01.01.70

On one hand there is little or no commercial castor production in the U.S.  Nearly all castor oil used in the U.S. is imported from India, China and Brazil. Butbecause of its high seed oil content, castor has tremendous potential as an oilseed crop in North America, especially in parts of the Southwest. The increasing demand and potential use of castor oil in the production of specialty chemicals, biodiesel, and RFS2 renewable fuel has generated considerable interest by several companies in developing commercial castor oil production in this country. Since castor grows well on marginal land, it represents an alternative crop suitable for production in select areas of Texas.

On the other hand, castor production comes with a reputation, largely related to the fear of growing a potentially toxic crop. Ricin, a protein toxin found only in the endosperm of castor seed, can represent up to 5 percent of the meal weight remaining after oil extraction. It could pose a threat if not carefully isolated and controlled as there is a concern the meal could be refined and used as a bioterrorism agent.

Source: Southwest Farm Press

by diego

Scientists around the world are closing in on some dirty truths about carbon emissions and climate change.

A cover-up is plainly involved; it’s not about scandal but dirt itself. That means soil, the upper layer of earth typically a few feet but sometimes 10 feet or more thick, usually black or dark brown. Below is rock or other material that contains little of the organic matter, derived mainly from plants, that gives good farmland its fertility.

The last few decades have seen a string of discoveries that not only upset long-cherished theories about soil, but also could lead to ways of improving agriculture by altering factors that control soil quality, say to favor certain soil microbes over others.

Perhaps more important in the long run, the findings will bring a far deeper understanding of soil’s response to climate change. This new understanding may include whether soil will speed up the pace of warming or slow it down as atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and other carbon-rich greenhouse gases build up. Soil scientists don’t question the urgency of dealing with fossil fuel emissions, but forecasting the course of global warming depends on understanding how the planet deals with carbon. Soil, for now, is a major wild card....

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PULLMAN, Wash. - When Tom Tidwell attended Washington State University in the mid-1970s, he took as many classes in as many different areas as he could and still graduate on time. He supplemented his already full schedule of natural resource classes in botany, soils, ecology, forestry and wildlife with basic science courses in chemistry, biology and math. It paid off. With a bachelor’s degree in forest and range management from WSU, he has spent the past 32 years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service in a number of positions. In June 2009, Tidwell became the 17th chief of the organization. He is charged with balancing myriad needs and interests in the vast natural resources of a nation. He oversees a budget of $5.5 billion and employs 34,350 employees in the management of 193 million acres of forest and rangeland. "I encourage people to not only get as much as they can from their opportunity...

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