Plant disease hits eastern US veggies early, hard

(AP) -- Tomato plants have been removed from stores in half a dozen states as a destructive and infectious plant disease makes its earliest and most widespread appearance ever in the eastern United States.

Insect bites and warmer climate means double-trouble for plants

Recent models are telling us that, as our climate warms up, herbivores and pests will cause increased damage to agricultural crops. One study predicted that crop yield lost to insects increases 10 to 25 percent for every ...

Study gets to root of rice's resilience to floods

Climate change is increasing both the severity and frequency of extreme weather events, including floods. That's a problem for many farmers, since rice is the only major food crop that's resilient to flooding. A new study, ...

Moths wired two ways to take advantage of floral potluck

Moths are able to enjoy a pollinator's buffet of flowers – in spite of being among the insect world's picky eaters – because of two distinct "channels" in their brains, scientists at the University of Washington and University ...

Gene triggers male sterility in tomato plants

Despite its culinary versatility, the humble tomato isn't known for being mysterious. But there's still plenty to learn: researchers from Japan have discovered the gene underlying male sterility in these plants.

Light treatments inhibit intumescence injury of tomato

Intumescence injury, also known as edema or oedema, is a nonpathogenic physiological disorder that can cause blister- or callus-like tumor growths to develop on the surface of leaves, petioles, and stems of plants. Problematic ...

Presence of invasive insect in Senegal confirmed

(Phys.org)—A Virginia Tech-managed research program, the Integrated Pest Management Collaborative Research Support Program, has confirmed the presence of Tuta absoluta in Senegal, the first confirmation of the insect's ...

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