This work has powerful implications for efforts to increase the yield of basic food crops like maize
and other food crops and toward corn cobs stalks and other non-food plant material.
and other food crops for fuel production may raise food prices or lead to shortages of food.
However that currently requires special processing to break down the tough lignocellulose material in plant waste and other crops such as switchgrass grown specifically for ethanol production.
Some estimates put the value of honeybees in pollinating fruit vegetable and other crops at almost $15 billion annually Fell said.
and vegetable crops around the country in an approach known as managed pollination It involves placing bee hives in fields
when crops are ready for pollination. The biggest impacts from decreased hive numbers will be felt by farmers producing crops with high pollination requirements such as almonds.
Consumers may see a lowered availability of certain fruits and vegetables and some higher costs explained Fell.
and personal care products (PPCPS) in crops irrigated with recycled sewage water scientists reported in Indianapolis today at the 246th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
The levels of pharmaceuticals and personal care products that we found in food crops growing under real-world conditions were quite low and most likely do not pose any health concern said Jay Gan Ph d. who led the study.
because drought and water shortages in the American southwest and in other arid parts of the world are using water recycled from municipal sewage treatment plants to irrigate food crops as the only option Water from toilets
and environmental effects of those residual PPCPS especially over whether they might accumulate to dangerous levels in food crops.
Previous studies on PPCPS in food crops were small in scale and conducted in laboratories or greenhouses.
Gan said his team was the first to focus on 20 PPCPS in multiple crops under realistic field conditions.
Xiaoqin Wu a postdoctoral student in Gan's lab who gave the ACS presentation said all the crops absorbed PPCPS including a medication for epilepsy;
They pointed out that irrigation of food crops with treated wastewater is established a well practice in some desert countries.
or more in some areas and crop yields have suffered according to experts. The problems associated with herbicide-resistant weeds are spreading
It crowds out crops and drains moisture and nutrients from the soil. Resistant plants thrive
When those measures fail farmers are turning to cover crops to block weed growth and tilling the soil to kill emerged weeds
And they include crop seeds with genetic traits that enable farmers to apply herbicides to their fields without harming the crops.
and used as a soil conditioner for producing more PSPS or other crops. Such processes could encourage development of a domestic natural food coloring industry with agriculture spreads devoted specifically to growing foods for use in making food and beverage coloring.
An unexpected consequence of the payouts was that some farmers flush with cash over-fertilized their fields to boost crop yields.
and cauliflower) industrial crops forage crops (alfalfa and barely) and highway landscapes may be irrigated with treated wastewater in Kuwait.
which crops may be irrigated with wastewater. Direct use of untreated wastewater is also common in India where in 1985 an estimated 73000 ha were irrigated with wastewater.
but similar programs are not available for those who grow biomass crops such as Miscanthus. A University of Illinois study recommends a framework for contracts between growers
and costs associated with these new perennial energy crops. The current biomass market operates more along the lines of a take-it
The perennial nature of biomass crops also makes developing contracts challenging. We're in a unique environment
Crop insurance is not currently available for farmers who grow biomass crops so they take on additional risk.
Likewise landowners see high prices for traditional commodity crops and do not want to be locked into a multi-year contract with a lessee to grow a perennial biomass crop.
Estimates suggest that the United states wastes about 40 percent of food crops. The problem is especially acute in China.
but never eaten--a volume equal to the amount of water Canadian farmers use to grow all their crops.
Currently 10-16%of global crop production is lost to pests. Crop pests include fungi bacteria viruses insects nematodes viroids and oomycetes.
Losses of major crops to fungi and fungi-like microorganisms amount to enough to feed nearly nine percent of today's global population.
and the increased loss of crops to pests will pose a serious threat to global food security.
if we are to halt the relentless destruction of crops across the world in the face of climate change.
--and how reducing use would affect cattle and crops. The aquifer supplies 30 percent of the nation's irrigated groundwater
and the effect it will have to cattle and crops. According to their model researchers estimated that 3 percent of the aquifer's water had been used by 1960.
and more total crop production from each unit of water because those efficiencies are projected to increase in the future.
This study provides a promising approach for detecting the contamination of silver nanoparticles in food crops
and biofuel crops could be grown and maintained in many places where it wasn't previously possible such as deserts landfills
The mixture permits a controlled release of nutrients the regulation of water and an ideal environment for growing crops.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge have demonstrated that with the addition of the biofertiliser biofuel crops can be grown successfully
and crop yields helping global food supply keep pace with population growth. However this has come at a cost as they are detrimental to long-term soil health.
Previously you'd douse crops with chemicals and it's caused a huge reduction in soil microbial diversity.
and enables you to grow crops on almost any type of soil. The team has plans to commercialise the material where there are large deposits of zeolite and export it to other markets.
and urban areas and to enhance pollination services for crops and biodiversity. Under current agri-environment schemes the UK Government pays farmers to manage their land for the benefit of particular habitats
Bumblebees are among the most important pollinators of many food crops and wild plants. The next stage of the research is to use mathematical models to produce a bees'eye view of the landscape.
Sugars derived from the grain of agricultural crops can be used to produce biofuel but these crops occupy fertile soils needed for food and feed production.
Fast growing plants such as poplar eucalyptus or various grass residues such as corn stover and sugarcane bagasse do not compete
These new insights published this week online in Science Express can now be used to screen natural populations of energy crops such as poplar eucalyptus switchgrass or other grass species for a nonfunctional CSE gene.
Alternatively the expression of CSE can be engineered genetically in energy crops. A reduced amount of lignin or an adapted lignin structure can contribute to a more efficient conversion of biomass to energy.
#How will crops fare under climate change? Depends on how you askthe damage scientists expect climate change to do to crop yields can differ greatly depending on
which type of model was used to make those projections according to research based at Princeton university. The problem is that the most dire scenarios can loom large in the minds of the public
and wheat crops in South africa--the world's ninth largest maize producer and Sub-saharan africa's second largest source of wheat--would fare under climate change in the years 2046 to 2065.
Simply put empirical models are built by finding the relationship between observed crop yields and historical environmental conditions while mechanistic models are built on the physiological understanding of how the plant grows
or niche that crops and other species occupy Estes said. Using them together gives us a better sense of the range of uncertainty in the projections
Using satellite imagery the researchers were able to discriminate irrigated crops from non-irrigated crops by their spectral signature.
Suggested responsecarey said that an immediate assessment should be made of the economic impact of having each species established in the state projecting the individual and collective effects of the fruit flies for all affected California fruit and vegetable crops.
Demand for crops is expected to double by 2050 as population grows and increasing affluence boosts meat consumption.
In addition crops are increasingly being used for biofuels rather than food production. This study sought to quantify the benefit to food security that would accrue
and productivity of 41 major crops between 1997 and 2003 adjusting numbers for imports and exports and calculating conversion efficiencies of animal feed using U s. Department of agriculture data.
because breeders and seed companies want to be able to alter plant architecture to optimise the performance of crops.
#World-changing technology enables crops to take nitrogen from the aira major new technology has been developed by The University of Nottingham
which enables all of the world's crops to take nitrogen from the air rather than expensive and environmentally damaging fertilisers.
and for most crops currently being grown across the world this also means a reliance on synthetic nitrogen fertiliser.
and can be applied to all crops. Over the last 10 years The University of Nottingham has conducted a series of extensive research programmes
There is a substantial global market for the N-Fix technology as it can be applied globally to all crops.
#Common agricultural chemicals shown to impair honey bees healthcommercial honey bees used to pollinate crops are exposed to a wide variety of agricultural chemicals including common fungicides
The study published July 24 in the online journal PLOS ONE is the first analysis of real-world conditions encountered by honey bees as their hives pollinate a wide range of crops from apples to watermelons.
and other crops and the insecticide fluvalinate used by beekeepers to control Varroa mites common honey bee pests.
In an unexpected finding most of the crops that the bees were pollinating appeared to provide their hives with little nourishment.
But when the researchers collected pollen from bees foraging on native North american crops such as blueberries and watermelon they found the pollen came from other flowering plants in the area not from the crops.
which evolved in the Old world are not efficient at collecting pollen from New world crops even though they can pollinate these crops.
The study's findings are not directly related to colony collapse disorder the still-unexplained phenomenon in which entire honey bee colonies suddenly die.
which is applied to crops as a natural insecticide on some organic farms and Cryb proteins have been engineered into food crops such as corn
and rice to render them pest resistant. As shown for the first time in this paper Cry5b can also be expressed in a species of bacterium Bacillus subtilis which is closely related to Bacillus thuringiensis and
and replaced by single-species plantations of oil palm rubber trees and crops for biofuels. The authors warn that such plantations greatly reduce areas available for seed dispersing wildlife.
and food crops than was realized previously. The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded the study co-authored by ecologist Heather Briggs of the University of California-Santa cruz. About 90 percent of plants need animals mostly insects to transfer pollen between them
For those two key crops a computer model could predict crop failures three months in advance for about 20 percent of global cropland according to the study published July 21 in Nature Climate Change.
The team studied four crops--corn soybeans wheat and rice--but the model proved most useful for wheat and rice.
and grow more productive crops than a farmer planting low-yielding varieties one seed at a time.
For particular crops in particular places it makes a huge difference especially with wheat Brown said.
While climate's role in crop yields and failures may seem intuitive it's difficult to demonstrate in part because of the overwhelming influence of social and economic factors Brown said.
But integrating climate and economic predictions can lead to a better understanding of crop yields and failures--especially in a changing climate.
The change of balance is likely to be marked even more in the field where crops are grown for months rather than weeks.
John Innes Centre scientists are already investigating the possibility of engineering cereal crops able to associate with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria normally associated with peas.
While wild species of bees and other insects pollinate many crops commercially-reared and imported bumblebees are essential for pollination of greenhouse crops such as tomatoes.
They are used also to enhance pollination of other food crops such as strawberries and are marketed now for use in people s gardens.
The trade is large and widespread: 40-50000 commercially-produced bumblebee colonies#each containing up to 100 worker bees#are imported annually to the UK
Because the weedy forms are closely related to rice varieties that were grown never in the U s. they probably arrived as contaminants in grain stocks from Asia instead of evolving directly from the tropical japonica crops grown here.
whether crops to wild forms by reversing the genetic changes that resulted in their domestication
which means that they branched off from the crops sometime after people selected for loss of shattering.
Weeds stealing crop genesthe most important part of this story Olsen says is that the genetic histories of the crops
and watered their crops as early as 6000 BC. It had always been assumed that manure wasn't used as a fertiliser until Iron age and Roman times.
The study suggests that Neolithic farmers used the dung from their herds of cattle sheep goats and pigs as a slow release fertiliser for crops.
and crops benefit from its nutrients over many years. This new theory indicates a long-term approach to farming.
and burn to create temporary farmland for agricultural crops. It is undisputed that the adoption of farming had a long-term impact on society.
but rich fertile land would have been viewed as extremely valuable for the growing of crops. We believe that as land was viewed as a commodity to be inherited social differences in early European farming communities started to emerge between the haves and the have-nots.'
The charred remains represent harvested crops preserved in Neolithic houses destroyed by fire. The samples were from archaeological excavations of Neolithic sites across Europe dating from nearly 6000 to 2400 BC.
and pulse crops is much higher than previously thought and that Neolithic crops were a staple part of their diet.
The crop nitrogen isotope analysis suggests that early farmers in Europe used their manure strategically as a resource that was limited by the number of animals they owned
The study points out that there is evidence that the farmers carefully selected crops that would most benefit from fertiliser leaving hardier crops to grow with little or no manure.
This demonstrates a knowledge of growing crops that has been acknowledged little until now. The cereal and pulse samples were taken from sites spread across Europe:
#Trade-offs between food security and climate change mitigation exploredimproving crop yields using sustainable methods could cut greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 12%per calorie produced according to a new study published in the journal Environmental
The study found that increasing livestock yields was more effective at reducing greenhouse gas emissions than increasing yields from crops that people eat.
Overall closing yield gaps by 50%for crops and 25%for livestock would lead to a 12%savings in greenhouse gas emission per calorie produced.
and outcomes--in this case scenarios allow researchers to look at future food production both from crops
and genetically modifying crops according to a Forum article published in the August issue of Bioscience.
and insect-resistant crops based on RNA interference now in exploratory development may have to be tested under elaborate procedures that assess effects on animals'whole life cycles rather than by methods that look for short-term toxicity.
The hope is that interfering RNAS might be applied to crops or that crops might be engineered genetically to make interfering RNAS harmful to their pests thus increasing crop yields.
The safety concern as with other types of genetic modification and with pesticides generally is that the artificial interfering RNAS will also harm desirable insects or other animals.
The parasitic fungus afflicts crops such as wheat and barley and is responsible for large harvest shortfalls every year.
Sex still worthwhilebased on the gene analyses the scientists were also able to prove that mildew already lived parasitically on the ancestral form of wheat 10000 years ago before wheat were domesticated actually as crops.
None of the subsequent genetic changes in the crops due to breeding or spontaneous mutations was ever able to keep the mildew fungus away from wheat in the longer term.
and crops but this research shows they can be equally damaging in natural systems. If invasive species like the Spanish slug establish in the UK it will move the battle against slugs to a much higher level.
but also in the short term by improving the nutrient content of commonly produced crops.''''Sustainability requires consideration of economic environmental and social priorities'added Dr Michael Appleby of the World Society for the Protection of Animals.'
and crop production will benefit animals people and the planet.''Agriculture is a potent sector for economic growth and rural development in many countries across Africa Asia and South america.
which are all wild ancestors of modern crops. These and many other species are present in large numbers starting in the lowest deposits horizon XI dating to the end of the last Ice age roughly 11700 years ago.
Technologies that improve animal performance crop yields and manure management and the installation of biogas recovery systems have contributed all to reducing the environmental impact of beef.
#Mapping the benefits of our ecosystemswe rely on our physical environment for many things--clean water land for crops or pastures storm water absorption and recreation among others.
Some of those interactions were not surprising--for example higher levels of crop production were associated generally with poorer surface and ground water quality.
Even in the expected tradeoff between crop production and water quality the researchers found something unexpected.
There is a strong tradeoff between crop production and surface and groundwater quality Qiu says. But despite this there are still some locations that can be high for all three services--exceptions that can produce high crop yield and good water quality in general.
and proximity to streams with riparian vegetation may contribute to maintaining both crop production and good water quality.
and strategies that protect the world's food crops against the wheat stem rust pathogen that is spreading from Africa to the breadbaskets of Asia
However the emergence of strain Ug99 in Uganda in 1999 devastated crops and has spread to Kenya Ethiopia Sudan
and some growers apply large quantities of numerous pesticides to deter a wide range of animals and insects from encroaching on their crops.
and some growers apply large quantities of numerous pesticides to deter a wide range of animals and insects from encroaching on their crops.
or other crops said Julin Maloof professor of plant biology in the College of Biological sciences at the University of California Davis. Maloof is senior author on the study published June 24 in the journal Proceedings
and did indeed inhibit the growth of staple crops wheat corn and soybeans. The chemical-specific changes in the soil microbial community generated a negative feedback on crop growth the scientists said noting that the chemicals also would have a direct toxic effect on other plants.
and Melinda Gates Foundation into whether light and other stimuli like touch may be used to enhance pest resistance of food crops in developing countries.
and wheat in hopes of creating new crops. That can be done if the different species are related closely
Several of the species from the family have economic importance with their larva living in the soil and feeding on the bases of some crops such as lettuce and cabbage.
whose residence is near crops and/or from Sabadell or Valencia are the most likely to use household pesticides Llop asserts.
and found that yields of four key crops--maize rice wheat and soybean--are increasing 0. 9-1. 6 percent every year.
At these rates production of these crops would likely increase 38-67 percent by 2050 rather than the estimated requirement of 60-110 percent.
The top three countries that produce rice and wheat were found to have very low rates of increase in crop yields.
The authors explain that boosting crop yields is considered a preferred solution to meet demands rather than clearing more land for agriculture.
If we are to boost production in these key crops to meet projected needs we have no time to waste.
when they leave the fieldshot weather may be the work environment for the 1. 4 million farmworkers in the United states who harvest crops
#Black locust tree shows promise for biomass potentialresearchers from the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of Illinois evaluating the biomass potential of woody crops are taking a closer look at the black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) which showed a higher yield
and his team's role in the EBI's feedstock production/agronomy program is to improve the production aspects of bioenergy crops.
which short-rotation woody crops grow best in the Midwest. Robinia pseudoacacia is showing great potential as a biomass crop for Midwestern energy production out-yielding the next closest species by nearly threefold Kling said.
We picked the best crops and moved those forward. Other crops may catch up but black locust was the fastest out of the gate.
We will pursue other crops as well for a number of years but we want to move to the next step
which is improved on to selections. As part of the initial study two-year old seedlings were planted in the spring of 2010 grown over the summers of 2010 and 2011
which is comparable to woody crops such as the willow. After that first coppicing in February 2012 and then after last year's very early spring the black locust was growing quite rapidly.
This spring a preliminary check on the black locust crops which included harvesting 3 plants from the edge of the field produced a yield of 12 to 13 mega grams per hectare (Mg ha-1)
Based on these encouraging findings Kling said two new experiments were started this spring through the EBI both looking at different germplasm for black locust crops.
In the current study researchers provided most of the nutrients to crops in the reduced-input watersheds by planting red clover and spreading manure instead of fertilizers.
and their tradeoffs provide a basis for farmers to choose a crop management system that is best for them their crops and their land.
When Bt crops were introduced first the main question was how quickly would pests adapt and evolve resistance said Tabashnik head of the UA department of entomology who led the study.
Now with a billion acres of these crops planted over the past 16 years and with the data accumulated over that period we have a better scientific understanding of how fast the insects evolve resistance and why.
Analyzing data from 77 studies of 13 pest species in eight countries on five continents the researchers found well-documented cases of field-evolved resistance to Bt crops in five major pests
but in the best cases effectiveness of Bt crops has been sustained more than 15 years. According to the paper both the best and worst outcomes correspond with predictions from evolutionary principles.
The factors we found to favor sustained efficacy of Bt crops are in line with what we would expect based on evolutionary theory said Carriã re explaining that conditions are most favorable
Planting refuges near Bt crops reduces the chances that two resistant insects will mate with each other making it more likely they will breed with a susceptible mate yielding offspring that are killed by the Bt crop.
One of the paper's main conclusions is that evaluating two factors can help to gauge the risk of resistance before Bt crops are commercialized.
Two leading experts on Bt crops welcomed publication of the study. Kongming Wu director of the Institute for Plant Protection at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing said This review paper will be very helpful for understanding insect resistance in agricultural systems
and improving strategies to sustain the effectiveness of Bt crops. Fred Gould professor of entomology at North carolina State university commented:
what we know about resistance to transgenic insecticidal crops. Although the new report is the most comprehensive evaluation of pest resistance to Bt crops so far Tabashnik emphasized that it represents only the beginning of using systematic data analyses to enhance understanding and management of resistance.
These plants have been remarkably useful and in most cases resistance has evolved slower than expected Tabashnik said.
I see these crops as an increasingly important part of the future of agriculture. The progress made provides motivation to collect more data
. However recently there has been a lot of concern that the decline of pollinators might result in pollination limitation of insect-pollinated crops.
All you have to do to enhance the wild pollinators of crops on farmland is increase flower abundance in field margins roadsides or crop edges.'
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