Information Resources on Avian Influenza AWIC Resource Series No. 33
From the National Agriculture Library Animal Welfare Information Center, a basic bibliography and online subject guide to information on the topic and highlights of research within the Agricultural Research Service.

Avian Influenza (Bird Flu)
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, key facts and specific topics, as well as information for specific groups, such as health professionals and the poultry industry.

PandemicFlu.gov
“Get Informed. Be Prepared. The official U.S. government Web site for information on pandemic flu and avian influenza.” From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Many links to other government agencies and information, plus a “what’s new” section.

Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response: Avian Influenza
From the World Health Organization, includes reports of outbreaks and cases, fact sheets and FAQs, news highlights and an RSS feed.

Avian Influenza: Agricultural Issues
A CRS Report for Congress from the Congressional Research Service, reproduced as a pdf file by the National Agricultural Law Center, written by Jim Monke, analyst in agricultural policy.

Nature: Web Focus Avian Flu
From Nature magazine, a special feature, with references to current research articles in their monthly issues.

Bird Flu Today
A news feed site from the World News Network, updated daily. Heavily illustrated, with links to stories from from major news organizions worldwide.

Avian Flu
“The Delaware Division of Public Health is providing this information about the Avian Flu to educate Delaware citizens and provide links to other sources.” Includes a Delaware Pandemic Influenza Preparation and Response Plan, and a fact sheet in English and Spanish.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Sites

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• World Health Organization
• State of Delaware
• National Chicken Council
• Pandemic Flu Forum

World Wide Web Virtual Library: Agriculture
Index and guide to Web Virtual Library Pages on various agriculture disciplines. Clicking on the “Agriculture” header, you are forwarded to an interactive general agriculture page. The “Index” portion of that general page includes a classified listing, featuring such items as “Ag Sites Around the World,” as well as commercial sites, US sites, electronic journals and textbooks. Also included are additional links to related Virtual Library pages in economics, biology, technology and aquaculture.

World Wide Web Virtual Library: Sustainable Agriculture
Similar page to that above with a specialty focus on renewable and organic farms and farming. Produced by Florida Plants Online, a commercial site.

BiologyBrowser
“Free information from a trusted source,” that source being the commerical publishing group Thomson, which publishes many of the books and journals in the life sciences. Useful because it connects to society sites, as well as small databases, online texts, and datasets. A search box allows you to search by organism, subject, or geographical area. The content is produced by BIOSIS, the Thomson unit responsible for the comprehensive database Biological Abstracts.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
A guide to general information and news about the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a starting point to access internet information about and produced by the many divisions, services and agencies of this important federal government department. Use the button “About USDA” to reach pointers to individual divisions and agencies. Also includes job listings, under “Opportunities.”

Census of Agriculture
Introduction to and preliminary data from the 2007 Census. Links to tables and downloadable files from the 2002, 1997 and 1992 Censuses of Agriculture. “The Census of Agriculture is a complete accounting of United States agricultural production....[and] includes as a farm every place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold or normally would have been sold during the census year.” Summary information is available in text form; complete Census reports are downloadable PDF files. Also includes a very useful Agricultural Atlas of the United States.

CRIS Current Research Information System
Formerly an independent database file, the USDA’s reporting system for ongoing and recently completed research projects in the agricultural and food sciences is now primarily available at this site. The projects included are those conducted or sponsored by federal agencies and state agencies cooperating with the USDA through the land-grant university system and agricultural experiment stations, among others. Each record includes the title of a funded project, the researchers invoved and their institutions, a statement of progess, and often a brief bibliography. This is primarily a text file, however, rather than a bibliographic file of reports on completed research. For such reports, see the database of the National Agricultural Library, AGRICOLA, which is available free through the Internet.

eXtension
“eXtension provides objective and research-based information and learning opportunities that help people improve their lives. eXtension is an educational partnership of 74 [Land Grant] universities in the United States.” A very complete database of information and Web page links created by and for Cooperative Extension programs throughout the U.S. It is intended for use by the general public, as well as by students, researchers and extension agents.

E-Answers
A collection of over 250,000 pages of full text electronic documents from the Extension Services and Agricultural Experiment Stations of over fifteen states, searchable by keyword and by region of the country. A single-stop access to a large number of useful and reputable publications on topics in agriculture, family topics, consumer issues, environment, economics, and public policy.

AgNIC
“....A distributed network to provide access to agriculture-related information, subject area experts, and other resources in a manner in which the physical location of the resources is transparent to users.” Basically a page of pointers to fulltext information such as conference listing calendars, directories, information systems and databases in all areas of agriculture and natural resources.

United States Experiment Station Publications
From the University of North Texas Libraries Digital Collections server, contains full text of important historical documents from the USDA Office of Experiment Stations from 1890 to 1954. Most noteworthy, the Experiment Station Record was an annotated bibliography of the research work conducted at each of the U.S. state experiment stations during that period.

National Agricultural Library
Home page of the largest agricultural library in the world, one of the four national libraries in the United States. Includes informational pages, guidelines and policies, and a link to the library catalog, ISIS, as well as other links to Internet search tools and their own Gopher site.

United States Farm Bills
Contains the full text of the most recent agricultural legislation (the 2008 “Farm Bill”), as well as implementation information and background issues underlying the bill. Also provides links to information about farm bills from earlier periods, including digitized legislative histories from 1930 through 2002. Produced by the National Center for Agricultural Law, listed below under the Food and Resource Economics section of this guide.

FAO Topics
Links to the FAO WAICENT Portal, listed under broad subject areas. Use the link to "Statistics" to use FAOSTAT, a comprehensive statistical database. The "Publications" link leads to FAP flagship publications and the bibliographic database for older FAO publications FAO Documentation Catalogue, which includes a growing file of full text documents. All of these are produced under the sponsorship of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

SIDALC Agricultural Information and Documentation System of the Americas
Includes a “virtual library,” international directories, and the catalogs of information services in the member countries of the IICA (Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture.)

AgZines (Index of Agricultural Serials)
Produced by the United States Agricultural Information Network, this experimental project lists just under 100 journal and periodical titles fully or partially available on the Web. The emphasis is on commercial and “small press” publications, rather than those from Cooperative Extension agencies, which are covered in E-Answers, above. It is also a link under “Where else can I find information” on the general USAIN page.

AgBiotechNet
From CABI Publishing (CAB Abstracts), a combination of fee-based and free services, including news, reviews, book chapters, reports, abstracts, calendar, jobs and conference material on agricultural biotech.

Biotechnology, Agriculture and Ethics
From Harvard University’s Environmental Ethics and Public Policy Program, part of a group of bibliographies of basic titles on bioethics with the express purpose of “stimulating ideas for research on problems of environmental ethics in several general subject categories.” Includes entries on agricultural chemicals, agronomy, moral aspects of biotechnology, endangered plants, and seed industry and trade, among others. Each listing is a book citation, with title linked to the relevant page in Amazon.com.

University of Delaware College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
Includes links to the home pages of the individual departments specified below, as well as a section of information for the general public, upcoming events in the college, student groups, and some internet links that supplement those suggested above in this guide.

University of Kentucky Agripedia
An online encyclopedia and guide to web resources in agricultural science, as well as course material specific to the University of Kentucky. “Agripedia has been created to allow students to use resources across the country in an integrated, interactive learning resource on the Internet. As an ‘encyclopedia of agriculture’, Agripedia presents facts, figures, demonstrations, examples, graphics, and more regarding the concepts, practices, and vocabulary of agriculture in a multimedia format using audio clips, graphics, text and animation.”

Biology Careers on the Internet
Part of the “Science and Technology Sources on the Internet” series published in the on-line journal, Issues in Science and Technology Librarianship. Although somewhat dated, this article provides a vast collection of links to Web pages on careers in many life sciences fields.

Path to Becoming a Veterinarian
Good overview of education requirements, employment outlook, and financial aid information from the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges.

Careers in Botany
“A guide to working with plants,” from the Botanical Society of America, including areas of specialization, salaries, and availability of jobs.

American Farm Bureau Voice of Agriculture
Page of information and links from “the nation’s largest farm organization.” Includes news and political issues of interest to agriculture, icluding the on-line version of Farm Bureau News.

AgWeb.com
The online product of the magazine Farm Journal, icludes standard news and feature articles, including market updates and a “Washington Watch.”

LocalHarvest
Guide and directory to organic farm outlets, farmers’ markets, restaurants featuring organic food, and food co-ops. Also includes direct sales of organic products through an online store.

American Society of Animal Science
Basic information, membership services, meeting announcements and a “Student Center” are included in this comprehensive page produced by the principle organization of the animal science discipline. A publications section includes tables of contents of the Journal of Animal Science and listings of other publications available to order.

American Veterinary Medical Association
Membership information, links to their journals, plus updated news and resouces about developments in veterinary science, including new vaccines, BSE information, and lists of biosecurity hazards.

Merck Veterinary Manual
Online version of the well-known reference work. Full table of contents is in left frame, with each section expandable to specific topics. Top tabs can also be used for general navigation, including indexes and guides to use. Covers 12,000 indexed items.

Martindale’s Virtual Veterinary Center
Simple and selective list of veterinary resources on the Internet, from basic sites and journal home pages to materials from courses taught in universities in the US, Canada, and Europe. Lists are broken out from broad groupings: journals, bioscience and genetics, clinical sciences, animal sciences, and veterinary science subdisciplines. From Jim Martindale, as a division of Martindale’s Reference Desk.

Institute for Molecular Virology
Interesting page of resources, including a list of resources such as articles, computer programs, indexes, newsgroups, conferences, and directories of virologists. Under a “Images and Animations Database” section, there are links to computer visualizations and virus structure tutorials. Additional sections are provided on virology meetings and links to other major virology sites.

USDA Poultry Disease Information
General information page about the National Poultry Improvement Plan, including a list of processing plants participating in this program, as well as information on Avian Influenza.

Poultry Science Association
Basic information about this important organization, including publications, membership, and meetings. Also includes a few links to other poultry sites.

Horse Resources
A specific section of the Livestock Virtual Library on horses, including breeders, breeds, university publications, diseases, husbandry, feeding, reproduction and a list of special events such as shows and sales.

eXtension Information Resources on Equine Science
Includes Community Highlights (special articles of interest to the horse “community”), FAQs, and an events calendar, as well as articles written specifically for the U.S. Extension system on all aspects of horses and horsemanship.

Institute of Food Technologists
The Institute of Food Technologists is “the premier scientific and educational society serving the food science and technology field.” The site provides links to several publications, a listing of meetings and expositions, continuing education programs, and employment information, as well as a listing of regional sections and subject divisions. Also included is “WorldFood Net,” a suppliers and buyers directory.

International Association for Food Protection
Association of 3,000 food safety professional members. Provides links to the journals Food Protection Trends and Journal of Food Protection, as well as information on food safety and sanitation.

Food Safety Research Information Office
Established by USDA in 2001, its mission is stated: “FSRIO was established to support the food safety research community with an online database. This database is a tool for food safety research and policy planning. It includes detailed information on over 500 food safety research projects by U.S. Federal agencies from 1998 to the present, and links to food safety research information.” Included are over 100 links to web pages covering food safety from government and private sources.

Genetically Modified Organisms Subject Guide
Part of the “Biology Resources Guide” from the library of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, it emphasizes their local resources, but it includes a good bibliography and extensive listings of Web sites, both gateways and appropriate full text reports. There is a focus on biotechnology and bioengineered foods.

All the Virology on the WWW
Comprehensive list of virology research and data sites as well as links to servers covering specific viruses. Includes both animal and plant viruses and sections on educational resources and news.

Galaxy Guide to Agriculture Engineering and Technology
Basic guide to internet resources, arranged by type of resource (announcements, events, database collections, periodicals directories, organizations). Good for browsing.

ASABE: American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers
The major association of engineering for agricultural, food and biological systems, which produces technical publications on machinery, buildings, equipment and processes pertaining to agricultural production. Also, “coordinates educational opportunities such as technical sessions, workshops, conferences and tours at ASABE . . . with the purpose of communicating new research results, discussing applications and stimulating debate on important topics related to the collection of renewable resources and the processing of these resources for conversion to energy and industrial products.”

Poultry Waste Management Handbook
From Texas Agricultural Extension Service, an electronic version of a notebook compiling information on a range of waste management topics, with the focus on dry litter management systems.

Poultry Carcass Disposal Options for Routine and Catastrophic Mortality
From The Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, evaluates the methods, practices, and strategies for safe and environmentally sound disposal of poultry carcasses.

Yahoo Guide to Engineering—Agricultural Engineering
Well-known subject guide and browsing page for Internet resources. Includes entries for companies, institutes, and organizations, as well as an index to agricultural engineering information.

EXTOXNET... Pesticide Information Profiles (PIPs)
Large browsable and searchable database of information on agricultural chemicals. Contains typical information on trade names, regulatory status, chemical class, formulations, toxicological effects and environmental effects. Includes a list of references for each substance.

Where to Find Material Safety Data Sheets
Links to many Internet sources of MSDS information. Includes a categorized listing with the number of substances covered at each site. Lists free sites, as well as those that have restrictions or charge for use.

National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service
“The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service is the website of the Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA). The ATTRA Project, created and managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), is funded under a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Rural Business-Cooperative Service.” Includes news, funding sources, links to publications, a newsletter, and links to related resources and sites.

Delaware Environmental Observing System
Provides real-time, meteorological, hydrological, and oceanographic information to users throughout the state and region. Includes both current weather data as well as historical data.

Entomology on World Wide Web
This page, from Colorado State University, replaces the Entomology “Virtual Library” and is a basic table of contents to specific subject areas within entomology on the Internet. It is a basic alphabetical list of links with a few annotations. Also included are listings of Gopher sites, bulletin boards, publications and Usenet news groups.

Entomology Index of Internet Resources (Iowa State University)
“A searchable database of insect-related resources on the Internet. Resources include world-wide web, gopher and FTP sites; Usenet news; electronic mailing lists; etc.” This site has a WAIS type keyword search engine, plus resources grouped by general subject areas, similar to many pages produced by Yahoo. It is produced jointly by Iowa State and Colorado State Universities.

Illinios Natural History Survey’s Center for Economic Entomology
Produced by a nationally-known state agency, this site includes links to the Center’s projects, but also includes several “Insect-related databases” that are of international importance, such as the Ecological Database of the World’s Insect Pathogens and the Soybean Insects Bibliographic Database.

Entomological Society of America
Basic information about this important organization, including annual meetings, educational information, job opportunities, and a list of their publications and online journals.

Sampling Methodologies for IPM of Forest and Shade Tree Insects
An online database of 131 papers on sampling of 59 species of forest and shade tree insect pests. From researchers Jeffrey Fidgen, Quintin McClellan, Christopher Fettig and Scott Salom of Virginia Tech University.

Eickwort’s Manual of Insect Morphology
Although a lab manual for a specific course in Entomology at Cornell, this series of pdf files is a very useful reference source for insect dissection and identification. Detailed anatomic drawings are provided for each section, from head capsule to ovipositor. Includes appendices on dissection technique, sketching and staining.

West Nile Virus Information Page
Links to Web sites, appropriate home pages (such as the CDC, which has its own page, West Nile Virus), textual and graphical information about this important disease carried by mosquitos that affects horses, birds and humans. Includes several fact sheets.

Cornell University Insect Collection
A virtual tour of a large collection of preserved insects at Cornell, arranged by types, with a searchable index. The availability of the site varies as it is frequently taken offline for revision.

Butterflies and Moths of North America
Extensive list of species accounts and distribution records for U.S states and counties. Combines the previous web sites from the Northern Prairie Wildlife Center and the Big Sky Institute at Montana State University. Many entries include photographs.

Database of IPM Resources
“Database of IPM Resources (DIR) is an information retrieval/referral system and a compendium of customized directories of worldwide IPM information resources accessible through the Internet. With DIR, one can quickly find the way to thousands of IPM information sites. The DIR presents these web resources in a logical, structured, and searchable way that greatly reduces the frustration and disappointment often encountered when using general search engines on the web.” Access is by a simple search engine or by an index of categories.

Earth Trends: The Environmental Information Portal
A “comprehensive online database that focuses on the environmental, social, and economic trends that shape our world.” Created by the World Resources Institute. Icludes an online tutorial and guides to citing the information provided.

The Tree of Life
A developing but well-known site of information about all organisms with an emphasis on biodiversity. A considerable portion of the site is devoted to insects and other invertebrates, but vertebrates and plant life of all kinds are included. Arrangement of over 200 separate pages is by phylogenetic hierarchy, but any taxonomic name or group can be queried on the “express” links and search pages. The goal of the page is stated as follows: “we envisage the Tree of Life being used by those interested in locating information about a particular group of organisms, by biologists seeking identification keys, figures, phylogenetic trees, and other systematic information for a group of organisms, and by educators teaching about organismal diversity.” An example of a completed section, on beetles, shows the comprehensive nature of this resource.

United States Fish & Wildlife Service
A general introduction, guide and directory to this important bureau within the U.S. Department of the Interior. It includes an overview of the service, a list of activities, offices, and people, and news, including an electronic journal, Fish and Wildlife News, which is viewed as downloadable PDF files.

USGS Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases
From the National Wildlife Health Center, a revision of the 1988 publication: Field Guide to Wildlife Diseases.

North American Mammals
From the National Museum of Natural History, contains basic lists of mammals, plus collections of skulls and bones, field guides, and a glossary. Individual species can be searched by geographic map, by name, family tree, or conservation status.

Animal Info - Information on Endangered Mammals
An extensive list of threatened or endangered species compiled by Paul Massicot, formerly of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Includes indexes by species, by groups, and by country. Each entry is extensive, includes the IUCN status, description, taxonomy, and history of distribution, as well as references to the scientific litereature. Updated regularly. The IUCN (The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) has its own list of threatened species, the Red List.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species Program
Excellent source for identifying existing and proposed endangered species. Includes sections on laws and policies, program news, and a number of full text publications, both monographs and the journal Endangered Species Bulletin. Also provides contact information for local agencies and partners.

AgNIC Wildlife Damage Managemant
From the USDA Wildlife Services National Wildlife Research Centier, this “presents an overview of the wildlife damage problem in the United States ... [including] economics, human dimensions, endangered species.” Covers all varieties of conflict between human activities and wildlife species, from invasive species to bird droppings in parks.

National Wetlands Research Center
Part of the U.S.Geological Survey, its mission is “to develop and disseminate scientific information needed for understanding the ecology and values of our nation’s wetlands and for managing and restoring wetland habitats and associated plant and animal communities.”

Society for Conservation Biology
From an organization “committed to developing the scientific and technical means for the protection, maintenance, and restoration of the earth’s biological diversity,” this site includes general and membership news, drop-down menus for information, publications, and activities, and a section of links to pages from partner organizations. A Resources section provides listings of conservation jobs and educational opportunities.

EE Link: Environmental Education on the Internet
Broadly-based collection of information and links from the North American Association for Environmental Education. Includes publications, resources for students, grant announcements, and a variety of sub-topics, such as Endangered Species.

Food and Resource Economics: FREC Research Reports
Reports by the University of Delaware department on a variety activities and studies undertaken by faculty members. Part of the University of Delaware Library Institutional Repository.

Food and Resource Economics: FREC Staff Papers
Papers by the University of Delaware department analyzing or evaluating statistical models and performance data. Part of the University of Delaware Library Institutional Repository.

Agricultural and Applied Economics Related Links
This guide, produced by Texas Tech University, includes a list of major web resources, including academic departments; links to journals, datasets, and software; and information about trade and commodity markets.

AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota)
“AgEcon Search: Research in Agricultural Economics is a World Wide Web site developed at the University of Minnesota by the St. Paul Campus Library and the Department of Applied Economics with the cooperation and financial support of the American Agricultural Economics Association, the Economic Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Farm Foundation. AgEcon Search is designed to electronically distribute reports of scholarly research in the field of agricultural economics.”

AAEA Online
“The official site of the American Agricultural Economics Association.” Contains typical links for an association page, including membership, careers, meetings, and committees.

USDA Economic Research Service
Contains nearly 300 reports and datasets from the economics agencies of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. These materials cover U.S. and international agriculture and related topics. Most reports are text files that contain time-sensitive information. Most data sets are in spreadsheet format and include time-series data that are frequently updated. Includes state fact sheets and selectable subject searches by “key topics,” such as “Agricultural R & D and Productivity.” Lists the most recent reports at the bottom of the page.

National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)
Includes the latest (1997) Census of Agriculture in tabular and PDF form, and a Web version of “Agricultural Statistics,” the annual summary produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in paper and CD-ROM. The latter database contains basic text tables, PDF files and tables in Lotus .WK4 format. A great deal of information is available at this site, arranged by broad subject divisions within the areas of farm economics, crops, and livestock.

Costs and Returns Estimation Website
Part of the National Resources Inventory & Analysis Institute Economics and Analysis Site for Natural Resources Conservation Service economists. Very useful for national and state information on specific crops, livestock operations, and enterprises. Includes the AAEA Commodity Costs and Returns Estimation Handbook and individual state Extension Service sample budget sites.

AgricultureB2B.com
Web business directory, aranged by subject areas within the industry, or by “marketplace channels,” such as crops, farm equipment, properties, etc.

American Farmland Trust
A lobbying group in Washington for protection of U.S. farmland and land stewardship. Included at this site is a link to a useful site on farmland protection and management, the Farmland Information Center, which “is a partnership between the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and American Farmland Trust.”

National Center for Agricultural Law: Research and Information
From the University of Arkansas, includes directories and full text laws, domestic and international, as well as environmental law and other laws by subject. “The National Center for Agricultural Law Research and Information (NCALRI) was created in 1987.... through a grant to the University of Arkansas School of Law beginning in 1988. Funding is administered through the National Agricultural Library, an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture.”

Agriculture Law.com
News and information site on law, agribusiness and agricultural production. Site reflects the opinions or biases of the private company responsible for it: AgricultureLaw.com, L.L.C., “... a company dedicated to providing farmers and ranchers with the most complete source of timely information and ideas on agricultural policy.”

Botany Virtual Library
This page is part of the “Virtual Library” Series, very good browsing guides to specific subject areas within the Internet. This guide includes a list of Internet resources by topic; an extensive directory to a large archive of biological newsgroups and journal contents pages; links to other journals, biological software, and finding aids; and an extensive alphabetical listing of organizational sites, both academic and commercial.

US Regulatory Agencies Unified Biotechnology Website
“This website focuses on the agricultural products of modern biotechnology. At this time, the searchable database available on this site only covers genetically engineered crop plants intended for food or feed that have completed all recommended or required reviews for food, feed or planting use in the United States.”

Corn Production
“Maize resources for students, producers, and specialists.” Includes general and technical information as well as a section on genes and germplasm and a search engine. From Iowa State University.

APSNet Plant Pathology Online
The main site of the American Phytopathological Society, with resources for both members and interested visitors. Includes news, meetings, a list of online resources, directories and career information, as well as a link to their journals and publications. Every month a linked feature article is highlighted.

Plant Pathology Internet Guide Book
“The Plant Pathology Internet Guide Book is a subject oriented internet resource guide for plant pathology, applied entomology, and all related fields. On these pages you will find plant pathology related internet sites and more useful resources.”

Invasive Plants of the Eastern United States: Identification and Control
From the University of Georgia, USDA APHIS, and the USDA Forest Service, this web site covers identification characteristics, distribution, and control options for 97 tree, shrub, vine, grass, fern, forb, and aquatic plant species that are invading the eastern United States. For each species, a menu of control options is presented, including mechanical treatments, specific herbicide prescriptions, and, for selected species, recent advances in biological control.

Noble Foundation Plant Image Gallery
List of range and pasture plants with accompanying illustrations. Over 600 species are divided into sections covering grasses & grasslike plants, forbs, and woody plants. Section listings are by common or scientific name as well as by taxonimic groups and each image is accompanied by information on family, season, origin, height, and flowering characteristics.

PlantFacts from Ohio State University
A page of information from several digital collections and databases, featuring “Images”, formerly the Plant Dictionary, which is a series of images, short descriptions and links to extensive information for each of 600 ornamental plants. Self-described as “an indexed system of teaching resources for the discipline of Horticulture and Crop Science,” it provides lists by common and scientific name, by ornamental feature and by category of plant. Where applicable, there are links to fact-sheets on biology and cultivation of the plant, as well as relevant pests and diseases. In most cases there are multiple images of each plant or pest, over 3800 in all. Also included on this site are short “how-to” gardening videos, 800 FAQs and a glossary.

Plants Database
From the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, “the PLANTS Database is a single source of standardized information about plants ... focuse[d] on vascular plants, mosses, liverworts, hornworts, and lichens of the U.S. and its territories. The PLANTS Database includes names, checklists, automated tools, identification information, species abstracts, distributional data, crop information, plant symbols, plant growth data, plant materials information, plant links, references, and other plant information.” An FAQ section linked to the banner provides additional information.

Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries
The Council is a group of the major independent horticultural libraries in the U.S. plus a few institutions from overseas. Look under Membership for a list of links to member library Web sites and to their catalogs, when applicable. Over 60 libraries are listed, including those for two local institutions, the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

Soil Science Society of America Glossary
This Internet Glossary of Soil Science Terms is one of several features of the site from this well-known organization. A menu bar allows access to the association’s newsletter, calendar, membership information, and publications, including journal tables of contents.

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
Formerly the Soil Conservation Service, this federal agency “works with landowners on private lands to conserve natural resources. Nearly three-fourths of the technical assistance provided by the agency goes to helping farmers and ranchers develop conservation systems uniquely suited to their land and individual ways of doing business. The agency also provides assistance to rural and urban communities to reduce erosion, conserve and protect water, and solve other resource problems.” This home page includes pointers to directories, government policies, technical references and briefs, and information on volunteer programs in the agency.

Critical Zone Exploration Network
Describes a proposed directory and information site on the bio-chemo-geologic zone from the outer envelope of vegetation down to the lower limits of groundwater, developed “by a consortium of researchers and educators drawn from the geosciences, microbiology, ecology, soil science, and engineering to investigate the physical, chemical and biological processes shaping and transforming Earth’s outermost thin veneer.”

Pennsylvania SoilMap
“SoilMap is an online, interactive web-based program that allows anyone with a computer and internet access to learn more about Pennsylvania soils. SoilMap is a collaborative effort between the Pennsylvania State Cooperative Extension Geospatial Technology Program, Land Analysis Lab, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and PASDA.” There are digital versions of soil surveys for the other local states available from the Natural Resources Conservation Service of USDA, including Delaware, and Maryland.

All the Virology on the WWW
Comprehensive list of virology research and data sites as well as links to servers covering specific viruses. Includes both animal and plant viruses and sections on educational resources and news.

Delaware Agronomic Crop Budgets
From the Delaware Cooperative Extension Office, a group of spreadsheet and pdf files which represent the required inputs and costs to produce particular crops in Delaware. Includes both agronomic and vegetable crops.

Theses - Longwood Graduate Program in Public Horticulture
This research archive of theses by Longwood students covers the years 1970-2003. Student research focuses on issues in public garden management, including plant science, design, history, education, sociology, and not for profit management.

Botany Virtual Library
This page is part of the “Virtual Library” Series, very good browsing guides to specific subject areas within the Internet. This guide includes includes a list of Internet resources by topic; an extensive directory to a large archive of biological newsgroups and journal contents pages; links to other journals, biological software, and finding aids; and an extensive alphabetical listing of orgaizational sites, both academic and commercial.

Museum Studies: a Guide to Internet Resources
Another University of Delware Library Subject page with useful links to resources in museum management and curatorship. The “Starting Points” section includes may practical sites. There are also links to specific museums and associations.

Missouri Botanical Garden
Includes information about the Missouri Botanic Garden itself, gardening help, plants currently in bloom, and a horticultural research section. Additional information under “Other Links,” lists similar resources from other institutions and commercial sites such as electronic “floras” of various countries throughout the world, botanical conferences, image collections and libraries, as well as links to other important public garden and botanical education sites.

Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries
The Council is a group of the major independent horticultural libraries in the U.S. plus a few institutions from overseas. Look under Membership for a list of links to member library Web sites and to their catalogs, when applicable. Over 60 libraries are listed, including those for two local institutions, the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

American Public Gardens Association
“Founded in 1940 as the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta (AABGA), the American Public Gardens Association (APGA) adopted a new name in 2006. Over the last six decades, the APGA has emerged as the premiere association for public gardens in North America. Today, APGA’s 500 member institutions are located in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and seven other countries.” This site includes information on how to join, membership list, a list of publications, and a link to the North American Plant Collections Consortium, “a project to conserve plant germplasm using the collections found in botanical gardens and arboreta.”

Longwood Gardens home page
Longwood Gardens’ commercial site, with schedules, hours and listings of special events.

Longwood Program home page