Agricultural and Forestry Science
Crops evolved by swapping genetic modules between cells
Comparing single-cell sequencing across cereal crops provides clues about agricultural traits critical for adapting plants to climate change. Comparing individual cells across corn, sorghum, and millet reveals evolutionary differences among…
Silicon fertilization increases wheat yields and water availability
For the first time, the effects of silicon fertilization on wheat yields were investigated for a study led by the Leibniz Center for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) and published in…
Fungal infections of crops threaten global food security
In Nature, Eva Stukenbrock from Kiel University and Sarah Gurr from University of Exeter warn of the devastating consequences of fungal diseases. Worldwide, growers lose between 10 and 23 per…
Tackling counterfeit seeds with “unclonable” labels
Fake seeds can cost farmers more than two-thirds of expected crop yields and threaten food security. Trackable silk labels could help. Average crop yields in Africa are consistently far below…
Forests mapped from space
The Thünen Institute of Forest Ecosystems publishes for the first time national forest maps of Germany based on current satellite imagery and terrestrial data from the 2012 National Forest Inventory….
Wheeled robot measures leaf angles to help breed better corn plants
Researchers from North Carolina State University and Iowa State University have demonstrated an automated technology capable of accurately measuring the angle of leaves on corn plants in the field. This…
