Western Nebraska Community College

Abstract‘Epoch’ (Reg. no. CV‐1195, PI 699379) hard red winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was developed cooperatively by the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station and the USDA‐ARS and released in February 2021 by the developing institutions. It was selected from the cross ‘Hitch’/NW03666. The pedigree of NW03666 is N94S097KS/NE93459. The cross was made in 2009. The F1 generation was grown in Yuma, AZ, in 2010, and the F2 to F3 generations were advanced using the bulk breeding method at Mead, NE, in 2010–2011 to 2011–2012. In 2012–2013, single F3‐derived F4 rows were planted for selection. From 2015 on, Epoch was tested under rainfed or irrigated conditions in single replicate trials with replicated checks (2015) and in replicated alpha lattice trials (2015–2020). There was no further selection in Epoch other than to remove off‐types thereafter. Epoch was selected using both phenotypic and genomic selection for its ability to survive the winter, short stature with strong straw strength, agronomic performance under irrigation, resistance to diseases, and end‐use quality. Epoch seems to be narrowly adapted to irrigated production fields in Nebraska. The name Epoch was chosen because it marks the transition of leadership in the UNL Wheat breeding project from P. Stephen Baenziger to the new wheat breeder, Katherine A. Frels; hence, it marks the end of one era and the beginning of the next.

Abstract Slow‐darkening pinto common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) cultivar ‘Wildcat’ (Reg. no. CV‐345, PI 698190) was released by the University of Nebraska dry bean breeding program in 2018. It was bred for adaptation to western Nebraska growing conditions and enhanced resistance to bean rust, common bacterial blight (CBB), and Bean common mosaic virus (BCMV). The yield of Wildcat was comparable to conventional and slow‐darkening pinto bean cultivars grown in Nebraska from 2015 to 2020. During the 2017 Western Regional Bean Trial, 2017 Midwest Regional Performance Nursery, and 2018 Cooperative Dry Bean Nursery, Wildcat had a higher seed yield than ‘Twin Falls’, ‘Nez Perce’, ‘Black Foot’, ‘Montrose’, ‘Buster’, ‘ND‐Palomino’, and ‘La Paz’ at some locations. Wildcat has the Ur‐11 gene that confers resistance to all but one known bean rust race and carries the Indel NDSU_IND_11_48.459.896 marker tagging the Ur‐11 locus. Wildcat also has the SAP6 sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) marker linked to a major CBB resistance quantitative trait locus, with an intermediate CBB rating (5.0) under field conditions at western Nebraska in 2020. Wildcat also carries the single dominant I gene that confers resistance to all non‐necrotic strains of BCMV and the SW13 SCAR marker linked to the I gene for resistance to BCMV. Wildcat has white flowers, blooms 46 d after planting, and is a full‐season bean, maturing 93 d after planting. The seed size of Wildcat, 43.3 g 100 seeds–1 on average, was significantly larger than current conventional and slow‐darkening pinto beans.

One hundred twenty individually fed steers (initial BW 283 kg ± 32) were utilized in an 84-d growing trial to evaluate the effects of increased metabolizable lysine from non-enzymatically browned soybean meal (SoyPass) in grass hay-based diets containing wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS). The treatments were arranged as a 2 × 3 factorial with two levels of protein supplement as 20% (low; DL20) or 35% (high; DL35) of dietary DM using WDGS as the basal protein source, and three increments of SoyPass (SP) replacing 0%, 30%, or 60% of the WDGS DM in the protein supplement yielding six dietary treatments. Average daily gain (ADG), dry matter intake (DMI), gain:feed (G:F), and plasma urea N (PUN) data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS as a 2 × 3 factorial. Animal was the experimental unit and fixed effects included body weight block, dietary inclusion of distillers grains (DL20, DL35), dietary inclusion of SoyPass (SP) (3 levels), and DL × SP inclusion interactions. Linear and quadratic interactions between DL and SP inclusion were analyzed using covariate regression. No interactions were detected for ADG between SP and DL (P = 0.76). Additionally, SP had no effect on ADG (P = 0.49). However, ADG was increased for steers consuming the DL35 diet compared to DL20 (1.13 vs. 0.86 kg/d, respectively; P < 0.01). A DL × SP interaction was detected for DMI (P = 0.01). As SP replaced WDGS in the DL35 diet, DMI increased linearly from 8.10 to 8.93 kg/d (P = 0.02). In the DL20 diet, DMI was not different as SP replaced WDGS (P ≥ 0.11). Therefore, G:F tended to decrease linearly (P = 0.06) as SP replaced WDGS in the DL35 diet, while no difference (P ≥ 0.11) was detected in the DL20 diet, suggesting SP contained less energy than WDGS but did improve dietary lysine balance. Furthermore, plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) increased linearly as SP replaced WDGS in the DL20 diet (P < 0.01) but was not affected by SP substitution in the DL35 diet (P ≥ 0.19). When WDGS is fed at a low (20% DM) or high (35% DM) inclusion rate in a forage-based diet, replacing the distillers with a source of protected amino acids supplied through heat-treated soybean meal, did not improve performance. A more concentrated or energy-dense form of amino acids may be beneficial in forage-based growing cattle diets containing 20% distillers grains but is not needed in diets with 35% distillers grains.

Abstract Productivity throughout the North American Great Plains grasslands is generally considered to be water limited, with the strength of this limitation increasing as precipitation decreases. We hypothesize that cumulative actual evapotranspiration water loss (AET) from April to July is the precipitation‐related variable most correlated to aboveground net primary production (ANPP) in the U.S. Great Plains (GP). We tested this by evaluating the relationship ofANPPtoAET, precipitation, and plant transpiration (Tr). We used multi‐yearANPPdata from five sites ranging from semiarid grasslands in Colorado and Wyoming to mesic grasslands in Nebraska and Kansas, mean annualNRCS ANPP, and satellite‐derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data. Results from the five sites showed that cumulative April‐to‐JulyAET, precipitation, and Tr were well correlated (R2: 0.54–0.70) to annual changes inANPPfor all but the wettest site.AETand Tr were better correlated to annual changes inANPPcompared to precipitation for the drier sites, and precipitation in August and September had little impact on productivity in drier sites. April‐to‐July cumulative precipitation was best correlated (R2 = 0.63) with interannual variability inANPPin the most mesic site, whileAETand Tr were poorly correlated withANPPat this site. Cumulative growing season (May‐to‐September)NDVI(iNDVI) was strongly correlated with annualANPPat the five sites (R2 = 0.90). UsingiNDVIas a surrogate forANPP, we found that county‐level cumulative April–JulyAETwas more strongly correlated toANPPthan precipitation for more than 80% of theGPcounties, with precipitation tending to perform better in the eastern more mesic portion of theGP. Including the ratio ofAETto potential evapotranspiration (PET) improved the correlation ofAETto bothiNDVIand mean county‐levelNRCS ANPP. Accounting for how different precipitation‐related variables controlANPP(AETin drier portion, precipitation in wetter portion) provides opportunity to develop spatially explicit forecasting ofANPPacross theGPfor enhancing decision‐making by land managers and use of grasslandANPPfor biofuels.

Crossbred steers (n = 432; initial BW = 285 ± 24 kg) were utilized to study the effects of wet distillers grains and urea inclusion in finishing diets on performance and carcass characteristics. Distillers grains (DGS) have 63% RUP as a % of CP; suggesting RDP in finishing diets with distillers grains may be deficient without recycling of excess metabolizable protein. A randomized block design study with a 3 × 3 factorial arrangement of treatments was performed with six replications per treatment. One block was removed prior to analysis of carcass data due to missing data points leaving four replications per treatment for carcass characteristics. Factors included three inclusions of DGS (10%, 15%, or 20% of diet DM) and three inclusions of urea (0%, 0.5%, or 1% of diet DM). Blood samples were collected after cattle were fully adapted to finishing diets on d 30 of the trial and 80 days later on d 110 of the trial for analysis of plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) levels. A quadratic interaction (P < 0.05) between urea inclusion and DGS inclusion was observed for G:F. Diets containing 20% DGS had the greatest G:F when 0% urea was included. In diets containing 0.5% urea G:F was lowest for the 10% DGS diet and highest for the 15% DGS diet with 20% DGS diet being intermediate. For diets with 1% urea the 10% DGS diet had the lowest G:F, 15% DGS was intermediate and the 20% DGS diet was greatest. There were no other interactions observed (P > 0.11). There was a tendency (P < 0.08) for a linear increase in ADG with increasing inclusion of DGS. A linear decrease (P <0.01) in DMI was observed for increasing DGS levels. A linear increase in 12th rib fat and PUN was also observed for increasing levels of DGS. There was a tendency (P = 0.08) for a quadratic effect of urea inclusion on live ADG with cattle being fed 0% urea having the lowest ADG and cattle fed 0.5% urea having the greatest ADG with cattle fed 1.0% being intermediate. A linear increase (P < 0.01) in PUN level was observed as levels of urea increased. Increasing inclusion of DGS from 10 to 20% of diet DM increased ADG, G:F, and HCW. Additionally, as urea and DGS were increased together G:F was improved suggesting insufficient recycling when less than 20% distillers grains are fed.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of two implant strategies compared to non-implanted heifers fed varying days on feed. Calf-fed heifers (n=720; initial BW=278, SD=25 kg) were utilized in a 3 x 4 factorial design and assigned randomly to pens, and pens assigned randomly to one of twelve treatments consisting of three implant treatments and four serial harvest groups. Implant strategies included a non-implanted control (CON), a re-implant strategy using an initial implant of Revalor-200 (Merck Animal Health, Madison, NJ) followed by Revalor-200 on day 100 (REV-200), or Revalor-XH on day 0 (REV-XH). Each implant provided 200 mg trenbolone acetate and 20 mg estradiol. Serial harvest groups consisted of heifers fed 151, 165, 179, or 193 days on feed (DOF). There were no (P ≥ 0.26) implant x serial harvest interactions for carcass-adjusted performance and carcass characteristics. Dry matter intake was not different among implant treatments or serial harvest groups (P ≥ 0.11 and P = 0.72, respectively). Carcass adjusted-final BW increased linearly (P < 0.01), while carcass-adjusted ADG and G:F tended to decrease linearly (P = 0.10) as DOF increased. There was no difference in dressing percentage (P = 0.49) as DOF increased and LM area tended to increase linearly as DOF increased (P = 0.09). Fat depth, marbling score and calculated yield grade increased linearly (P < 0.01) as DOF increased. Heifers implanted with REV-200 or REV-XH had greater (P ≤ 0.05) carcass-adjusted final BW and ADG compared to CON (P < 0.01), but were not different between REV-200 and REV-XH (P ≥ 0.55). Implanted heifers were more efficient than CON heifers (P = 0.05), and REV-XH tended (P = 0.07) to be more efficient than REV-200. Implanted heifers had 12 kg greater HCW compared to CON heifers (P < 0.01). No differences were observed in fat thickness (P = 0.25) or calculated yield grade (P = 0.71) among implant treatments. Marbling score was greater (P < 0.01) for CON compared to REV-200 and REV-XH and REV-XH tended to have a greater marbling score (P = 0.10) than REV-200. No differences were observed between a new implant (Revalor-XH) and an implant strategy using Revalor-200 on day 1 and day 100. Implanting and increasing DOF substantially increase HCW and revenue but yield grade discounts increase with greater fatness due to days fed.