David W. Wolfe

The complexity of facets resolved

Abstract We show that recognizing the facets of the traveling salesman problem polytope is Dp-complete.

Farmer-oriented assessment of soil quality using field, laboratory, and VNIR spectroscopy methods

Soil quality and health are terms describing similar concepts, but the latter appeals to farmers and crop consultants as part of a holistic approach to soil management. We regard soil health as the integration and optimization of the physical, biological and chemical aspects of soils for improved productivity in an economic and sustainable manner. This paper describes the process used for the selection of soil quality/health indicators that comprise the new Cornell Soil Health Test. Over 1,500 samples collected from controlled research experiments and commercial farms were initially analyzed for 39 potential soil quality indicators. Four physical and four biological indicators were selected based on sensitivity to management, relevance to functional soil processes, ease and cost of sampling, and cost of analysis. Seven chemical indicators were also selected as they are part of the standard soil nutrient test. Soil health test reports were developed to allow for an overall assessment, as well as the identification of specific soil constraints. The new soil health test is being offered on a for-fee basis starting in 2007. In addition, visible near infrared reflectance spectroscopy was evaluated as a possible tool for low-cost soil health assessment. From preliminary analyses, the methodology shows promise for some but not all of the soil quality indicators. In conclusion, an inexpensive soil health test was developed for integrative assessment of the physical, biological, and chemical aspects of soils, thereby facilitating better soil management.

Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) links biodiversity conservation with sustainable improvements in livelihoods and food production

In the Luangwa Valley, Zambia, persistent poverty and hunger present linked challenges to rural development and biodiversity conservation. Both household coping strategies and larger-scale economic development efforts have caused severe natural resource degradation that limits future economic opportunities and endangers ecosystem services. A model based on a business infrastructure has been developed to promote and maintain sustainable agricultural and natural resource management practices, leading to direct and indirect conservation outcomes. The Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) model operates primarily with communities surrounding national parks, strengthening conservation benefits produced by these protected areas. COMACO first identifies the least food-secure households and trains them in sustainable agricultural practices that minimize threats to natural resources while meeting household needs. In addition, COMACO identifies people responsible for severe natural resource depletion and trains them to generate alternative income sources. In an effort to maintain compliance with these practices, COMACO provides extension support and access to high-value markets that would otherwise be inaccessible to participants. Because the model is continually evolving via adaptive management, success or failure of the model as a whole is difficult to quantify at this early stage. We therefore test specific hypotheses and present data documenting the stabilization of previously declining wildlife populations; the meeting of thresholds of productivity that give COMACO access to stable, high-value markets and progress toward economic self-sufficiency; and the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices by participants and other community members. Together, these findings describe a unique, business-oriented model for poverty alleviation, food production, and biodiversity conservation.

Use of an integrative soil health test for evaluation of soil management impacts.

Understanding the response of soil quality indicators to changes in management practices is essential for sustainable land management. Soil quality indicators were measured for 2 years under established experiments with varying management histories and durations at four locations in New York State. The Willsboro (clay loam) and Aurora (silt loam) experiments were established in 1992, comparing no-till (NT) to plow-till (PT) management under corn ( Zea mays L.)–soybean ( Glycine max L.) rotation. The Chazy (silt loam) trial was established in 1973 as a factorial experiment comparing NT versus PT and the crop harvesting method (corn silage versus corn grain). The Geneva (silt loam) experiment was established in 2003 with vegetable rotations with and without intervening soil building crops, each under three tillage methods (NT, PT and zone-till (ZT)) and three cover cropping systems (none, rye and vetch). Physical indicators measured were wet aggregate stability (WAS), available water capacity (AWC) and surface hardness (SH) and subsurface hardness (SSH). Soil biological indicators included organic matter (OM), active carbon (AC), potentially mineralizable nitrogen (PMN) and root disease potential (RDP). Chemical indicators included pH, P, K, Mg, Fe, Mn and Zn. Results from the Willsboro and Aurora sites showed significant tillage effects for several indicators including WAS, AWC, OM, AC, pH, P, K, Mg, Fe and Mn. Generally, the NT treatment had better indicator values than the PT treatments. At the Chazy site, WAS, AWC, OM, AC, pH, K and Mg showed significant differences for tillage and/or harvest method, also with NT showing better indicator values compared to PT and corn grain better than corn silage. Aggregate stability was on average 2.5 times higher in NT compared to PT treatments at Willsboro, Aurora and Chazy sites. OM was also 1.2, 1.1 and 1.5 times higher in NT compared to PT treatments at Willsboro, Aurora and Chazy sites, respectively. At the Geneva site WAS, SH, AC, PMN, pH, P, K and Zn showed significant tillage effects. The cover crop effect was only significant for SH and PMN measurements. Indicators that gave consistent performance across locations included WAS, OM and AC, while PMN and RDP were site and management dependent. The composite soil health index (CSHI) significantly differentiated between contrasting management practices. The CSHI for the Willsboro site was 71% for NT and 59% for PT, while at the Aurora site it was 61% for NT and 48% for PT after 15 years of tillage treatments.

Leaf expansion, photosynthesis, and water relations of sunflower plants grown on compacted soil

Leaf expansion and growth response of sunflower (Helianthus annuus, L.) to soil compaction were investigated in relation to compaction effects on water relations, nitrogen nutrition, and photosynthesis. A series of field experiments were conducted with plants grown in 20 cm-diameter cylinders with soil bulk densities ranging from 1.2 to 1.7 g cm−3 at the 0–20 cm depth (equivalent to 0.8 to 2.4 MPa soil strength measured with a soil penetrometer). Relative leaf expansion rate (RLER) decreased linearly with increasing soil strength. Smaller plant size in compacted treatments was due not only to slower expansion rates, but also smaller maximum size of individual leaves. Sensitivity of leaf expansion to soil strength was best illustrated by a reduction in RLER and maximum size of the first leaf to emerge in a treatment with only the lower 10–20 cm of the profile compacted (bulk density of 1.7 g cm−3). Root growth was less affected than shoot growth by compaction and root:shoot ratios of compacted treatments were significantly higher than the control.Soil compaction had no significant effect on pre-dawn or midday leaf water potential, osmotic potential or leaf turgor. Specific leaf weight was usually higher in plants grown on compacted soil, and leaf nitrogen and photosynthesis per unit leaf area were either unaffected by treatment or significantly higher in compacted treatments. The results suggest that early growth reduction of sunflower plants grown on compacted soil was more sink- than source-limited with regard to water, nitrogen, and carbon supply. Further evaluation of this hypothesis will require verification that these whole-leaf measurements provided a sufficiently accurate approximation of treatment effects on the dynamic equilibria of expanding cells.

Optimal use and economic value of weather forecasts for lettuce irrigation in a humid climate

Abstract The problem of analyzing a sequence of daily irrigation decisions utilizing weather forecast information is formulated for the case of lettuce grown in central New York state, and solved using a stochastic dynamic programming algorithm. The crop response is represented using a simple but physiologically-based model of lettuce growth [van Henten, E.J., 1994. Validation of a dynamic lettuce growth model for greenhouse climate control, Agric. Sys. 45, pp. 55–72], modified to allow the stomatal conductance for CO 2 to depend on a simple soil moisture budget. A negative crop response to prolonged wet soil conditions combined with warm temperatures is also included in the crop model. Operationally available precipitation and temperature forecasts are incorporated in a way that preserves the effect of time correlation in the weather. The results suggest that irrigation is quite viable even in the relatively humid climate of New York, with the economic value of irrigation (scheduled according to a conventional, non-optimal rule) vs. no irrigation estimated at approximately US

Leaf responses to soil water deficits: Comparative sensitivity of leaf expansion rate and leaf conductance in field-grown sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)

4000–US

Drug‐associated reversible granulomatous T cell dyscrasia: a distinct subset of the interstitial granulomatous drug reaction

5000 per hectare per year for lettuce. Optimal use of weather forecasts to schedule irrigations is estimated to provide additional value of approximately US

Gas exchange and co-regulation of photochemical and nonphotochemical quenching in bean during chilling at ambient and elevated carbon dioxide

1000 per hectare per year, much of which is derived from avoiding crop damage due to excessive soil moisture.

Developing Standard Protocols for Soil Quality Monitoring and Assessment

The relative importance of changes in leaf expansion rate (LER) and leaf conductance (g1) in the control of crop transpiration depends primarily on their sensitivity to soil water deficits. The aim of this paper was to quantify the responses of LER and g1 to soil water deficits in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) under conditions of moderate (spring) and high (summer) evaporative demand. Soil water content, g1, and LER were measured in dryland (DRY) and daily-irrigated (WET) crops established on a deep sandy-loam (Typic Xerofluvent) in a Mediterranean environment. There was no difference between g1 of DRY and WET plants (p>0.20) in contrast with a highly significant difference in LER (p<0.001). Even under the harsh conditions of the summer experiment, g1 did not respond to water deficit in a ten-day period in which LER of DRY plants was reduced to approx. 30% of that measured in WET controls. This field study indicates that g1 plays at most a minor role in the control of sunflower transpiration in the pre-anthesis period and confirms the importance of leaf expansion in the regulation of gas exchange of expanding canopies subjected to soil water deficits.