In a changing climate, corn growers need to be ready for anything, including new and shifting disease dynamics. Because it’s impossible to predict which damaging disease will pop up in a given year, corn with resistance to multiple diseases would be a huge win for growers.
Tag: CORN
Ohio’s droughts are worse than often recognized, study finds
A new type of analysis suggests that droughts in Ohio were more severe from 2000 to 2019 than standard measurements have suggested.
Sweet corn yield at the mercy of the environment, except for one key factor
A new analysis from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the USDA-Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has identified the top factors accounting for yield variability in processing sweet corn (used for canned and frozen products), including one within the control of processors.
Canned, frozen corn industry struggling across US growing regions
For those whose primary experience with corn is the butter-drenched cob variety, it might come as a surprise that other forms of sweet corn are in trouble. A new University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign analysis shows sweet corn production for frozen and canned products has been steadily shrinking in the U.S. over the past 27 years, particularly in rainfed portions of the Midwest.
ISU scientists exploit genetic mutation to accelerate plant breeding process
Iowa State University researchers may have solved a long-standing challenge associated with accelerated development of pure genetic lines.
Multistate project aims to diversify Corn Belt
With a five-year, $10 million federal grant, a team of researchers from Iowa, Indiana and Illinois are working to plant the seeds for greater crop diversity in the Midwest.
A new alliance: Corn with tillers work well together in restrictive environments
Field experiments finds that tillers improve corn’s resilience to environmental conditions in Argentina without negatively impacting yield
Why interseeding might be the boost cover crops need
Cover crops are an effective tool to keep nutrients on farmland during the winter season. Research reveals that planting the cover crops before harvesting cash crops could maximize their beneficial effects
IAFNS Research Assistant Develops Videos on Bulk Sampling Tool for Food Safety
IAFNS Research Assistant advances food safety sampling efforts with instructive videos for new bulk product sampling tool.
Will climate change increase the risk of aflatoxin in U.S. corn?
As climate change continues to alter weather patterns around the planet including the Midwest, researchers at Michigan State University are modeling the impact on crops such as corn.
Global climate change impacts on crops expected within 10 years
Climate change may affect the production of maize (corn) and wheat by 2030 if current trends continue, according to a new international study.
Corn’s genetic diversity on display in new genome study
A new study details the genomes of 26 lines of corn from across the globe. The genomes can help scientists piece together the puzzle of corn genetics. Using these new genomes as references, plant scientists can better select for genes likely to lead to better crop yields or stress tolerance.
The best bioenergy crops for the North Carolina Piedmont
Research shows options with high yield and low water use
Sensing what plants sense: Integrated framework helps scientists explain biology and predict crop performance
Scientists have invested great time and effort into making connections between a crop’s genotype and its phenotype. But environmental conditions play a role as well. Iowa State University researchers untangle those complex interactions with the help of advanced data analytics in a newly published study.
Benefits of wheat in corn-soybean crop rotations
Adding wheat can boost yields, increase economic return, and improve soil
The fight against Palmer amaranth
Nebraska research team helps identify the best weed control program to help farmers control Palmer amaranth in soybean fields
Ag experts available as spring planting approaches
Chad Hart, professor of economics and grain markets specialist, Iowa State University 515-294-9911, [email protected] Corn and soybean prices have risen 50-60% from where they’ve been over the past few years, and Hart said that will incentivize farmers across the country…
Making sense of a universe of corn genetics
A new study details the latest efforts to predict traits in corn based on genomics and data analytics. The data management technique could help to “turbo charge” the seemingly endless amount of genetic stocks contained in the world’s seed banks, leading to faster and more efficient development of new crop varieties.
Upcoming symposium highlighting advances in nutrient stewardship
The 4 R’s Advances in Primary Research of Nutrient Stewardship
How does growing corn in perennial groundcover work?
High yields, conservation benefits seen from well-managed perennial groundcover
Plant scientists use robotics to study the interaction of heat stress responses in corn
A new study shows how two responses in separate locations inside plant cells work in concert to help corn plants respond to heat stress. The research was made possible by the Enviratron, an innovative plant sciences facility at Iowa State University that utilizes a robotic rover and highly controlled growth chambers.
FSU workshop on maize genome profiling leads to new study on corn flowering
A genomic mapping technique developed in part at Florida State University has played a crucial role in a new study aimed at understanding growth in corn, a major U.S. crop.
Water-Saving Alternative Forage Crops for Texas Livestock
With increasing drought conditions in the Texas High Plains, researchers test sorghum and pearl millet as alternatives to corn
New Research Reveals Regulatory Features Of The Maize Genome During Early Reproductive Development
A team of researchers led by Andrea Eveland, Ph.D., assistant member, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, has mapped out the non-coding, ‘functional’ genome in maize during an early developmental window critical to formation of pollen-bearing tassels and grain-bearing ears.
Tillage and cover cropping effects on grain production
Soybean yields decreased when planted after cereal rye
Study gauges insecticide effects on monarch butterflies
A newly published study sheds light on how insecticides commonly applied to crops affect monarch caterpillars. Conservation efforts to protect monarch butterfly populations depend on planting milkweed on agricultural land, but doing so may put caterpillars in close proximity to harmful insecticides.
How are coastal farmers responding to salty soils?
Saltwater intrusion means farmers must adapt their management practices.
New test measures corn nitrogen needs with greater accuracy
A recently published study analyzed a combination of soil tests to gauge corn nitrogen needs more accurately than the standard chemical tests that have been in use for roughly 50 years. The research could result in economic benefits to farmers and improved environmental quality.
Speedy Recovery: New Corn Performs Better in Cold
Nearly everyone on Earth is familiar with corn. Literally. Around the world, each person eats an average of 70 pounds of the grain each year, with even more grown for animal feed and biofuel.
Diverse cropping systems don’t increase carbon storage compared to corn-soybean rotations
Diversified crop rotations protect water quality and have other environmental benefits, but recent experiments show that farms can’t rely on such rotations to improve carbon storage in the soil. The findings contradict widely held expectations that the extensive root systems of perennials and cover crops would deposit carbon in soils.
How to Make it Easier to Turn Plant Waste into Biofuels
Researchers have developed a new process that could make it much cheaper to produce biofuels such as ethanol from plant waste and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Their approach, featuring an ammonia-salt based solvent that rapidly turns plant fibers into sugars needed to make ethanol, works well at close to room temperature, unlike conventional processes, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Green Chemistry.
Two Rutgers Professors Named Fellows of AAAS
Two Rutgers professors have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) this year, an honor awarded to AAAS members by their peers. They join 441 other AAAS members named new fellows because of their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. The fellows will be presented an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin on Feb. 15 at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the 2020 AAAS Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington.
Corn and soybean rotation could pose long-term tradeoffs for soil health
A new study examines the mechanisms that drive the decomposition of organic matter in soils that undergo long-term corn and soybean crop rotations. The study shows how corn and soybean rotations can provide important environmental and management benefits for farmers, but the practice also comes with tradeoffs that some farmers may wish to address by adjusting their management practices.
Maturity becomes a concern as corn harvest approaches
Iowans may notice combines harvesting corn deep into November due to the late start to planting last spring, according to Iowa State University agronomists. Much of the Iowa corn crop remains weeks behind schedule, and farmers will be paying close attention to temperature as their crop nears maturity and dries down.