IPREFER Extension and Outreach specialists prepared these materials from 2019 -2025 to aid other professionals in sharing professionally vetted information regarding the IPREFER project and pennycress.

As IPREFER was funded by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture – Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Grant program (Grant No. 2019-69012-29851), any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in these fact sheets and teaching resources are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

2024

4-H Youth Book
Hagaman, Matthew, Darner, Rebekka, Sparks, Rachel, Schoenfelder, Emily & William Hunter. (2024). Cover crop science project book: An inquiry-based project book for 4-H youth and Facilitators Guide. IPREFER Project. https://covercrops.cemastprojects.org/.

• • The book is designed for youth in grades 6–8 to learn about cover crops. It can be used with 4-H projects and clubs, in schools, or after school or other out-of-school programs. It was designed as a standalone project, but it does not need to be used that way. It may be combined with other project areas or used as a part of a larger agriculture curriculum. The book is fully accessible.

2023

Lindsey, Alex & Lindsey, Laura. (2023). Extension Project Idea Starter: crop production 4-H idea starter – Crop production. Ohio State University. https://ohio4h.org/sites/ohio4h/files/imce/books_resources/Self-Determined/e365-04 Crop Production.pdf.

IPREFER Co-Pd Alex Lindsey (Ohio State University) and the IPREFER Outreach, Extension, and Education Objective team collaborated to create curricular materials featuring pennycress.*

Agriscience Resources

• Pennycress Staging Guide(.ppt)
• Pennycress Staging Lab (.docx) This lab activity also connects crop stage to growing degree day (GDD) accumulation and, if space allows, comparisons of how temperature affects crop stage and GDD accumulation.
• Winter-Type Oilseed Pennycress Staging Guide. Adapted from Verhoff, Kyle, Win Phippen, Nicholas Heller, Alex Lindsey. 2022. Winter-type oilseed pennycress crop staging guide. Crop, Forage, and Turfgrass, 8, e20165. https://doi.org/10.1002/cft2.20165.
• Agronomic Production – OH(.ppt) Highlights experiences from Ohio on pennycress planting, growth, and harvest practices
• Seed Depth Lab (.docx)
• Seed Dormancy Lab (.docx) Allows students to observe how seed treatment affects the germination of pennycress at varying points of domestication.
• Seed Treatment Case Study (.ppt) This presentation highlights core aspects of Seed Science and Technology (i.e., dormancy, seed treatment, and enhancements) and how these concepts were applied to increase pennycress germination and establishment.
• 4-H Project Book – Cover Crop Science (Illinois certified, pending national peer review)
• 4-H Idea Starter – Crop Production (Ohio, Peer-reviewed)

*Lindsey, Alex, Nasib Koirala, Cori Lee, Amanda Darcy, Ann Kennedy, Yesuf Mohammed, Y.; Gesch, R.; Alex Hard, Samantha Wells, Nicholas Heller, Win Phippen, Tad Wesley, Pamela Tas. 2023. Seed treatment in pennycress – a case study. 4-H, FFA, and Agriscience Curricular Resources on Oilseed Pennycress. The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH.
https://u.osu.edu/aginclassroomk12/2022/08/10/4h-ffa-and-agriscience-curricular-resources-on-oilseed-pennycress/

2020

• Moore, S., S.S. Wells, M. Wilson, R. Gesch and R. Becker. “Double cropping Pennycress.” Minnesota Crop News (Blog), February 2020. https://blog-crop-news.extension.umn.edu/2020/02/double-cropping-with-pennycress.html