Agricuture News - May 2009 Archives

Weed resistance to glyphosate in genetically modified soybean cultivation in Argentina (5/31/2009)

The rapid expansion of industrial agriculture and the globalization of the food system have favored the decline and deterioration of agro-ecosystems thus increasing biodiversity loss. An article recently published in Geoforum analyzes the consequences of the emergence of glyphosate resistance in johnsongrass, a weed that is affecting GM soybeans fields in northern Argentina. ...> Full Article

Shatter-resistant brassicas (5/30/2009)

An international team of scientists has cracked the problem of pod shatter in brassica crops such as oilseed rape. Just before harvest, oilseed rape pods are prone to shatter, causing a 10-25 percent loss of seeds and up to 70 percent in some cases. The scientists discovered that the absence of the hormone auxin in a layer of cells in the fruit is necessary for the fruit to open. ...> Full Article

Getting to the root of science in a nutty way (5/29/2009)

Dr. Leo Lombardini has gone underground to get the most top secret information in his field.Lombardini is watching roots grow in his experimental orchards, and it is sort of nuts -- he's a pecan researcher.His study, which uses an underground camera, is part of a national specialty crop research project funded by the US Department of Agriculture. Lombardini is a scientist for Texas AgriLife Research. ...> Full Article

UGA licenses new Bermuda grass that thrives in sun and shade (5/29/2009)

An internationally recognized turf grass researcher from the University of Georgia has developed a new Bermuda grass that thrives in sun, but also produces healthy turf in areas with less than half the light normally required for healthy Bermuda grass. ...> Full Article

NASA uses satellite to unearth innovation in crop forecasting (5/28/2009)

NASA researchers are using satellite data to deliver a kind of space-based humanitarian assistance. They are cultivating the most accurate estimates of soil moisture -- the main determinant of crop yield changes -- and improving global forecasts of how well food will grow at a time when the world is confronting shortages. ...> Full Article

Discoveries upend traditional thinking about how plants make certain compounds (5/27/2009)

Michigan State University plant scientists have identified two new genes and two new enzymes in tomato plants; those findings led them to discover that the plants were making monoterpenes, compounds that help give tomato leaves their distinctive smell, in a way that flies in the face of accepted thought. ...> Full Article

Waxy plant substance key for absorption of water, nutrients (5/25/2009)

While proving a long-held theory that suberin blocks water and nutrient absorption in plants, a Purdue University scientist learned more about manipulating the substance to better feed plants. ...> Full Article

Hunt for 'climate-ready' crops accelerates as organizations search seed collections worldwide (5/24/2009)

The Global Crop Diversity Trust announced today numerous new grant awards to support scientists to explore the millions of seed samples maintained in 1,500 crop gene banks around the world. They will search for biodiversity critically needed to protect food production from the ravages of climate change. ...> Full Article

Jungle yeast (5/23/2009)

A new species of yeast has been discovered deep in the Amazon jungle. In a paper published on-line in FEMS Yeast Research, IFR scientists and colleagues from Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador describe the novel characteristics of Candida carvajalis sp. nov. ...> Full Article

Web-based program designs more efficient farm terrace layouts (5/22/2009)

System developed by MU researchers produces more alternative terrace layouts in fraction of the time ...> Full Article

Scientists work to plug microorganisms into the energy grid (5/20/2009)

The answer to the looming fuel crisis in the 21st century may be found by thinking small, microscopic in fact. Microscopic organisms from bacteria and cyanobacteria, to fungi and microalgae, are biological factories that are proving to be efficient sources of inexpensive, environmentally friendly biofuels that can serve as alternatives to oil, according to research presented at the 109th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology. ...> Full Article

Lettuce gets a healthy suntan (5/19/2009)

Salad dressing aside, a pile of spinach has more nutritional value than a wedge of iceberg lettuce. That's because darker colors in leafy vegetables are often signs of antioxidants that are thought to have a variety of health benefits. Now a team of plant physiologists has developed a way to make lettuce darker and redder -- and therefore healthier -- using ultraviolet light-emitting diodes. ...> Full Article

Golden rice an effective source of vitamin A (5/16/2009)

The beta-carotene in so-called "golden rice" converts to vitamin A in humans, according to researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Tufts University in an article that appears in the current issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. ...> Full Article

Students secure funding to develop solar-powered pasteurization system in Peru (5/15/2009)

A team of students from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will be spending part of the summer designing and starting to build solar-powered pasteurization systems for communities in rural Peru. The group of engineers was one of four student teams nationally to win a highly competitive SEED grant from nonprofit volunteer organization Engineers for a Sustainable World. ...> Full Article

Monitoring water through a snake's eyes (5/14/2009)

Although most Americans take the safety of their drinking water for granted, that ordinary tap water could become deadly within minutes, says Prof. Abraham Katzir of Tel Aviv University's School of Physics and Astronomy. ...> Full Article

A genome may reduce your carbon footprint (5/13/2009)

Acquiring cheap genome sequence data can improve the quality of feedstocks used to create biofuels, according to a new study published in the Plant Genome ...> Full Article

Managing Douglas-fir forests for diversity (5/12/2009)

Creating diverse forests for multiple uses is important to natural resource managers and landowners. The findings from a 1983 study conducted in southwestern Oregon provide forest managers with information that offers choices when managing land for a variety objectives that may include a high level of wood production, a moderate level of wood production with some wildlife habitat features, or low wood production that provides cover and forage for a wider variety of wildlife species. ...> Full Article

Why silkworms find mulberries attractive (5/11/2009)

A new study published online on May 7 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, has found the source of silkworms' attraction to mulberry leaves, their primary food source. A jasmine-scented chemical emitted in small quantities by the leaves triggers a single, highly tuned olfactory receptor in the silkworms' antennae, they show. ...> Full Article

Honeybees are on the rise but demand grows faster (5/10/2009)

The notion that a decline in pollinators may threaten the human food supply -- producing a situation that has been referred to as a "pollination crisis" -- can be considered a myth, at least where honeybees are concerned, say researchers report. First of all, most agricultural crop production does not depend on pollinators. On top of that, while honeybees may be dwindling in some parts of the world, the number of domesticated bees world-wide is actually on the rise, their new report shows. ...> Full Article

Photoselective film proves effective for controlling height in potted gardenia plants (5/9/2009)

Nonchemical alternative reduces production costs and pollution ...> Full Article

Apple enthusiasts welcome WineCrisp (5/8/2009)

After 25 years of research, new apple debuts ...> Full Article

Tree survival skills (5/8/2009)

Stresses during handling and transport affect tree health, survival ...> Full Article

Bioelectricity promises more 'miles per acre' than ethanol (5/8/2009)

Biofuels such as ethanol offer an alternative to petroleum for powering our cars, but growing energy crops to produce them can compete with food crops for farmland, and clearing forests to expand farmland will aggravate the climate change problem. How can we maximize our "miles per acre" from biomass? Researchers writing in the online edition of Science say the best bet is to convert the biomass to electricity, rather than ethanol. ...> Full Article

Decreasing deer damage (5/7/2009)

Understanding deer preferences for trees, shrubs can increase grower revenues ...> Full Article

Protecting fresh-cut produce (5/6/2009)

Preharvest application of harpin increases antioxidants, prevents contamination ...> Full Article

Food security: It starts with seed (5/6/2009)

A recently released publication, "Modification of Seed Composition to Promote Health and Nutrition," addresses ways that researchers are working towards securing the world's future food supply. ...> Full Article

New and improved tomato analyzer (5/5/2009)

Software proves versatile, accurate for measuring fruit shape and size ...> Full Article

Crop models help increase yield per unit of water used (5/5/2009)

In regions with limited water resources, maximizing crop water productivity is important for producing high yields. A new computer model, AquaCrop, was developed as a way to predict crop water use efficiency, as traditional methods tend to overestimate or underestimate this measure under conditions of water stress. ...> Full Article

Synthetic chemical offers solution for crops facing drought (5/1/2009)

Abscisic acid, produced naturally by plants, is a key hormone that helps plants cope with drought conditions. New research led by UC Riverside's Sean Cutler suggests the possibility of spraying stable synthetic chemicals on plants to enhance stress tolerance during drought and improve yield. Cutler identified pyrabactin, a synthetic chemical that turns on the ABA signaling pathway, and used it to fish out a receptor for ABA -- a highly controversial topic in plant biology. ...> Full Article

International team finds key gene that allows plants to survive drought (5/1/2009)

A team of scientists from Canada, Spain and the United States has identified a key gene that allows plants to defend themselves against environmental stresses like drought, freezing and heat. ...> Full Article