Agricuture News - January 2010 Archives

The almond tree's secret weapon (1/31/2010)

Has the almond tree developed a unique way of drawing potential pollinators? A group of researchers at the Department of Environmental and Evolutionary Biology and the Department of Science Education at the University of Haifa-Oranim speculate that the toxin called amygdalin that is found in almond tree nectar is in fact an evolutionary development intended to give that tree an advantage over others in its surroundings. ...> Full Article

Is iron from soil a factor in algal blooms? (1/30/2010)

A team of researchers from Queensland University of Technology is investigating the part that iron from Australia's iron-rich soil plays in the algal blooms that plague parts of the eastern coast line during summer. ...> Full Article

Fewer honey bee colonies and beekeepers throughout Europe (1/29/2010)

The number of bee colonies in Central Europe has decreased over recent decades. In fact, the number of beekeepers has been declining in the whole of Europe since 1985. This is the result of a study that has now been published by the International Bee Research Association, which for the first time has provided an overview of the problem of bee colony decline at the European level. Until now there had only been the reports from individual countries available. ...> Full Article

Biofuel crop diversity adds value, Michigan State researchers say (1/28/2010)

Diverse biofuel plantings such as native prairie attract more beneficial insects than do single crops such as corn, Michigan State University scientists find. Therefore, biofuel policies should take such added value into account, they urge, based on their pioneering studies of beneficial insects in biofuel crops. ...> Full Article

Bigger corn plants bully smaller neighbors in no-till fields (1/28/2010)

It might not look like there's much going on in those roadside corn fields, but a Purdue University researcher has shown that corn plants are in a fierce battle with each other for resources. ...> Full Article

Natural pest control saves coffee berry (1/27/2010)

A predator for the devastating coffee berry borer has just been discovered in Africa. Dr. Juliana Jaramillo from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Kenya and Dr. Eric Chapman from the University of Kentucky have identified a previously unknown predatory thrips which feeds on the eggs and larvae of the coffee berry borer. Their study is published online in Springer's journal Naturwissenschaften -- The Science of Nature. ...> Full Article

Water hits and sticks: Findings challenge a century of assumptions about soil hydrology (1/27/2010)

Researchers have discovered that some of the most fundamental assumptions about how water moves through soil in a seasonally dry climate such as the Pacific Northwest are incorrect -- and that a century of research based on those assumptions will have to be reconsidered. ...> Full Article

Potential of dairy-based package wraps outlined (1/26/2010)

Food-packaging products made from dairy ingredients could provide a viable alternative to petroleum-based packaging products, according to Agricultural Research Service scientist Peggy Tomasula. ...> Full Article

Scientists using X-ray vision to produce more nutritious flour (1/25/2010)

Pioneering research combining plant breeding and high-intensity x-rays is being used by scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council to explore the possibility of developing wheat which could be used to make potentially life-saving mineral enriched flour. The research is highlighted in the latest issue of Business, the quarterly highlights magazine of BBSRC. ...> Full Article

Mountain plants unable to withstand invasion (1/24/2010)

An international research team has studied the distribution of plant species in mountainous environments. The study shows that mountain plant communities are not particularly resistant to invasion by exotic species. The scientists also warn that these may become more aggressive as global warming gets a grip. ...> Full Article

Changing flowering times protect tobacco plants against insect herbivory (1/23/2010)

Plants attract insect pollinators to ensure reproduction. However, female moths are also threatening to the plant: attracted by the flower's scent, they lay eggs on the leaves, and voracious caterpillars hatch. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology have now discovered how tobacco plants solve this dilemma. They found that herbivory changed the opening time of the flower buds from dusk to dawn, attracting day-active hummingbirds which are also able to transfer pollen. ...> Full Article

Making microscopic worms into a more deadly insecticide (1/22/2010)

Microscopic nematode worms can be a potent organic insecticide, killing crop-raiding bugs without without environmental side effects of chemicals. But when the worms are mass-bred for agriculture, they tend to "wimp out," and are not as deadly as their cousins that grow in the wild. A new study identified the genetic changes in lab-raised worms that make them less deadly to insects. These insights also provide a map for weakening worms that target humans. ...> Full Article

Northern forests do not benefit from lengthening growing season (1/21/2010)

Forests in northern areas are stunted, verging on the edge of survival. It has been anticipated that climate change improves their growth conditions. A study published this week in Forest Ecology and Management journal shows that due to their genetic characteristics trees are unable to properly benefit from the lengthening growing season. Furthermore, the researchers were surprised to find that the mortality of established trees considerably promotes the adaptation of forests to the changing environment. ...> Full Article

Genome sequences for wasps will aid pest and disease control, provide new model organism (1/20/2010)

Scientists have mapped the genomes for three kinds of parasitic wasps, providing a new genetic model system based on the Nasonia genus. The availability of these genome sequences will aid the analysis of complex genetic traits, such as skin color, as well as complex human diseases. Published in the Jan. 15 issue of Science, the findings may advance our understanding of how to use these wasps as natural agents against agricultural pests and disease-carrying insects. ...> Full Article

The pink gene (1/19/2010)

What makes a particular variety of tomato pink? The gene responsible, discovered recently at the Weizmann Institute, may help researchers develop new exotic tomatoes. ...> Full Article

Punishment important in plant-pollinator relationship (1/18/2010)

Figs and the wasps that pollinate them present one of biologists' favorite examples of a beneficial relationship between two different species. In exchange for the pollination service provided by the wasp, the fig fruit provides room and board for the wasp's developing young. However, wasps do not always pollinate the fig. Fig trees "punish" these "cheaters" by dropping unpollinated fruit, killing the wasp's offspring inside, report researchers working at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. ...> Full Article

Mapping and sequencing of soybean genome paves the way for improved soybean crops (1/17/2010)

Soybean, one of the most important global sources of protein and oil, is now the first major crop legume species with a published complete draft genome sequence. This sequence, which essentially provides a parts list of the soybean genome, will help scientists use the plant's genes to improve its characteristics. The soybean sequencing study appears as the cover story of the Jan. 13 edition of Nature. ...> Full Article

Sunflower genome holds the promise of sustainable agriculture (1/16/2010)

A new research project will create a reference genome for the sunflower family. ...> Full Article

A deadly scorpion provides a safe pesticide (1/15/2010)

Prof. Michael Gurevitz of Tel Aviv University's Department of Plant Sciences has isolated the genetic sequences for important neurotoxins in the scorpion venom and developed methods to produce and manipulate these toxins to restrict their toxicity to certain insects or mammals. ...> Full Article

Can a drop of water cause sunburn or fire? (1/14/2010)

Why do gardeners say you shouldn't water your plants in the midday sun? Does it really lead to burnt plants or worse? A team of Hungarian scientists decided to find out. ...> Full Article

New test may help address costly parasite in sheep industry (1/13/2010)

Researchers at Oregon State University and the University of Georgia have developed an improved, more efficient method to test for the most serious of the parasitic worms in sheep, a problem that causes hundreds of millions of dollars in losses every year to the global sheep and wool industry. ...> Full Article

Scientists create early-warning system to defend rare Jersey cows from continental disease (1/12/2010)

Scientists from the Channel Islands are working on an early-warning system to help defend cattle against "bluetongue" disease, which can be carried from France by the wind. ...> Full Article

Researchers study microbes in cattle to unlock metabolic disease mysteries (1/11/2010)

Switching from warm-season grasses to cool-season forages can give livestock a belly ache, in some cases a deadly one, according to Texas AgriLife Research scientists. Dr. Bill Pinchak, Texas AgriLife Research animal nutritionist at Vernon, is leading a team of scientists who are using state-of-the-art technology -- metagenomics -- to determine how changes in diest affect microbial communities in the digestive tract of cattle and how these changes may increase risk of disease. ...> Full Article

Sweet corn study provides large-scale picture of better fields (1/10/2010)

In what amounted to a kind of census of sweet corn grown for processing, three years of data from 175 fields in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota shed light on what works and what doesn't. Along with identifying the most troublesome weeds, the results also revealed some of the more complicated relationships among factors influencing both weed control and sweet corn yield in the Midwest. ...> Full Article

Genes for drought-tolerance, aflatoxin may mingle to boost corn production (1/9/2010)

Scientists plan to put two and two together in a study that will likely yield improved US corn quality and yields.Two traits that impact corn -- drought tolerance and aflatoxin resistance -- will be examined by two researchers hoping to use basic scientific discoveries to improve products at the farm level.Basic science has already identified the drought- and aflatoxin-related genes at Texas AgriLife Research. This study will attempt to apply them for field crops. ...> Full Article

Multi-paddock grazing provides efficiency and profits for ranchers (1/8/2010)

Short grazing periods on multiple paddocks within a pasture can not only restore forage conditions, but also profit margins, according to a Texas AgriLife Research scientist. Dr. Richard Teague, AgriLife Research range ecologist in Vernon, has been studying the benefits of multi-paddock grazing for the past eight years. ...> Full Article

Miscanthus, a biofuels crop, can host western corn rootworm (1/7/2010)

The western corn rootworm beetle, a pest that feasts on corn roots and corn silk and costs growers more than $1 billion annually in the US, also can survive on the perennial grass Miscanthus x giganteus, a potential biofuels crop that would likely be grown alongside corn, researchers report. ...> Full Article

Researcher studies chemical control of potato psyllid (1/7/2010)

A Texas AgriLife Research entomologist in Lubbock is trying to determine the best management practices to reduce a potato crop's risk to zebra chip, a disease that discolors the potato and causes discounts to the producer. Dr. Christian Nansen is part of a multidisciplinary team that is examining a variety of factors, including insecticides, spray applications, performance, farming practices and potato plant attractiveness. ...> Full Article

Thai hill farmers help preserve genetic diversity of rice (1/6/2010)

Traditional rice cultivation methods practiced in the isolated hillside farms of Thailand are helping preserve the genetic diversity of rice, one of the world's most important food crops, according to a new study by researchers at Washington University in St. Louis and Chiang Mai University in Thailand. ...> Full Article

Virus may chauffeur useful 'packages' into plants (1/5/2010)

This time of year, the word "virus" conjures up a bedridden stint with coughs and chills -- something everyone goes to great lengths to avoid. But a new study shows that plant viruses may work like a trucking service loaded to carry freight to its destination. The idea is to have a virus do something good for us, like express a foreign protein and carry genetic information into a cell. ...> Full Article

Soil studies reveal rise in antibiotic resistance (1/4/2010)

An unexpected rise in environmental levels of antibiotic resistance poses a potential threat to people's health. ...> Full Article

Engineered tobacco plants have more potential as a biofuel (1/3/2010)

Researchers from the Biotechnology Foundation Laboratories at Thomas Jefferson University have identified a way to increase the oil in tobacco plant leaves, which may be the next step in using the plants for biofuel. Their paper was published online in Plant Biotechnology Journal. ...> Full Article