WOOSTER, Ohio -- A new organic-based fertilizer for commercial hydroponic production can boost lettuce growth by about 13 percent, according to preliminary trials conducted by Ohio State University's Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center(OARDC) in Wooster.
The fertilizer, BiOWiSH-Hydroponic, is produced by BiOWiSH Technologies, a Chicago-based manufacturer of natural food production and environmental remediation technologies.
Available in the U.S. market for a little over a year and for two years internationally, the fertilizer is a unique blend of bacteria and biocatalysts that, according to company claims, helps speed up the breakdown of organic matter and potentially impacts plant...
WOOSTER, Ohio -- The increasing incidence of a difficult-to-control bacterial illness is leading researchers to suspect that contaminated foods might be contributing to the problem.
Clostridium difficile, known as "C. diff," can cause a serious infection that is responsible for 14,000 American deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It's estimated there are about 500,000 U.S. cases of C. diff infection annually, and that about 3 to 5 percent of healthy adults are carriers of toxic C. diff bacteria but experience no symptoms.
Normally associated with the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics during a stay in the hospital or in other healthcare settings, C. diff infection is marked by frequent, watery diarrhea; abdominal pain or tenderness;...
WOOSTER, Ohio -- The Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) is one of the recipients of the 2012 Experiment Station Section Award of Excellence in Multistate Research for its work to rapidly address the threat of soybean rust to U.S. agricultural production.
The annual award is given by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) in recognition of successful, well-coordinated, high-impact, multi-institution research efforts. It was presented Nov. 11 at APLU’s annual awards program in Denver.
OARDC scientists earned the award along with colleagues from more than 30 U.S. and...
I have always stuffed our Thanksgiving turkey with homemade stuffing, but my daughter tells me it’s not safe. Should I stop? Would it make a difference if I used stuffing from a box?
Cooking a stuffed turkey is potentially more risky than cooking one without, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) doesn’t recommend it.
That said, if you take a few precautions, all should be fine. And whether you make your own stuffing or prepare it from a box, you need to follow the same procedures.
The FSIS offers detailed guidelines at http://bit.ly/safestuff. Among its recommendations:
If you prepare the stuffing ahead of time, store wet and dry ingredients separately; be sure to refrigerate the wet ingredients, including any...
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Here are upcoming events involving Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences as of Nov. 8:
NEW: Nov. 8: Communicating with the Public about Climate Change: Understanding Global Warming’s Six Americas, noon to 1 p.m. Web-based seminar sponsored by Ohio State University’s Climate Change Outreach Team; features research by George Mason University and Yale University analyzing Americans' interpretations of and responses to climate change. Free. Information: http://changingclimate.osu.edu/webinars/ or dierkes.10@osu.edu.
REVISED (registration fees): Nov. 8: Renewable Energy Workshop, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Fisher Auditorium, Ohio Agricultural...
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State University’s renowned Schiermeier Olentangy River Wetland Research Park, which opened its doors 20 years ago, is now in the process of opening them wider.
The 52-acre Columbus facility is undergoing $75,000 in renovations to its main teaching and research building as part of a broader effort to increase the park’s access, use and impact.
Programs in the park focus on how wetlands function, how to create and restore them, and how they benefit the environment and people. Water from the adjacent Olentangy River fills two main experimental wetlands at the site, which are each about the size of two football fields. Ohio State officials call it the only facility like it on a university campus.
“The Schiermeier is uniquely positioned to...
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- As newly legal casinos continue to open their doors in Ohio, a new field specialist with Ohio State University Extension wants to be sure families understand the risks involved with gambling and where to turn for help if needed.
"For some people, gambling is recreational, but for others it becomes addictive and pathological," said Jim Bates, a field specialist in family wellness for OSU Extension.
Bates joined OSU Extension in September, just as the Hollywood Casino Columbus was making preparations to open in early October. Casinos in Toledo and Cleveland opened earlier this year. A fourth and final Ohio casino is scheduled to open in Cincinnati in spring 2013.
All are the result of the passing of a statewide ballot issue in November 2009 that approved the...
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Grand Lake St. Marys has lost an estimated $60-80 million in tourism due to harmful algae blooms. And in 2011, algae blooms covered 990 square miles of Lake Erie’s surface area, the largest in the lake’s history. Phosphorus is the pollutant most often implicated in the degradation of Ohio’s fresh surface water, with use of phosphorus fertilizer on farmland as a contributing factor.
To help mitigate these water quality issues, an Ohio State University researcher has launched a $2 million project to evaluate and, as necessary, revise the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service Ohio Phosphorus (P) Risk Index to better predict the risk of phosphorus moving off farm fields.
Elizabeth Dayton, a soil scientist in Ohio...
Project will research production of biogas from yard waste, corn residue and bioenergy crops for conversion to electricity and transportation fuels.
WOOSTER, Ohio -- Ohio State University's Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center(OARDC) has received a $6.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy to test and expand a university-developed technology that can produce biogas from a variety of solid organic wastes and bioenergy crops.
Awarded through the Biomass Research Development Initiative (BRDI), the three-year grant will also allow researchers to develop technology for converting biogas to liquid hydrocarbon fuels, with the aim of...
What has been the effect from the ban on trans fats in New York City restaurants?
Restrictions on the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils at restaurants in New York City appear to have slashed the amount of trans fat that their patrons consume.
First, some background: Both saturated fat and trans fat increase blood cholesterol levels. High cholesterol increases the risk of heart disease, so health officials have long looked for ways to reduce such fats in the diet.
Trans fat has a far more negative effect than saturated fat. It’s estimated that an increase of just 2 percent of total calorie intake from trans fat -- the equivalent of 40 calories in a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet, or 4.5 grams of trans fat -- increases the risk of heart disease by as much as 23 percent...
