News tagged with cropping systems

Deterring signals: Tobacco plants advertise their defensive readiness to attacking leafhoppers

Following herbivory, plants produce jasmonic acid, a hormone which activates several plant defense reactions. Scientists found that leafhoppers can evaluate whether tobacco plants are ready for defense when attacked. If jasmonate-signaling ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created May 23, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Man-made photosynthesis to revolutionize food and energy production

Improving natural photosynthesis to make new fuels and boost crop production is the focus of new research presented at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting today. It could see us one ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Feb 17, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (9) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Researchers identify key plant immune response in fight against bacteria

Researchers at the University of Missouri have found a key process in a plant's immune system response that may help future crops fight off dangerous diseases.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Dec 08, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Disease-causing strains of Fusarium prevalent in plumbing drains

A study examining the prevalence of the fungus Fusarium in bathroom sink drains suggests that plumbing systems may be a common source of human infections.

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Dec 21, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

The heart of the plant

Food prices are soaring at the same time as the Earth's population is nearing 9 billion. As a result the need for increased crop yields is extremely important. New research led by Carnegie's Wolf Frommer into the system by ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Dec 08, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Food vs. fuel: Scientists say growing grain for food is more energy efficient

Using productive farmland to grow crops for food instead of fuel is more energy efficient, Michigan State University scientists concluded, after analyzing 17 years' worth of data to help settle the food versus fuel debate.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Apr 19, 2010 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (12) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Squeezing More Crop Out of Each Drop of Water

(PhysOrg.com) -- Studies in China and Colorado by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and cooperators have revealed some interesting tactics on how to irrigate with limited water, based on a crop’s ...

Biology / Other

created Oct 09, 2009 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Plant protein 'doorkeepers' block invading microbes, study finds

A group of plant proteins that "shut the door" on bacteria that would otherwise infect the plant's leaves has been identified for the first time by a team of researchers in Denmark, at the University of California, Davis, ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Jun 29, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Google backs climate-change weather insurance startup

Google on Monday was among investors pumping $42 million into a climate change inspired technology startup that calculates the chances of crops being ruined by weather.

Technology / Other

created Feb 28, 2011 | popularity 2.3 / 5 (3) | comments 2

Seed mixtures and insurance pest management: Future norm in the Corn Belt?

As the use of biotechnology increases and more companies move forward with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's approval to begin full-scale commercialization of seed mixtures in transgenic insecticidal corn, many researchers ...

Biology / Ecology

created May 05, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1

UMD and Chinese partner to track and predict world climate change

Scientists from the University of Maryland and Beijing Normal University are partnering to track and predict the impact of climate change internationally.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Feb 28, 2012 | popularity 2 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Designer roots to counter drought

Recent discoveries by a University of Queensland agricultural scientist provide the basis for custom designing plant roots. Her discovery is already being used by plant breeders to develop drought-resistant ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jul 12, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Reducing fossil energy use on the farm

Conventional agriculture production relies heavily on fossil fuels, particularly in its ability to provide energy at a low cost. However, the uncertain future of fossil fuel availability and prices point to ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 03, 2010 | popularity 4.2 / 5 (5) | comments 0

Wheat researchers combine forces to battle major disease

Wheat streak mosaic virus is the most prevalent disease in the southwestern wheat producing region of the U.S., according to a Texas AgriLife Research scientist.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Sep 23, 2010 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Satellites Could Help Keep Hungry Populations Fed as Climate Changes

In the early 1980s, scientists at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., developed the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), an innovative combination of two satellite measurements that ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Sep 17, 2009 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0