for growing aesthetically pleasing and healthy plants could potentially improve the economic, environmental, and social sustainability of current production systems. However, costs for production components to integrate sustainable practices into established systems have not been fully explored to date. Our objectives were to determine the economic costs of commercial production systems using alternative containers in aboveground nursery systems. We determined the cost of production (COP) budgets for two woody plant species grown in several locations across the United States. Plants were grown in plastic pots and various alternative pots made from wood pulp (WP), fabric (FB), keratin (KT), and coconut fiber (coir). Cost of production inputs for aboveground nursery systems included the plant itself (liner), liner shipping costs, pot, pot shipping costs, substrate, substrate shipping costs, municipal water, and labor. Our results show that the main difference in the COP is the price of the pot. Although alternative containers could potentially increase water demands, water is currently an insignificant cost in relation to the entire production process. Use of alternative containers could reduce the carbon, water, and chemical footprints of nurseries and greenhouses; however, the cost of alternative containers must become more competitive with plastic to make them an acceptable routine choice for commercial growers.

scholarly journals The Influence of Opencast Lignite Mining Dehydration on Plant Production—A Methodological Study

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 1917
Author(s):  
Benedykt Pepliński ◽  
Wawrzyniec Czubak
Keyword(s):  
Brown Coal ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Plant Production ◽  
External Costs ◽  
Opencast Mines ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Potato Yields ◽  
Burning Coal ◽  
Depression Cone ◽  
The Cost

In many circles, brown coal continues to be viewed as a cheap source of energy, resulting in numerous investments in new opencast brown coal mines. Such a perception of brown coal energy is only possible if the external costs associated with mining and burning coal are not considered. In past studies, external cost analysis has focused on the external costs of coal burning and associated emissions. This paper focuses on the extraction phase and assesses the external costs to agriculture associated with the resulting depression cone. This paper discusses the difficulties researchers face in estimating agricultural losses resulting from the development of a depression cone due to opencast mineral extraction. In the case of brown coal, the impacts are of a geological, natural-climatic, agricultural-productive, temporal, and spatial nature and result from a multiplicity of interacting factors. Then, a methodology for counting external costs in crop production was proposed. The next section estimates the external costs of crop production arising from the operation of opencast mines in the Konin-Turek brown coal field, which is located in central Poland. The analyses conducted showed a large decrease in grain and potato yields and no effect of the depression cone on sugar beet levels. Including the estimated external costs in the cost of producing electricity from mined brown coal would significantly worsen the profitability of that production.

The Phenoxy Herbicides: CAST

Weed Science ◽  
1975 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-263 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Forest Products ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
The United States ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Good Judgment ◽  
Public Health Importance ◽  
Phenoxy Herbicides ◽  
The Cost

The phenoxy herbicides, 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, MCPA, silvex and related materials, are selective herbicides widely used in crop production and in the management of forests, ranges and industrial, urban and aquatic sites. These chemicals are related to naturally occurring plant growth regulators. They kill plants by causing malfunctions in growth processes. Broad-leaved plants are generally susceptible to the phenoxy herbicides, whereas most grasses, coniferous trees and certain legumes are relatively resistant.The phenoxy herbicides are used to control broad-leaved weeds in wheat, barley, rice, oats, rye, corn, grain sorghums and certain legumes. Such uses increase yields, improve product quality and reduce production costs. The phenoxy herbicides are used in forests to suppress unwanted hardwood trees and brush, to reduce competition with conifers already established or to prepare sites for the regeneration of conifers. They are used on grazing lands to control unpalatable and noxious plants and to kill brush and small trees that reduce the productivity of pastures and ranges. 2,4-D and other phenoxys are used in canals, ponds, lakes and waterways to kill floating weeds such as water hyacinth, submerged weeds such as pond-weeds, and emergent and shoreline plants such as cattails and willows. Industrial and urban uses include control of brush on utility and transportation rights of way, control of dandelions, plantains and other weeds in turf and suppression of ragweed, poison ivy and other plants of public health importance.The principal hazard in the use of the phenoxys is to crops and other valuable plants either within the treated area or nearby. Treated crops and forest trees can be injured through accidental overdosing, improper timing of treatments, unusual weather conditions and other causes. Injury to nearby crops and ornamentals can result from drift of droplets or vapors of the spray. Such losses are largely preventable through the use of proper formulations and spray equipment and the exercise of good judgment.The phenoxy herbicides are predominantly toxic to green plants and are much less toxic to mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, shellfish, insects, worms, fungi and bacteria. When properly used, they do not occur in soils and water at levels harmful to animals and microorganisms. They do not concentrate in food chains and do not persist from year to year in croplands. They are detectable only rarely in food and then only in insignificant amounts.A highly poisonous kind of dioxin called TCDD is an unavoidable contaminant in commercial supplies of 2,4,5-T and silvex. The amount present in currently produced formulations of 2,4,5-T and silvex is not enough to alter the toxicological properties of these preparations or to endanger human health or to affect plants or animals in the environment.The phenoxy herbicides are widely used because they are more efficient and usually less hazardous and less injurious to the environment than alternative methods. Use of these chemicals is estimated to reduce the cost of production of the crops on which they are used by about 5% and to reduce overall agricultural production costs in the United States by about 1%. Uses in forests and nonagricultural situations provide additional savings. If the phenoxys were no longer available, the cost of food, forest products, electric power, transportation and governmental services would be higher. These costs would be borne by consumers.

scholarly journals Veggie Compass: A Spreadsheet-based Tool to Calculate Cost of Production for Diversified Organic Vegetable Farmers

2014 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 394-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin M. Silva ◽  
Rebecca Claypool ◽  
Jim Munsch ◽  
John Hendrickson ◽  
Paul Mitchell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Fruits And Vegetables ◽  
The United States ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Specific Data ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Operational Costs ◽  
Labor Inputs ◽  
Cost Of Production

Organic sales continue to increase in the United States, particularly in the category of fruits and vegetables. Many organic vegetable producers are highly diversified in both crop production and marketing strategies, selling many different crops through several different market channels. With this level of operational complexity, determination of cost of production and calculation of breakeven prices for each crop in each market channels is extremely challenging. A spreadsheet-based tool called Veggie Compass was created to assist growers in tracking their operational costs and determining crop-specific and market-specific costs of production, breakeven prices, and gross profits. The spreadsheet uses farm-specific data regarding expenses, sales, and labor inputs in its calculations. A farmer can define the crops grown and markets sold to tailor the information specifically for their operations. Continued development in collaboration with farmers will improve the program and allow growers to perform analyses that enable them to set prices that more accurately reflect their respective operational costs.

scholarly journals An Examination of the Economics of Sustainable and Conventional Horticulture

2000 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 687-691
Author(s):  
Robin G. Brumfield
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Organic System ◽  
Price Premiums ◽  
Organic Systems ◽  
Long Term Study ◽  
Adverse Impacts ◽  
The Cost

Since World War II, U.S. agriculture has reduced production costs by substituting petrochemicals for labor. Adverse impacts from chemical intensive agriculture include increased pest levels, groundwater and surface water contamination, soil erosion, and concerns about harmful levels of pesticide residues. Sustainable farming programs such as integrated crop management (ICM) and organic farming encourage farmers to use systems that reduce the adverse impacts of chemical agriculture. However, before farmers adopt an alternative system, they must determine that economic benefits from the alternative farming activities exceed the costs incurred. Unfortunately, relatively few studies have compared the cost of organic crop production with conventional production systems. Results of these studies are mixed. In some studies, organic systems are more profitable than conventional systems with organic price premiums, but are not economically viable without price premiums. In one long-term study, the organic system was more profitable than a conventional one if the cost of family labor was ignored, but less profitable if it was included. In some studies, net returns were higher for ICM than for conventional or organic systems, but in others, they were higher. Results also vary on a crop by crop basis.

Effect of Late-Season Herbicide Applications on Inflorescence and Seed Production of Glyphosate-Resistant Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida)

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zahoor A. Ganie ◽  
Simranpreet Kaur ◽  
Prashant Jha ◽  
Vipan Kumar ◽  
Amit J. Jhala
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Integrated Management ◽  
Acetolactate Synthase ◽  
The United States ◽  
Weed Species ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Late Season ◽  
Giant Ragweed

Giant ragweed is one of the most competitive annual broadleaf weeds in corn and soybean crop production systems in the United States and eastern Canada. Management of giant ragweed has become difficult due to the evolution of resistance to glyphosate and/or acetolactate synthase (ALS)-inhibitor herbicides and giant ragweed’s ability to emerge late in the season, specifically in the eastern Corn Belt. Late-season herbicide application may reduce seed production of weed species; however, information is not available about late-season herbicide applications on giant ragweed seed production. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of single or sequential late-season applications of 2,4-D, dicamba, glyphosate, and glufosinate on inflorescence injury and seed production of glyphosate-resistant (GR) giant ragweed under greenhouse and field conditions (bare ground study). Single and sequential applications of glufosinate resulted in as much as 59 and 60% injury to giant ragweed inflorescence and as much as 78 and 75% reduction in seed production, respectively, under field and greenhouse conditions. In contrast, single or sequential applications of 2,4-D or dicamba resulted in ≥ 96% inflorescence injury and reduction in seed production in the field as well as in greenhouse studies. The results indicated that 2,4-D or dicamba are effective options for reducing seed production of glyphosate-resistant giant ragweed even if applied late in the season. Targeting weed seed production to decrease the soil seedbank will potentially be an effective strategy for an integrated management of GR giant ragweed.

The Application of Electrophysical Effects in the Processing of Agricultural Materials

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Dmitry Budnikov ◽  
Alexey Nikolaevich Vasiliev ◽  
Alexey Alekseevich Vasilyev ◽  
Konstantin Sergeevich Morenko ◽  
Ihab S. Mohamed ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Significant Part ◽  
Grain Production ◽  
Post Harvest ◽  
Grain Processing ◽  
Cost Of Production ◽  
Agricultural Materials ◽  
The Cost

Crop production is largely associated with a number of external factors that affect productivity, quality, and cost of production. A significant part of the cost (20-40%) occurs on post-harvest processing, storage, and preparation for feeding. These processes include drying, decontamination, steaming, micronisation, etc. The chapter describes the electrotechnology impacts and their use in processes of grain processing. The chapter deals with the classification of electrophysical methods of influence, correlated with the processes in which they can be applied. It describes the required levels of exposure and the resulting values of productivity, intensity, and other parameters, qualitatively describing the specific processes. The factors which can positively affect grain production include the use of ozone, ions, infrared, and microwave fields.

New Technologies and Approaches for Weed Management in Sustainable Agriculture Systems

1994 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald L. Wyse
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Agriculture ◽  
Weed Management ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
The United States ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Systems Research ◽  
Agriculture Systems

Weed science has a long history of solving weed management problems for farmers. Over the last four decades most of the solutions to weed problems have been based on herbicide technology. Thus, most crop production systems in the United States rely heavily on herbicides as the primary method of weed management. During the last decade environmentalists, farmers, agricultural scientists, policy makers, and the general public have begun to question the long-term sustainability of conventional farming systems. The sustainability of these systems is being questioned because of environmental, social, and economic concerns caused by global competition, cost of production, soil erosion, water pollution, and concern over the quality of rural life. Weeds are the major deterrent to the development of more sustainable agriculture systems. Since weeds dictate most of the crop production practices (e.g., tillage, herbicides, cultivation, row spacing) weed scientists must become the leaders of collaborative integrated approaches to agriculture systems research. New crop production systems must be developed that are less destructive to the environment, are profitable, conserve energy, and support rural community development. The goal is to facilitate the development of ecologically based alternative methods of weed management that will support crop production systems that require less tillage and herbicide inputs. To accomplish this goal, research efforts must be radically expanded in weed/crop ecology and in the development of ecologically based technologies for weed management.

scholarly journals Blue Light Improves Photosynthetic Performance and Biomass Partitioning toward Harvestable Organs in Saffron (Crocus sativus L.)

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1994
Author(s):  
Shirin Moradi ◽  
Mohsen Kafi ◽  
Sasan Aliniaeifard ◽  
Seyed Alireza Salami ◽  
Majid Shokrpour ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lower Energy ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Photosynthetic Performance ◽  
Biomass Partitioning ◽  
Plant Production ◽  
Crocus Sativus ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Light Spectra ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Crocus Sativus L

Saffron is a valuable plant and one of the most expensive spices worldwide. Nowadays, there is a tendency to produce this crop in indoor plant production systems. However, the production of saffron is restricted by the need for the reproduction of high-quality corms. In this study, we investigated the effect of different ratios of red (R) and blue (B) light spectra (including 100% B (monochromatic B), 75%, 50%, 40%, 25% B, and 0% B (monochromatic R) on the photosynthetic performance and biomass partitioning as well as morphological and biochemical characteristics of saffron. The growth of flower, root, and corm was improved by increasing the proportion of B to R light. B-grown plants were characterized by the highest photosynthetic functionality with efficient electron transport and lower energy dissipation when compared to R-grown plants. B light directed biomass toward the corms and floral organs, while R light directed it toward the leaves. In saffron, the weight of a daughter corm is of great importance since it determines the yield of the next year. As the ratio of B to R light increased, the daughter corms also became heavier, at the cost of reducing their number, though increasing the proportion of B-enhanced antioxidant capacity as well as the activity of ascorbate peroxidase and catalase while superoxide dismutase activity was enhanced in R-grown plants. In conclusion, B light increased the production of high-quality daughter corms and altered biomass partitioning towards harvestable organs (corms and flowers) in saffron plants.

scholarly journals The hidden land use cost of upscaling cover crops

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryan Runck ◽  
Colin K. Khoury ◽  
Patrick M. Ewing ◽  
Michael Kantar
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Cover Crops ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
The United States ◽  
Maize Production ◽  
Cover Cropping ◽  
Current Production ◽  
Production Area ◽  
Annual Amount

AbstractCover cropping is considered a cornerstone practice in sustainable agriculture; however, little attention has been paid to the cover crop production supply chain. In this Perspective, we estimate land use requirements to supply the United States maize production area with cover crop seed, finding that across 18 cover crops, on average 3.8% (median 2.0%) of current production area would be required, with the popular cover crops rye and hairy vetch requiring as much as 4.5% and 11.9%, respectively. The latter land requirement is comparable to the annual amount of maize grain lost to disease in the U.S. We highlight avenues for reducing these high land use costs.

Mothers' Milk Bank at the Delaware Hospital

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1964 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 468-468
Author(s):  
MARGARET L. HANDY
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Breast Milk ◽  
The United States ◽  
Milk Bank ◽  
Cost Of Production ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Attending Physician

It has been called to our attention that the services of The Delaware Hospital Mothers' Milk Bank are not adequately publicized. For this reason we would like to mention a few salient facts about our milk bank. For sixteen years this milk bank has been supplying breast milk to all areas of the United States. During these years frozen breast milk has been sent as far as Califorina with excellent results. Upon request from the attending physician, breast milk is available for premature and allergic infants. Also, we have supplied large quantities of breast milk for research purposes. This milk is available at a cost of $.30 an ounce which meets the cost of production. However, in indigent cases the milk is provided free of charge.

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