A metabolism trial was conducted to compare the nutritional value of: 1)"Quickstand" bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.], 2)caucasian bluestem [Bothriochloa caucasia (Trin.) C.E. Hubb], 3)tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), and 4)orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.). The warm-season grasses (bermudagrass and bluestem) were higher (P < .01) in fiber components than the cool-season grasses (tall fescue and orchardgrass). Bluestem was lower (P < .001) in CP, hemicellulose, and ash, and higher in NDF (P < .001), ADF (P < .001), cellulose (P < .001), and lignin (P < .01) than bermudagrass. The warm-season grasses were lower in the apparent digestibility of DM (P < .001), NDF (P < .01), ADF (P < .05), cellulose (P < .05), and hemicellulose (P < .01) than cool-season grasses. Apparent digestibility of NDF (P < .001), ADF (P < .001), cellulose (P < .01), and hemicellulose (P < .01) was higher for bluestem than bermudagrass. Fescue was higher (P < .001) in apparent digestibility of DM and CP and lower (P < .01) in apparent digestibility of NDF, ADF, cellulose, and hemicellulose than orchardgrass. Lambs fed bluestem had lower (P < .05) N retention than those fed bermudagrass, when expressed as g/d. Lambs fed fescue had higher (P < .001) N retention, than those fed orchardgrass. When expressed as a percent of intake or absorption, N retention values were similar among treatments. The results of this study suggest that cool-season grasses are of higher nutritional value than warm-season grasses. / Master of Science

No description available.

No description available.

Large public events, such as concerts, rallies, and festivals, impact turf health when held on natural turfgrass surfaces. The impact associated with these events is due to the placement of physical structures such as stages and seating areas and pedestrian and vehicular traffic on the turf surface. Trafficked turf protection covers, which are field covers meant to be placed directly on the turf surface where pedestrian or vehicular traffic is expected and/or equipment will be placed, can be used to minimize damage to the turf surface. Scientific data on turf response to these covers is lacking. Four cover treatments comprised of a non-covered non-trafficked control, plywood, plywood + Enkamat Plus, and white high-density polypropylene [single sided (Terratile) or double sided (Matrax)] were applied to tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) and effects of light intensity, duration of covering, season and soil moisture were evaluated. Growth chambers and field experiments were conducted in 2010-2011. Tissue samples were taken in growth chambers experiments every four days over the 20-day period to analyze chlorophyll (Chl a, Chl b, Chl a+b) and carotenoids (carot) under split factors of light intensity (12hr, PAR 530 μmol m-2 s-1, 5 μmol m-2 s-1) and soil moisture (50%, 75% of pot soil moisture capacity). Field trial treatment effects were observed every two days and eight days after cover removal in the spring, summer and fall and a normalized difference vegetative index (NDVI) measure was used at the conclusion of each trial period to confirm visual ratings. Covers that allowed light transmission to the canopy provided the best visual retention of percent green cover and higher contents of Chl a, Chl b, Chl a+b and carot. However, when treatments were tested under conditions that simulated low light under a concert stage (PAR 5 μmol m-2 s-1), covers performed similarly. Moderate soil moisture increased Chl b and carot content under covers. Field trials showed that plywood and plywood + Enkamat allowed for acceptable covering periods of six days in spring, four days in fall, and zero days in summer. Summer conditions shortened the number of days (8 -10) thattall fescue could be covered with Matrax and Terratile and still maintain an acceptable level of green cover. Matrax performed the best during high temperatures and did not tend to sink into the turf in saturated soil. All covers exhibited desirable qualities and limitations that should be considered for turf protection during an event. / Master of Science

No description available.

No description available.

A series of three experiments were conducted to evaluate different methods of estimating forage mass of tall fescue pastures, and dry matter intake and digestibility in beef steers under indoor and grazing conditions. Forage mass was estimated with the herbage cutting method (HCM) and three indirect methods; the pasture capacitance meter (PCM), the plate meter (PPM), and the visual estimation (VE). The coefficients of determination from the calibration equations were 0.686, 0.751, and 0.862 for the PCM, PPM, and VE, respectively. There were differences in forage mass estimates due to sampling method, sampling date, and their interaction. The second experiment was a digestion trial conducted with confined animals to determine the recovery rate of chromic oxide and alkanes from controlled release capsules and to evaluate the accuracy of the concurrent estimations of intake and digestibility. No difference was found in the recovery rate of either alkanes or chromic oxide during the 7 d of the collection period. Likewise, actual fecal output, dry matter intake, and digestibility were not different from the estimated values. However, estimated values had to be adjusted for the respective recovery rate. The third experiment was conducted under grazing conditions to evaluate the chromic oxide controlled release capsule technique in estimating intake and digestibilty. In this trial, although the recovery rate of the marker was extremely high (avg. = 1.89), the actual and estimated values of dry matter fecal output, intake, and digestibility were not different. Again the recovery rate had to be used as a correction factor. / Ph. D.

Previous research on grazing behavior has shown that ruminants will select a mixed diet. The use of adjacent monocultures is an essential tool for determining dietary preference of forages. Much of the work to date has been conducted with white clover (Trifolium repens L.) and perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). Partial preference for white clover over ryegrass has been reported consistently and partial preference for legumes is thought to occur regardless of the legume and grass species being evaluated. Two forage species, tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb. or Lolium arundinaceum (Schreb.) S.J. Darbyshire) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa subsp. sativa L.), which had not been evaluated together previously as adjacent monocultures were grazed by beef steers in the present set of experiments. Steers exhibited a partial preference for alfalfa of 61 to 65% when given a choice of grazing alfalfa or tall fescue as adjacent monocultures, regardless of the ground area proportion of the two forages offered. Steers grazing tall fescue monocultures spent more time ruminating (P = 0.02) and tended to graze less time (P = 0.06) than steers in adjacent monoculture treatments. Time spent idling, number of prehensions and mastications, and bite rate were similar (P > 0.05) among treatments. Steers grazing tall fescue monocultures spent less time standing, more time lying, were less active and took fewer steps (P ≤ 0.05) than steers in adjacent monoculture treatments. Grazing behavior was examined when alfalfa had not been in the previous diet of the steers. Cattle without previous experience grazing alfalfa spent 78% of the time grazing alfalfa, whereas after having experience grazing it they spent a lower (P = 0.04) proportion of their time grazing alfalfa (72%). Overall proportion of the day spent grazing both forages was lower (P = 0.0001) when alfalfa was novel (40%), compared to when steers were experienced grazing both forages (46%). Proportion of the day spent idling was greater (P < 0.0001) when alfalfa was novel (35%), compared to when both forages were familiar to the steers (26%). Previous research has reported that ruminants exhibit a diurnal pattern of preference by decreasing the proportion of white clover consumed from morning to late afternoon while increasing the proportion of perennial ryegrass in the diet. This is thought to be a strategy to increase fiber intake before nightfall or as a response to higher carbohydrate levels in grass in the afternoon. In the present study, proportion of grazing time in alfalfa was higher (P = 0.02) in the afternoon (76.8 %) than in the morning (72.1 %). While fiber concentration was higher in the tall fescue, carbohydrate concentrations were similar. Steers were not attempting to increase fiber intake in the afternoon in the present study. Dry matter intake of steers grazing adjacent monocultures of alfalfa and tall fescue was estimated with n-alkanes. Diet composition was estimated using n-alkanes and long chain alcohols (LCOH) in several different combinations. The use of LCOH added additional characterization of the forages, but diet composition estimates were not different (P ≥ 0.22) than when estimated using four different n-alkanes. Laboratory analysis costs may be reduced if n-alkanes alone can adequately characterize the forages being consumed, depending on the forage species in question. Meteorological conditions impacted DMI with intake being less in hotter conditions. Steers had similar partial preferences for alfalfa over tall fescue (P = 0.13, 79% and 70% alfalfa in yr 1 and 2, respectively) even though total DMI differed between years (P = 0.002, 9.4 kg d-1 and 4.5 kg d-1 in yr 1 and 2, respectively). Lower DMI in yr 2 was attributed to hotter air temperatures. When animals are consuming two different forages as adjacent monocultures such as in the current experiments, it is important to determine the proportion of each forage in the diet before calculating DMI using odd chain n-alkanes of the forage along with a dose even chained n-alkane. Dry matter intake can be overestimated if the proportion of the forages consumed is not estimated and accounted for in the equation. This would apply to other studies utilizing mixed swards or any diet containing multiple components that differ in concentration of the n-alkane being used for DMI estimation. Analysis of n-alkane concentration should be performed on each item in the diet and the proportion of each item in the diet estimated so that the right value can be used in the calculation. Differences in marker concentrations between years also indicate the importance of analyzing those concentrations in the feed or forage at the time of fecal collection and not using values reported from previous research. / Ph. D.

Endophyte infected Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) is the most dominant grass used for pasture in the Southeastern U.S. As a result, fescue toxicosis is a major concern. Producers need alternative forages for grazing cattle that do not have this negative aspect. The objective of this experiment was to determine the grazing behavior of cattle grazing Lakota (L) prairie grass (Bromus catharticus Vahl.), endophyte infected (E+), endophyte free (E-), and novel endophyte (Q) tall fescues. Angus-crossbred steers (279±8 kg) steers wore electronic behavior data recorders in four sampling periods, and direct visual appraisals of behavior were taken in five sampling periods during the months of May to September, 2004. Overall, during the visual appraisal phase steers grazing L spent most time (P<0.05) grazing while E+ spent the least time grazing. Overall, steers grazing E+ spent more time (P<0.05) idling than those on L, E-, or Q. Steers grazing E+ spent more time (P<0.05) standing than steers grazing Q. Steers grazing Q and E- spent more time (P<0.05) lying than those grazing E+. During the data recorder phase there were no significant differences between treatments for time spent grazing. Steers grazing E+ spent less time (P<0.05) lying and ruminating than steers grazing Q or L. Conversely, time spent standing and idling for steers grazing E+ was higher (P<0.05) than for steers grazing Q or L. These results indicate that L, E-, and Q may offer benefits to producers due to more time spent in productive activities during summer months. / Master of Science

Tall women's satisfaction with Tall clothing was examined in regard to fit, style, and accessibility. In addition, anthropometric measurements (stature, neck to waist, waist to ankle, shoulder to wrist) of tall women were compared with reported fit problems with Tall clothing, with the measurements from commercial standard PS 42-70, and with two racial groups. Data were gathered from 75 women who were at least 5 feet 8 inches and between 18 and 54 years old. The subjects were satisfied with the overall fit of Tall clothing, but were dissatisfied with the style, and reported buying Misses' size for most clothing. The subjects rated style as more important than fit and were more satisfied with the overall style of Misses' clothing than with the style of Tall clothing. The subjects appeared to buy Misses' clothing despite their dissatisfaction with fit, in order to have the desired styles. The reported fit problems with Tall clothing were too short hiplines in skirts and too short hemlines in button-up blouses. When compared with the measurements for Tall in PS 42-70, the subjects' measurements were significantly larger. Comparisons of measurements between Black subjects and White subjects revealed no significant differences. Style appeared to be a major influence in tall women's dissatisfaction with and the purchase of Tall clothing. Therefore, manufacturers need to consider aesthetic qualities when developing garments for this market and should revise sizing systems to accommodate the fit needs of Tall women. / Master of Science