We studied the effects of ammonia treatment on microbial populations during the fermentation of corn silage. We also compared the effects of ammonia to a preservative containing buffered propionic acid and other antifungal compounds on the fermentation and aerobic stability of corn silage. In the first experiment, whole-plant corn was ensiled without treatment or treated with ammonia-N to supply an additional 0.3% N (fresh-forage basis). The addition of ammonia immediately increased silage pH and had no effect on numbers of lactic acid bacteria, but delayed their growth compared with untreated silage. Numbers of enterobacteria declined more slowly, but numbers of yeasts and molds declined more quickly in silage treated with ammonia. During the early stages of ensiling, lactic acid increased more rapidly in untreated than in treated silage. The reverse was true for acetic acid concentrations. When exposed to air, growth of yeasts and molds was delayed in ammonia-treated silage. In a second experiment, various levels (0.1 to 0.3%, fresh weight) of ammonium-N or a preservative with buffered propionic acid were added to whole-plant corn and allowed to ensile for 106 d. Silage treated with ammonia had a greater ratio of L- to D-lactic acid than did other silages. Untreated silage was aerobically stable for 32.3 h, whereas the low (42 h) and moderate (52.7 h) concentrations of both additives numerically improved aerobic stability. High concentrations of ammonia-N (0.3%) or a buffered propionic acid preservative (0.3%), markedly improved the aerobic stability of corn silage (82 and 69 h for ammonia and propionic acid-treated silage, respectively).

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Neonate movement and dispersal behavior of the European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), were investigated under controlled conditions on Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and non-Bt corn, Zea mays L., to assess plant abandonment, dispersal from their natal plant, and silking behavior after Bt and non-Bt preexposure. With continuous airflow, neonates on a Bt corn plant for 24 h abandoned that plant 1.78 times more frequently than neonates on a non-Bt corn plant. Indirect evidence indicated that at least one third of the neonates were capable of ballooning within 24 h. In the greenhouse, some neonates were recovered after 24 h from plants 76 and 152 cm away that likely ballooned from their natal plant. After 1 h of preexposure on a Bt corn leaf, neonates placed on a new corn leaf and observed for 10 min began silking off of a new Bt leaf significantly sooner than a new non-Bt leaf. Results suggest that neonates are unable to detect Bt in the corn within 10 min but that they can detect it within the first hour.

A choice experiment of Mid-Atlantic consumers was conducted to determine marginal willingness to pay for the attributes organic, natural, locally grown, and state marketing program promoted for strawberry preserves. The influence of purchasing venue on willingness to pay was also examined. Results indicated a price premium when purchased at a farmers market across all five states and versions. Organic was preferred to natural in only one state. Preference ordering between local and state program promoted varied. Consumers in Maryland and Pennsylvania clearly preferred local, while those in New Jersey seemed most likely to prefer the state program version.

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