Month: July 2019

Minnesota farmer Lance Petersen estimates he saved between 10% and 15% on his seed corn for 2019 by buying all of it online. Like many farmers, Petersen was unable to plant all his corn acres and now has carryover for next season. But Petersen is undaunted and says the savings from buying online outweigh the… Continue reading Rewards and risks of buying seed online

Using a seed blend refuge is not as good as a structured refuge, but it can slow the development of resistance. ( Farm Journal ) Since 1996, corn and cotton farmers have rapidly adopted the use of Bt crops. They could plant and rest, knowing the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) protein would protect their crop from… Continue reading Corn seed blend refuge isn’t the most effective option

Singapore’s first seed bank was officially launched on Saturday (Jul 13), as part of efforts to protect local and regional plant diversity against threats like climate change and habitat loss. The Singapore Botanic Gardens Seed Bank, set up by the National Parks Board (NParks) in House 4 – the largest of the five colonial-style houses… Continue reading Singapore opens first seed bank to protect regional plant diversity against climate change

Hidden underground networks of plant roots snake through the earth foraging for nutrients and water, similar to a worm searching for food. Yet, the genetic and molecular mechanisms that govern which parts of the soil roots explore remain largely unknown. Now, Salk Institute researchers have discovered a gene that determines whether roots grow deep or… Continue reading Gene identified that will help develop plants to fight climate change

A vegetable-picking robot that uses machine learning to identify and harvest a commonplace, but challenging, agricultural crop has been developed by engineers. The ‘Vegebot’, developed by a team at the University of Cambridge, was initially trained to recognise and harvest iceberg lettuce in a lab setting. It has now been successfully tested in a variety… Continue reading Robot uses machine learning to harvest lettuce

Cowpea seeds in a range of coat colors, patterns, sizes and shapes. (TJ Close/UCR) UC Riverside scientists have decoded the genome of black-eyed peas, offering hope for feeding Earth’s expanding population, especially as the climate changes. Understanding the genes responsible for the peas’ drought and heat tolerance eventually could help make other crops tougher too.… Continue reading Scientists decode DNA secrets of world’s toughest bean

Researchers in Japan have successfully edited plant mitochondrial DNA for the first time. A mitochondrial gene that causes cytoplasmic male infertility was deleted using a mitoTALENs technique. Infertile rice (right) stands straight, but fertile rice (left) bends under the weight of heavy seeds. Credit: Tomohiko Kazama, CC-BY Researchers in Japan have edited plant mitochondrial DNA… Continue reading Researchers can finally modify plant mitochondrial DNA

Molecular biologist James Giovannoni of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Plant, Soil and Nutrition Research Laboratory in Ithaca, New York, studies how fruit ripening is controlled genetically in tomatoes. | USDA photo Previously unknown genes, including some for flavour, were missing from the original genome map done in 2012 If you think that store-bought tomatoes… Continue reading Genomic project discovers new tomato genes

Chinese agricultural scientists using gene-editing technology have created new soybean mutants, which could lead to soybean crops in much warmer climates including South China and countries near the Equator. To create the soybean mutants, research teams from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences knocked out two genes using the gene-editing tool known as CRISPR, Hou… Continue reading Gene editing expands soybean planting in China

After decades chasing the enormous China market, a sale of U.S. rice was confirmed here last week. “This sale marks a turning point for the U.S. rice industry and its relationship with China as it is the first ever of U.S. rice to a private importer and is truly historic as it sets the stage… Continue reading China imports its first rice from US ever