Plants are used for food, fuel, and fiber to sustain humans across the globe. Where and how these plants are produced is determined by soil, weather, natural biodiversity, and human culture. In turn, agricultural production of plants shapes the natural environment and society. This class will provide students with an overview of crop production including the history of agriculture, food chemistry, and plant growth and physiology as it relates to agriculture. Students will evaluate crop production practices in terms of their economic, social, and environmental outcomes, and highlight tradeoffs and synergies among these outcomes. In the lab, students will receive hands-on experiences with field crops as they collect, analyze, and synthesize data from field experiments to inform decision-making in agriculture.

Basic physical, chemical, and biological properties of soil. Soil genesis classification, principles of soil fertility. Use of soil survey information to make a land-use plan. WWW used for lab preparation information. prereq: [CHEM 1015, CHEM 1017] or CHEM 1021 or equiv

Students learn how field crop species grow and develop, how unique traits of crop species contribute to ecosystem services, and how to identify important growth stages of crops. In addition to traditional agronomic crops (small grains, alfalfa, soybean and corn), students will work with annual and perennial species that represent emerging crops grown for grain, oil seed, novel products, cover crops and biomass. Course work includes lectures, labs (greenhouse and field), and online assignments and quizzes. prereqs: AGRO 1101 or HORT 1001 or BIOL 1009 or BIOL 1001 and AGRO 1103

Botany, growth and development of cannabis, industrial and medical uses, cultivation of industrial and medical cannabis, human health and social impacts, federal and state regulations.

Identification of weed species and native herbaceous plants that are important in crop production, turf management, horticulture production, and landscapes systems. This course will emphasize the identification of weed species and other plants found in Minnesota and the upper Midwest area of the United States. Plant families, life cycles, habitats and relationships to humans. prereq: Biol 1009 or equiv

Weeds reduce crop yield and quality, affect human health, and result in significant economic loss. This course is for undergraduate students interested in learning more about weed management techniques in an applied context. The goal is to develop a basic understanding of how weed biology and ecology are used to select and integrate weed control tools for effective long-term management of weeds in annual and perennial cropping systems. The topics to be covered in this course will include basic understanding of weed biology/ecology, knowledge of different mechanical, cultural, and chemical weed control tools, and process for integration to meet specific goals. The course involves active, hands-on learning around new technologies as well as guest lecturers from industry. Agro 1103 or Biol 1009 is recommended. Agro 2501 is highly encouraged.

Explore four different areas of world (Minnesota, Morocco, Nepal, Costa Rica) by networking with locals on ground in each region through online interactions. Food, agriculture, environment. Biophysical/socio-cultural aspects of agroecosystems through unique multi-disciplinary lens.

Importance of plant genetic diversity. Morphological, molecular, and computational methods of identifying/conserving genetic resources. Biological basis of genetic diversity. Case studies in crop improvement. prereq: Introductory biology

Ecology/biology of invasive plant species (weeds). Principles of invasive plant management in agricultural/horticultural, urban, wetland, aquatic, and other non-cropland landscape systems, utilizing biological, cultural, and chemical means. Management strategies to design systems that optimize invasive plant management in terms of economic, environmental, and social impacts. prereq: 4005, [Bio 3002 or equiv], Soil 2125, [Agro 2501 or Hort 1011]

Some of humanity's greatest challenges are related to agriculture. The human population continues to grow and food, fuel, and fiber production are critical to improving human lives around the world. In this course, students will learn the principles of crop production and apply those principles to address real-world agricultural challenges using quantitative tools and skills. Students will learn how to find, access, and use publicly available data to better make decisions in agriculture. Group activities will require students to synthesize information from peer-reviewed research and apply that information to practical problems. This class includes trips to field research plots to collect data, organizing it, and analyzing it to test hypotheses and solve problems. Discussions and labs will be interactive and will require individual and group-level critical thinking. prereq: 1101 or equivalent, [CHEM1015/17 or equivalent], SOIL1125 or equivalent], [jr or sr or grad student or instr consent]

Agroecology, sustainable practices, production economics, environmental quality, holistic resource management, healthy food/water, rural communities. Meet sustainable-agriculture advocates, including farmers, faculty, and representatives of non-profit sustainable-agriculture organizations. prereq: 1103, Soil 1125 or 2125 or equiv

This course uses fundamental concepts of ecology and evolution to illuminate and solve the challenges in managing insects and microbes in today?s global context of food and fiber production. Students will learn relevant aspects of insect and microbial biology to be able to situate concrete management problems in an appropriate ecological and evolutionary conceptual framework. Students will apply these concepts and discuss ecological and management controversies, such as what can we learn from natural areas to better manage food and fiber production systems. Case studies, readings, and discussion topics will emphasize factors influencing responsible management decisions.

Biology of the major groups of plant pathogens, symptoms and signs of plant disease, plant disease diagnosis, and principles of disease management. Lecture and laboratory. prereq: BIOL 1009 or equiv

Cultivate an understanding of seed and appreciation for seed with respect to agriculture. Focus of this course will be on agronomic crop seeds produced in the upper Midwest. prereq: HORT 1001 or BIOL 1009 or BIOL 2002 or consent of the instructor

Principles of plant genetics and environmental variation. Applications of genetics to crop evolution and breeding of self-pollinated, cross-pollinated, and asexually propagated crops. Investigation of hybridization, variation, and selection.

Fundamental concepts in soil fertility and plant nutrition. Discuss dynamics of mineral elements in soil, plants, and the environment. Evaluation, interpretation, and correction of plant nutrient problems. prereq: SOIL 2125

Soil, landscape, and crop spatial variability. GIS, DEM, GPS technologies. Variable rate machinery, PA software, remote sensing. Geostatistics, sampling, experimental designs. Precision integrated crop management. Data acquisition, processing, and management. Socio-economical and e-marketing aspects. prereq: Basic sciences, statistics, soil, agronomy

Precision Agriculture is an integrated information- and technology-based modern agricultural management system, with the intent to manage the spatial and temporal variability associated with all important aspects of agricultural production to achieve optimum yield, quality, efficiency and profitability, protection of the environment and sustainable development. It is an important direction of future agriculture. The focus of this course is on the concept, principles and technologies of precision agriculture and their applications in nutrient resource management. The specific topics include concept and development of precision agriculture and nutrient management, key supporting technologies, soil spatial variability and analysis, yield data analysis, remote sensing-based precision nutrient management, management zone delineation and application, crop growth modeling, combining crop growth modeling and remote sensing for precision nutrient management, and the challenges and future directions of precision agriculture and nutrient management. Precision agriculture and nutrient management is data intensive and the students will also learn basic agro-informatics through hands-on experiences and computer exercises. This course will involve background knowledge and technologies from multi-disciplines, which will facilitate multi-disciplinary integration and innovation. The class will include both lectures and activities such as case studies, group discussion and presentation, problem-solving, and hands-on exercises. This course is intended for graduate students and upper-level undergraduate students whose major is related to agriculture, environmental science and sustainability. This course is equivalent to LAAS 5480 (001) in Fall of 2018 only. This course was taught one semester as a topic course and is only equivalent to that particular topic and semester.

Ecological/ethical concerns of food production systems in global agriculture: past, present, and future. Underlying ethical positions about how agroecosystems should be configured. Decision cases, discussions, videos, other media.

Ecological/ethical concerns of food production systems in global agriculture: past, present, and future. Underlying ethical positions about how agroecosystems should be configured. Interactive learning using decision cases, discussions, videos, other media.