For decades, farmers in Montana and the Dakotas have produced impressive yields of barley and wheat. But that bounty has come at a cost. Tilling the soil in the region's crop-fallow production systems has ...

Space & Earth - Environment

Mar 29, 2013 5 / 5 (4) 0

Organic matter is important for soil health and crop productivity. While an indicator of soil quality, a lot of organic matter is in extremely stable forms, and the nutrients in such forms are difficult for plants to use. ...

Biology - Other

Feb 11, 2013 not rated yet 0

Farmers can fine-tune their use of cover crops to help manage costs and maximize benefits in commercial organic production systems, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists.

Biology - Ecology

Feb 04, 2013 5 / 5 (2) 0

(Phys.org)—Across the United States, fields of genetically engineered crops have become laboratories for the evolution of glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds. These fast-growing "super weeds"—resistant to ...

Biology - Ecology

Oct 23, 2012 not rated yet 0

Reducing tillage for some Central Great Plains crops could help conserve water and reduce losses caused by climate change, according to studies at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Space & Earth - Environment

Aug 23, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 2

Fujitsu today announced that, in collaboration with the Federation of Hokkaido Agricultural Mutual Aid Association (Hokkaido NOSAI) and the Kamikawa Chuo Agricultural Mutual Aid Association (Kamikawa Chuo ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Aug 17, 2012 4 / 5 (1) 0

A new study answers a question that has baffled researchers for more than 15 years: How does the western corn rootworm – an insect that thrives on corn but dies on soybeans – persist in fields that ...

Biology - Evolution

Jul 19, 2012 5 / 5 (2) 1 |

Weeds, manure, slugs, cows and a vegetable oil-powered tractor are all part of a unique study being conducted in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

Space & Earth - Environment

Jul 09, 2012 5 / 5 (1) 0

(Phys.org) -- The discovery that more Western corn rootworms are resistant to the toxin contained in widely planted transgenic corn has sparked a warning that farmers must change tactics or lose a valuable management tool ...

Biology - Ecology

Apr 23, 2012 not rated yet 0

Work by scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) suggests that farmers in the Southeast could use the tropical legume sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) in their crop rotations by harvesting the ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Jan 04, 2012 not rated yet 0

A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) soil scientist in Colorado is helping farmers grow crops with less nitrogen-based fertilizer.

Space & Earth - Environment

Sep 13, 2011 not rated yet 1

Organic farming is known to be environmentally sustainable, but can it be economically sustainable, as well?

Other Sciences - Economics & Business

Sep 01, 2011 not rated yet 0

Scientists on the Norwich Research Park, working with colleagues in China, have developed new techniques that will aid the application of genomics to breeding the improved varieties of crop needed to ensure ...

Biology - Biotechnology

Jul 31, 2011 5 / 5 (1) 1 |

Transformative changes in markets, policy and science, rather than just incremental changes in farming practices and technology, will be critical if the United States is to achieve long-term sustainability in agriculture, ...

Biology - Other

May 05, 2011 3.4 / 5 (5) 71 |

A new source of biomass grown on unused land could help the UK meet renewable energy targets without affecting food production or the environment, according to the results of a new study.

Space & Earth - Environment

Apr 27, 2011 4 / 5 (1) 1