Dakota College at Bottineau was awarded $37,553 from the North Dakota Agricultural Products Utilization Commission. This grant's purpose is to "provide necessary assistance to the research and marketing needs of the state by developing new uses for agricultural products, byproducts, and by seeking more efficient systems for processing and marketing agricultural products and byproducts..." This grant ran from June 2020 until November 2021. During this time, hemp trials were conducted in two different environments; Bottineau, ND and Absaraka, ND that include high tunnels and open fields. There are more than 25,000 uses for hemp and will have an increase in demand for producers to keep up with consumer demand. The research will be used to provide growers with information about production in different growing conditions and compare viability of clones as a propagation method.
Twelve CBD cultivars were used in the trials including Grizzlies, Cherry Wine 2, UPMxASP02, ASB, UMP, Meritage, Abacus, Space Force, Mauna Kea 3, Harley, and Cherry Wine. These cultivars were propagated through clones and some were propagated by seed to compare viability between the two techniques. Characteristics related to growth and production were monitored and measured during the growing cycle. Plant nutrient management included soils testing, application of nutrients, cannabinoid testing to record CBD:THC ratio and all seedlings and clones were inspected for uniformity and overall health. Some complications did occur during the trials, however. The Bottineau location experienced a damaging frost on September 9, 2020 which stopped CBD production in all cultivars, which were in the early stages of flowering. The trial was run again in 2021 and the potency testing was performed by Adams Independent Testing which is based out of Fargo, ND. Some cultivars were also unavailable in 2021 as there is a lot of turnover with seed suppliers in the hemp industry. One provider had gone out of business and the second provider no longer had the same cultivars. The research found out that the flowering dates were significantly different in the two locations. In Absaraka, ND the flowering date occurred on August 4th while the flowering date for Bottineau, ND was September 6th. Several cultivars proved to have higher CBD percentages and the THC levels were approximately 0.3 %. The top three cultivars were Space Force, Cherry Wine 2 and Meritage which all had a CBD concentration above 9%. It was also found that biomass is a key factor as it has the highest cannabinoid concentration. Other conclusions from the hemp trials showed that cultivars performed differently between the two geographical locations. Cultivars propagated from seed grew taller and there was more variability. The highest CBD levels were found 5-6 weeks after flowering was initiated. According to Keith Knudson, who was the project director of this grant stated, “the industrial hemp industry shows instability of seed providers as more providers are leaving as profitability declines. A few seed producers are investing in genetics to reduce variabilities in production of plant material and potency.” DCB will run trials again in 2022 to continue identifying stable cultivars. "High performance" cultivars have been cloned and selected from these trials to be used again in the trials next year. Breanna Blue, ECH Administrative Assistant
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Dakota College at Bottineau has a beautiful campus and there are many individuals who assist with the landscaping. On March 24th, a group of volunteers from the Bottineau area came into the Greenhouse to assist in transferring plugs from their trays to single cells. Plugs are known as young plants that are grown in large quantities that started from a small seed or cutting. These plugs were ordered from Mast Young Plants who are located in Michigan. Some of these plants include Canna Cannova Yellow, Ipomoea marguerite, Ipomoea Blackie, Ipomoea Sidekick Heart Bronze, Lemon Verbena, Lemongrass, Italian Oregano, Spike Dracaena Indivisa, Bosa Nova Night Fever Papaya, Juncus Effusus Spiralis and Vinca High Color. These flowers are planted around the Dakota College campus and throughout Bottineau in the big city planters. Not only did these volunteers transfer the plants to the single cells but they also assisted in potting soil and labeling the plants.
The volunteers are Joan Mortenson (not pictured), Tim Davis, Lynn Nero, Bobbi Aus, Donna Porter and Cathleen Grosz (not pictured). This group of individuals have been friends for a long time and have been volunteering at the Greenhouse for about 10 years according to Tim. They started volunteering when Diane Beckman was in charge of the Greenhouse. They helped establish the pollinator garden that is located on the Dakota College campus! Every year there are different projects that these individuals work on such as seeding, transplanting, or assisting in planting flowers throughout Bottineau. Volunteering every year at the Greenhouse has become a tradition between this local group of friends. "We like to do things that get us out of the house and we all enjoy the gardening aspect" says Tim. One of the best memories that stands out to Tim is when the group was able to use one of the high tunnels on campus. They were able to do their own planting while also assisting the college in whatever projects they had going on at the time. "We always have a lot of fun. We realize that we are providing a service to the college and always find ways to incorporate games or challenges" says Tim. Not only do they volunteer at the Greenhouse but they also volunteer at the Museum, Family Crisis Center, Bottineau Food Pantry and they also assist in making Braille Books! After volunteering at the Greenhouse, the group will head over to Pride Dairy or Marie's to enjoy coffee, a meal and each other's company. Breanna Blue, ECH Administrative Assistant In September of 2020, Dakota College at Bottineau was awarded the Community Family Forest Grant. This was awarded by the North Dakota Forest Service and funded by the Trees for North Dakota Trust Fund. The purpose of this grant is to honor families in the state by planting trees in North Dakota communities and to strengthen the tradition of annual tree planting.
The purpose of this project was to start a successional replacement of trees that line the south side of the baseball field on Dakota College's campus. The trees that were there, were planted in the 1970's as a windbreak and a beauty screen. Approximately 54 trees were planted in the 350 foot site. DCB's Campus Tree Committee felt it was best to be proactive in getting new trees established. Aplan was created where some of the trees could be removed but still provide some shade for visitors. New trees were planted that will become the next shade producing trees to the area. These trees will help reduce foul balls from hitting the vehicles driving on the road and also out by the scoreboard so the hitters will always have a green backdrop to see the ball when it is pitched. Many individuals participated in this project. Apryl Mawby, DCB Farm Manager, coordinated the planting of the trees and the weekly watering needs. Cody Clemenson, Forest Stewardship Specialist, flagged the trees that needed to be kept. Stuart Oein, maintenance, coordinated the removals and stump grinding. Mark Lacroix, Head Baseball Coach, coordinated the volunteer work to assist in site prep and tree planting. Removal work was conducted in 2020. The larger logs from the trees were saved and turned into boards to be used on campus and the branches were chipped for wood chips to be used around campus. The old stumps were then ground out and grass was planted over the old stumps. In the summer of 2021, new trees were planted out by the scoreboard. Coach Lacroix had the Babe Ruth and Midget teams assist in planting the trees. There were 19 trees planted in the area including American Linden Basswood, Delta Hackberry, Prairie Expedition American Elm, and Skybound Arborvitae. Everyone involved in the project was happy with the outcome. According to Apryl, "It was great seeing so many different people come together to improve campus. Someday those players that helped plant will be able to benefit from those trees and have a sense of pride knowing they helped with the project." Cody also thinks the project was a great success by stating that the project "accomplished all the goals we had and will provide the next generation of shade trees for people to sit and enjoy a baseball game." Breanna Blue, ECH Administrative Assistant |
AuthorBreanna Blue is the Administrative Assistant for the Entrepreneurial Center for Horticulture at Dakota College at Bottineau. She has an Associates Degree in Caregiver Services, a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and several certifications. Archives |