As fresh water resources become scarce, one option for water-conscious farmers is to water crops with treated wastewater. This effluent is becoming a more popular option for applications that don’t require drinking-quality water. However, there are still questions about how the effluent interacts with and affects the rest of the ecosystem. Researchers set out to follow the environmental paths of pharmaceutical and personal care products found in effluent when it is used to spray irrigate wheat crops.
Researchers have found the molecular marker -- a pattern in the plant's natural DNA -- for calcium in potatoes. This will save time in breeding high-quality, high-calcium potatoes that resist rot.
The Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) is sending ten graduate students to Zambia to learn more about dry bean research and increase international knowledge of this important crop. CSSA worked in collaboration with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Feed the Future’s Knowledge-Driven Agricultural Development (KDAD) project to select and fund the students.
A new variety of upright pinto bean, Long’s Peak, combines upright architecture with high yields, excellent seed color and weight, and resistance to several diseases such as common rust. The International Year of Pulses coincidentally highlights the importance of this and other beans for the health of the soil -- and humans.
Intentionally or unintentionally, many gardeners have left plants in their gardens over the winter. The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) February 15 Soils Matter blog post explains this is actually a good thing… and something everyone should consider on a yearly basis.
Chicago’s history of industrialization and urbanization left its mark on the soil. Soil acts as a sponge, and can host contaminants for years. In Chicago, the waste from industrial manufacturing causes undesirable toxic organic chemicals, heavy metals, and other chemicals to linger in the soil. This can pose problems for the health of the humans and plants that inhabit the land years later.
A non-profit youth development center hopes to repurpose lots into useful spaces for the community. However, the poor quality soils in the lots create challenges.
Cotton's genetic history is full of surprises. From transoceanic travels to inter-species cross-breedings, cotton’s story is one of plant and seed survival, adaptation, and human cultivation. What started as a naturally tough, unspinnable fiber has been transformed into something most folks adore for its soft, comforting feel.
Andean beans (for example, red kidney beans) were overlooked by researchers because other beans were easier to breed. However, researchers took notice of the Andean bean. They recognized its potential to play a role in feeding the world.
Changes in how land is used are inevitable. Those that work the land are making decisions about what rangeland to make into cropland--and vice versa. When it comes to these land use changes, the smartest decisions are driven by data. To assist, researchers have developed a "measurement approach...above dispute" for gathering land use data.
Discerning consumers are turning to Old World grains like spelt, emmer, and einkorn. However, reviving ancient grains in modern times isn't without its challenges. Researchers hope to learn more about how to best grow these grains on modern farms, and how to best use them in modern baking.
Typically, organic growers plant pulse crops solely for their nitrogen-fixing ability and use them as green manure. The research compared this green manure technique to a traditional program of growing the beans to maturity for harvest and sale. This research has multiple benefits: saving money on the cost of fertilizer, and reducing the chances that excess nitrogen fertilizer will run off into nearby water bodies.
Creating effective bioretention systems requires understanding, and being able to design, a living system. This has been one of the issues preventing more communities from installing these green systems.The researchers evaluated soil mixtures for their ability to rapidly filter water, filter contaminants, and support plant growth.
There’s more to an ecosystem than the visible plants and animals. The soil underneath is alive with vital microbes. They make sure nutrients from dead plant and animal material are broken down and made useable by other plants. This completes the process of nutrient cycling and carbon storage.
Scientists are learning more about how important these microbes are. But how do changes in temperature and precipitation levels affect microbes? And will that affect carbon storage?
Every city has abandoned industrial sites. Encouraging life to return to these barren areas is a challenge. It requires a healthy topsoil for plants and animals to flourish. Cities, with their heavily compacted and often contaminated soils, often struggle to restore blighted spaces. Quality soil is necessary—but not abundant in cities. Enter biosolids.
French fry lovers, beware! You may be exposed to a chemical more commonly associated with heavy industry than crispy fried potatoes. Fortunately, researchers are finding ways to reduce that exposure.
Urban environments struggle with contaminated water running off, causing pollution and algal blooms. In response, cities often use natural landscapes of soil, grasses, and trees. These biofiltration systems capture and filter the runoff. Australian researchers measured how well tree species grew when watered with stormwater, and how well they took extra nutrients out of the stormwater.
Urbanization is known to degrade the quality of soil. Researchers compared the soil under residential prairie gardens to the soil under the adjacent lawns to see if there were any differences.
Manure management is serious business for a meat-hungry world. A single cow, depending on its size, can generate between 43 and 120 pounds of manure a day. Cow manure can be a low-cost fertilizer for farmers’ crops. But manure can also host antimicrobial resistant bacteria. Researchers have been testing creative ways to target antimicrobial resistance genes in manure.
In the recent sci-fi hit, The Martian, the main character, astronaut Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon), manages to grow potatoes on the planet with a mix of ingenuity, science, and a bit of Hollywood make-believe. Could it work?
Beavers, once valued for their fur, may soon have more appreciation in the Northeastern United States. There they are helping prevent harmful levels of nitrogen from reaching the area’s vulnerable estuaries. By creating ponds that slow down the movement of water, they aid in removing nitrogen from the water.
Spring flooding. Droughts in July. These are the climate factors our nation’s growers must face each year. Scientists and farmers are creating public-private partnerships that address large scale improvements in agricultural resilience. One key area of focus? Soil health. To discuss this crucial topic, the Synergy in Science ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, MN will hold a “Public Private Partnerships to Improve Soil Health and Agronomic Resiliency” symposium. The symposium will be held Monday, November 16, 2015. Synergy in Science meeting is sponsored jointly by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America.
Trees may be the overlooked workhorses of green infrastructure. In a study published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, these tree species were the best at removing storm water from bioswales and back into the atmosphere—a process known as water cycling.
Crop advisers identify features such as disease, nutrient deficiencies, and plant injury quickly and accurately in order to maximize field production. Undergraduate students of agronomy, crops, and soils will demonstrate this skill during the Crops Competition Showcase at the Synergy in Science ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, MN, on Monday, November 16, 2015.
Wheat is vulnerable. Among the most damaging diseases that affect wheat crops across the world are rusts. These parasites cannot grow without infecting a host plant, and are responsible for some of the greatest destructions of crops in human history. Breeders have recently released a cultivar of winter wheat – TAM 305 – that is resistant to many of the rust fungi.
Peat is currently a major component of many potting soil blends. Peat is the layered accumulation of partially degraded organic material over hundreds of years. But in some parts of the world, peatland habitats are shrinking. The harvest of peat may also release additional carbon, contributing to climate change. Efforts are underway to find suitable replacements—a considerable challenge given the airy, absorptive nature of peat that is ideal for plant growth.
The “Upper Midwest Organic Agriculture Tour” planned at the Synergy in Science ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, MN, will highlight the Twin Cities’ thriving local and organic food system.