Feature Channels: Plants

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Upper Midwest grower network data studied by research group

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Argonne study shows that carbon emissions that come from making ethanol can cultivate algae which in turn can be used to make biofuel.

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It cakes our cars in yellow powder every spring and taunts allergy sufferers for months on end, but pollen is more than just plant sperm. New research from the University of Georgia has determined when pollen comes of age and begins expressing its own genome, a major life cycle transition in plants.

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The humble pine tree is more than just a common sight in North Carolina – it’s also a handy tool for monitoring the proliferation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the state over time.

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Medicine has a broad repertoire of anaesthetics at its medication allows patients to better endure painful treatments or even sleep through them.

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A drop in the total number of rainy days each year is contributing to an earlier arrival of spring for plants in northern climates, a new study finds.

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A precise approach to selecting and planting cover crops that considers variability within a field will produce better results for farmers.

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The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center announced today that Armando Bravo, PhD, has joined as Assistant Member and Principal Investigator.

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Fusarium is one of the most important fungal plant pathogens, affecting the cultivation of a wide range of crops.

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Recovered phosphorus from wastewater can be reused on farmland

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An international team of researchers found that the distribution of mutations is skewed toward areas of the genome that are less likely to cause harm and more likely to benefit the organism.

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Scientists share best practices for testing seed quality and breaking dormancy

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New research from the University of Georgia has shown, for the first time, that compounds used to fight fungal diseases in plants are causing resistance to antifungal medications used to treat people.

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The Danforth Center announced the establishment of the Danforth Technology Company (DTC), a wholly-owned C Corporation to facilitate the creation of startup companies from technologies developed by Danforth Center scientists.

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Scientists have long hypothesized that climate change, by intensifying stressors like drought or wildfires, would make an ecosystem more vulnerable to invasive plants. Those invasive plants may in turn alter the environment in ways that amplify the impacts of climate change, explained Luke Flory, a professor of ecology in the UF/IFAS agronomy department. A new long-term field study conducted by Flory’s lab offers the first experimental evidence to support this hypothesis.

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Scientists seek answers through research, but sometimes, a lack of findings can be good news. A recent University of Florida-led study involving tree diseases uncovered no remarkable threats to common Southeastern United States trees, and the lead researcher says to file it as a cautiously optimistic “win.”

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Modern agriculture has to produce more food than ever to feed our growing plant, which requires the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides to meet demand. These widespread practices are expensive for farmers while also contributing to climate change through emitting greenhouse gasses.

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Research for this ingredient in traditional St. Patrick’s Day dish

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When it comes to establishing prairies that support pollinators on reclaimed industrial land, a new study suggests native plant diversity matters less than seeding species with the ability to persist in poor soils.

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In a world first discovery, a team of researchers led by the University of South Australia have uncovered that blossom bats play a unique role in the pollination of the Fijian Dillenia biflora trees.

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Associate Professor SUETSUGU Kenji and independent photographer GOMI Koichi have observed a Japanese squirrel (Sciurus lis) routinely feeding on well-known species of poisonous toadstool mushroom, including fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) and panther cap (Amanita pantherina), in Nagano prefecture, Japan.

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Climate change is causing plants in the UK to flower a month earlier on average, which could have profound consequences for wildlife, agriculture and gardeners.

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A new, internet-connected lighting system for greenhouses could sharply reduce a farmer’s electrical bill, according to a study by University of Georgia researchers.

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New research from the University of Delaware examines how staple grains can be used as an effective food group for dietary shifts that can be culturally appropriate as well as environmentally sustainable.

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The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center today announced the election of three new directors to its Board.

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For as much as modern society worships chocolate, cacao — the plant chocolate comes from — was believed to be even more divine to ancient Mayas. The Maya considered cacao beans to be a gift from the gods and even used them as currency because of their value.

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Over 450 prehistoric pots were examined, 66 of them contained traces of lipids, that is, substances insoluble in water.

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Argonne ecologist Julie Jastrow has been named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

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New research looks at why the diversity of soil microbes matter

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Scientists can create synthetic communities of bacteria and other microbes to learn how they affect their plant hosts. New research presents a culture collection of 3,211 individual strains of bacteria from the root community of Populus trees. This huge new collection will help scientists study how microbes can assist plant hosts and may help improve these trees’ resistance to stresses.

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Toni Kutchan, PhD, was elected President of the Board of Trustees of the Academy of Science St. Louis.

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Green spaces in cities have a number of positive effects: they’re good for our physical and mental health, they’re good for the environment, and they can even help fight off the effects of climate change.

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A new study from Iowa State University scientists could help to breed more resilient crops as well as shed light on mechanisms that play a critical role in plant growth. The study focuses on how phenotypic plasticity, or the way a given trait can differ as a result of environmental conditions, influences the growth of sorghum.

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Corn, soybeans play big roles in creating biofuel

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Woods Hole, MA (January 19) -- A global effort to map the genomes of all plants, animals, fungi, and other eukaryotic life (organisms with a cellular nucleus) on Earth is entering a new phase as it moves from pilot projects to full-scale production sequencing. This new phase of the The Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) is marked with a collection of papers published January 17 in Proceedings of the National Academies of Science describing the project’s goals, achievements to date, and next steps. Included among these are an ambitious effort co-led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the University of Connecticut (UConn) to obtain fundamental new knowledge of the organization, evolution, functions, and interactions of life in one of Earth’s least-understood regions: the deep ocean.

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A team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, in co-operation with colleagues from Goethe University, Frankfurt, has uncovered the first insights into the origins of West African plant-based cuisine, locked inside pottery fragments dating back some 3,500 years ago.

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Russian biologists have studied strains of the plant pathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia solani, which causes diseases in potatoes and other plants. Among them, three particularly dangerous strains to be not susceptible to the common fungicide pencycuron and can survive at high temperatures.

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The history of life on Earth has been marked five times by events of mass biodiversity extinction caused by extreme natural phenomena.

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A new Cornell University-led project will accelerate the application of a proven biotechnology to enhance food and nutritional security in Bangladesh and the Philippines while protecting the health of farmers and the environment.

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The word ‘honeydew’ sounds benign, but the sugary waste product of aphids can promote growth of bacteria that are highly virulent to the pests, according to a new Cornell University study.

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Elliott Kellner, PhD, has joined the Center as Senior Program Manager. As part of the Innovation Team, Kellner manages the Danforth Center’s Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2) and Center for AgTech and Location Science Technologies (CATALST) programs.

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Study investigates ecosystem services of five perennial grains as alternatives

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Nutrient stealing, honeydew, and sooty mold among issues

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Recent work shows that the plant microbiome—the microorganisms in a plant and its immediate environment—influences plant health, survival, and fitness. New research on the microbiome of several types of poplar trees found that the composition of the microbiome changed dramatically over time, and the trees’ genetic makeup proved to be less of a factor than researchers had expected.

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A group of grassland scientists will assess how the biodiversity of restoration mixes, specifically species richness, genetic composition and relatedness, may impact soil health and pollinator habitat.

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Gardens in cities provide a long and continuous supply of energy-rich nectar from March to October, scientists at the University of Bristol have found.