The distribution of Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, Mo and Se in earth surface materials on the Southern Canadian Interior Plain was examined with the aim of recommending appropriate methods of producing regional geochemical maps. Investigations were undertaken in three separate areas, one in each of the prairie provinces, selected to represent a range of environmental conditions. In the Swan River - Dauphin area emphasis was placed on investigating the regional distribution of Mo in both soil and stream sediment. These patterns were related to data on the Mo status of plants and to information on Mo-induced Cu deficiency in cattle. In the Rosetown area of Saskatchewan, and the Red Deer area of Alberta, attention v/as focussed on examining variations in the Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn and Se content of soils; in the Rosetown area concentrations of these elements in whole wheat plants were also determined. Procedures for regional geochemical mapping using stream sediment are well established. On the Southern Canadian Interior Plain, however, stream density is generally inadequate for routine application of these techniques. Although tributary drainages are relatively common in parts of southern Manitoba, results of investigations in the Swan River - Dauphin area indicate that Mo concentrations in stream sediment typically reflect Mo levels in upstream soil, but not those of associated plants. In contrast to findings reported by V7ebb and his associates in the United Kingdom, Manitoba stream sediment data are of little value in identifying areas where potentially toxic Mo concentrations are likely to occur in forage. Reconnaissance surveys based on soil sampling, on the other hand, can be applied throughout the Canadian prairies. Results of studies around Rosetown and Red Deer indicate that regional compositional trends for soil may be efficiently described in terms of variations among means estimated for individual soil parent materials. In the Rosetown area, for example, over 70% of the total variance for Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn in A horizons is attributable to differences among parent material means. This parent material effect appears, in turn, to be mainly a function of textural variations, with lowest concentrations associated with sand-rich and highest with clay-rich deposits. The importance of differences among means for soil associated with individual surficial deposits is also emphasized, in the Rosetown area, by relatively strong positive relationships (r>0.73) between parent material based Mn, Fe and Cu means for wheat and soil. When data are considered on an individual sample basis relationships between plant and soil concentrations are generally much weaker (r< 0.40). It is suggested, therefore, that on the Southern Canadian Interior Plain, regional geochemical maps can be efficiently produced using parent material based soil compositional data. The procedure recommended involves collection of A horizon samples at randomly chosen sites over each of the major parent materials recognized, and estimation of geometric mean and deviation values for each deposit. Duncan's New Multiple Range test is used to identify significant differences among means, and results are summarized in map form, showing only composition-ally distinctive parent materials or parent material groups. In view of close relationships noted between parent material based means for soils and plants, maps produced in this fashion should be useful in identifying areas where trace element excesses or deficiencies are limiting crop or livestock productivity. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Master of Science

The data obtained by these investigations would indicate: 1. That alfalfa, rape, rye and corn are the most important forages for hogs and should be contained in every rotation if possible. 2. That corn, shorts and tankage are the best concentrates both for the growing hog and for the breeding herd. 3. That growing hogs should receive a full concentrate ration of corn, shorts and tankage fed in the self feeder. 4. That a good concentrate for the breeding herd is a mixture of corn, 4 parts; shorts, 3 parts, and tankage 1 part. 5. That the breeding herd should receive a concentrate ration equal to from one to four percent of their live weight according to the demands of the individual hog. / Master of Science

This item was digitized as part of the Million Books Project led by Carnegie Mellon University and supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Cornell University coordinated the participation of land-grant and agricultural libraries in providing historical agricultural information for the digitization project; the University of Arizona Libraries, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the Office of Arid Lands Studies collaborated in the selection and provision of material for the digitization project.

Graduation date: 1989

Research was conducted in Sri Lanka to study the effects of growth stage, chopping length and additives on ensiling characteristics of Guinea-'A' (Panicum maximum - Ecotype-'A') and NB-21 (Pennisetum purpureum Schumac x Pennisetum americanum). The forages were harvested 1, 2 and 3 wk after growth, chopped and ensiled in small laboratory silos (3 liter cardboard cylinders double lined with polyethylene bags) alone or with additions of cassava tuber meal, coconut oil meal and formic acid. Cutting grass at 1 wk increased (P<.05) acetic and lactic acid of silage, compared to 3 wk. Addition of cassava tuber meal and coconut oil meal increased (P<.05) lactic acid and decreased (P<.05) pH and acetic acid of silage, compared with the control. The effects were greater for cassava tuber meal. In a second study 3-wk growth of Guinea-'A' grass was hand chopped to 1.5, 7.5 and 15 cm, and ensiled in small laboratory silos. Lactic and acetic acid of silage increased (P<.01), whereas dry matter loss and pH decreased (P<.05) with fineness of chop. In a third study, 2 and 3 wk growths of Guinea-'A' were harvested and ensiled in 210 liter metal drums, double lined with polyethylene bags, chopped or unchopped. Cutting grass at 2 wk decreased (P<.05) pH and increased (P<.01) lactic acid, compared to 3 wk. Chopping decreased (P<.05) the pH and increased (P<.05) lactic acid and acetic acid of silage. Experiments were also conducted to study the digestibility and palatability by sheep of Guinea-'A' silage prepared in the third study. Apparent digestibility of dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) were higher (P<.01) for 2 wk compared to 3-wk growth. Chopping the grass before ensiling increased (P<.01) the apparent digestibility of DM, CP, NDF, ADF and hemicellulose. No significant differences were observed for DM intake by sheep due to the growth stage, but chopping increased (P<.01) DM intake by 17%. Lengthening the cutting interval of Guinea-'A' and NB-21 resulted in linear increases (P<.01) in DM yield. / Ph. D.

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries