Jennie Pugliese's Graduate Defense Seminar

A Graduate Defense Seminar will be presented by Jennie Pugliese, MS Candidate in Soil Science, on Tuesday, May 2, at 9:00 a.m. She will present Amber Waves of Kernza: Making Agriculture Perennial Again in 123 Williams Hall and videoed into 245 Kottman Hall.

Perennial grain crops offer a more ecologically beneficial and sustainable alternative to agriculture's destructive annual habit. The perennial crop "Kernza" has shown promise as an alternative to wheat however it fails to produce comparable grain yields. To compensate for the lack of yield, a dual-use management approach is being explored to produce both forage and grain. A multi-site study was conducted to assess Kernza across a wide range of environments within the United States and Canada. First and second year grain and forage yields were evaluated under a variety of defoliation frequencies and timings. Belowground plant and soil reponses were also evaluated at the Wooster, Ohio site to determine seasonal dynamics and response to aboveground defoliation.

Advisor: Steve Culman