Study sheds light on production of parasitic wasp's courtship song
A new study published in the April issue of PLoS One by an interdisciplinary team of Virginia Commonwealth University researchers sheds light on the way a tiny parasitic wasp produces its courtship song. ...
Getting to the root of better crops
(Phys.org) —The more crop scientists know about how plant roots take up water and nutrients, the better able they will be to develop crop plants with roots that can cope with challenging soil and environmental ...
Crop rotation with nematode-resistant wheat can protect tomatoes
In a study published online today in Crop Science, scientists describe a nematode-resistant wheat. But while the wheat carries the resistance to the pest, the benefits are actually seen in the crop that is grown after it. ...
Do potatoes grow on vines? A review of the wild relatives of some favorite food plants
The Solanaceae, also called the potato or nightshade family, includes a wide range of flowering plants, some of which are important agricultural crops. Tomatoes, potatoes, aubergines, peppers and wolfberries ...
Sacred lotus genome sequence enlightens scientists
The sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is a symbol of spiritual purity and longevity. Its seeds can survive up to 1,300 years, its petals and leaves repel grime and water, and its flowers generate heat to att ...
Scientist: Cassava disease spread at alarming rate (Update)
Scientists say a disease destroying entire crops of cassava has spread out of East Africa into the heart of the continent, is attacking plants as far south as Angola and now threatens to move west into Nigeria, ...
Plant biology advances rapidly to help feed the world
(Phys.org) —A series of new discoveries in plant cell biology will help to increase the supply of food and energy for our rapidly growing global population, according to 12 of the world's leading plant ...
Proteins called membrane transporters will be key to sustainable food production
Of the present global population of seven billion people, almost one billion are undernourished. At the same time, we are close to the sustainable limit of 15 percent of Earth's surface that can be exploited for food production. ...
Gene silencing set to boost agricultural yields
US a surprisingly large reservoir of crop plant diversity
North America isn't known as a hotspot for crop plant diversity, yet a new inventory has uncovered nearly 4,600 wild relatives of crop plants in the United States, including close relatives of globally important ...
Cocktail of multiple pressures combine to threaten the world's pollinating insects
Team creates potential food source from non-food plants
A team of Virginia Tech researchers has succeeded in transforming cellulose into starch, a process that has the potential to provide a previously untapped nutrient source from plants not traditionally thought ...
How a little plant became a model for pioneering research
In recent decades, research into a diminutive plant, Arabidopsis thalania, which goes through daily life as a common weed, has generated a tremendous amount of knowledge. Much of the research on Arabidopsis, ...
'Pharmaceutical' approach boosts oil production from algae
Taking an approach similar to that used for discovering new therapeutic drugs, chemists at the University of California, Davis, have found several compounds that can boost oil production by green microscopic ...