Use of antibiotics is under heightened scrutiny due to the increased prevalence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens. While the primary focus is on more stringent use of antibiotics in medical settings, the use of antibiotics in the livestock sector is gaining increased…
Tag: FERTILIZERS/PEST MANAGEMENT
No soil left behind: How a cost-effective technology can enrich poor fields
Smallholder poverty in sub-Saharan Africa is often linked to sandy soils, which hold little water and are low in nutrients. A new technology may be able to enrich fields and farmers without massive investments in irrigation and fertilizer
Pesticide companies leverage regulations for financial gains
PRINCETON, N.J.–Pesticides are present in many food products and play a central role in the production of traded agriculture, giving them global and economic significance — and necessitating proper regulation. Yet, some pesticide companies may put profit ahead of protecting…
Study finds large potential range for invasive spotted lanternfly
Suitable habitat abounds in US and Europe for tree and fruit pest
Complete genome of devastating soybean pathogen assembled
An international research collaboration has successfully assembled the complete genome sequence of the pathogen that causes the devastating disease Asian soybean rust. The research development marks a critical step in addressing the threat of the genetically-complex and highly-adaptive fungus Phakopsora…
Invitation to media: Insect science takes center stage in St. Louis, November 17-20
‘Insect Decline in the Anthropocene’ symposium highlights jam-packed Entomology 2019 schedule
Biologists track the invasion of herbicide-resistant weeds into southwestern Ontario
TORONTO, ON (Canada) – A team including evolutionary biologists from the University of Toronto (U of T) have identified the ways in which herbicide-resistant strains of an invasive weed named common waterhemp have emerged in fields of soy and corn…
Turning up the heat for weed control
Weeds are thieves. They steal nutrients, sunlight and water from our food crops. In the case of sugarcane, yield refers to the amount of biomass and the sucrose concentration of the cane, which ultimately determines the amount of sugar produced.…
Discovery of sorghum gene that controls bird feeding could help protect crops
A single gene in sorghum controls bird feeding behavior by simultaneously regulating the production of bad-tasting molecules and attractive volatiles, according to a study publishing September 23 in the journal Molecular Plant . This gene, called Tannin1, controls the synthesis…
How nitrogen-fixing bacteria sense iron
Researchers at the University of East Anglia have discovered how nitrogen-fixing bacteria sense iron – an essential but deadly micronutrient. Some bacteria naturally fix nitrogen from the soil into a form that plants can use. In nature, most plants get…
Fungicides as an underestimated hazard for freshwater organisms
Fungicides are worldwide used in agriculture. Large amounts of applied fungicides leak into nearby surface waters. The effects of these substances on aquatic organisms are poorly understood and not specifically addressed in the EU regulatory frameworks with respect to the…
Study shows importance of tailoring treatments to clearly defined weed control objectives
WESTMINSTER, Colorado – SEPTEMBER 16, 2019 – A new study in the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management shows that working smarter, not harder, can lead to better control of invasive weeds. And the first step is to clearly define…
Palmer amaranth’s molecular secrets reveal troubling potential
URBANA, Ill. – Corn, soybean, and cotton farmers shudder at the thought of Palmer amaranth invading their fields. The aggressive cousin of waterhemp – itself a formidable adversary – grows extremely rapidly, produces hundreds of thousands of seeds per plant,…
Controversial insecticides shown to threaten survival of wild birds
New research at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) shows how the world’s most widely used insecticides could be partly responsible for a dramatic decline in songbird populations. A study published in the journal Science on Sept. 13 is the first…
Machine learning in agriculture: scientists are teaching computers to diagnose soybean stress
AMES, Iowa – Iowa State University scientists are working toward a future in which farmers can use unmanned aircraft to spot, and even predict, disease and stress in their crops. Their vision relies on machine learning, an automated process in…
Advanced breeding paves the way for disease-resistant beans
For many people in Africa and Latin America, beans are an important staple. Historically described as “the meat of the poor”, beans are rich in protein and minerals, affordable and suitably filling. That is why they are served daily, often…
Aphid-stressed pines show different secondary organic aerosol formation
Plants emit gases, called volatile organic compounds (VOCs), that enter the atmosphere, where they can interact with other natural and human-made molecules to form secondary organic aerosols (SOAs). These tiny, suspended particles influence atmospheric processes, such as cloud formation and…
Researchers explore the many factors impacting the pH of dicamba spray mixtures
When it comes to applying spray mixtures under field conditions, though, how do you ensure that pH r
Study offers new insights on impacts of crop trading in China
Scientists examine both socioeconomic and environmental impacts impacts of crop trading in China for
Revolutionizing water quality monitoring for our rivers and reef
New, lower-cost help may soon be on the way to help manage one of the biggest threats facing the Great Barrier Reef. That threat is pollution from land making its way downstream by way of the many rivers and streams…
New way to bump off ticks: Dry up their saliva (video)
SAN DIEGO, Aug. 26, 2019 — Saliva from a tick’s bite can transmit pathogens that cause serious illnesses, such as Lyme disease, and significant agricultural losses. Current insecticides have drawbacks, so scientists have been seeking new ways to prevent these…
Strawberries: The tasty fruit with a tainted environmental legacy and an uncertain future
Julie Guthman’s new book Wilted: Pathogens, Chemicals, and the Fragile Future of the Strawberry Indu
Wild ground-nesting bees might be exposed to lethal levels of neonics in soil
In a first-ever study investigating the risk of neonicotinoid insecticides to ground-nesting bees, University of Guelph researchers have discovered at least one species is being exposed to lethal levels of the chemicals in the soil. Examining the presence of these…
Research suggests glyphosate lowers pH of dicamba spray mixtures below acceptable levels
Study published as farmers grapple with dicamba volatility concerns
Fishing leads to investigation of environmental changes in waterways
A fisherman’s curiosity led to identification of the correlation between microbial communities in recreational freshwater locales and seasonal environmental changes, according to a team of researchers from Penn State. Zachary Weagly, a 2018 graduate of Penn State Berks and an…