Researchers have shown that plants can regulate the chemistry of their petal surface to create iridescent signals visible to bees.
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What makes the perfect avocado? In a world-first, scientists have mapped the genome of the popular fruit, a resource that can drive future research and innovation opportunities for avocado growers.
In a new study scientists have found that smallholder farmers in Ethiopia grow more of the indigenous crop Ensete ventricosum in the direct aftermath of severe droughts as a means of bolstering food security.
Over 300 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa depend on maize for nearly 30% of their caloric intake, and the popularity of maize is expected to continue its upward trend. As the demand for maize increases, so does the need for sustainable and safe production, yet numerous biotic and abiotic stressors threaten this staple crop.
The protein BICAT3 is one of the most important manganese distributors in plants. If defective, this can have devastating effects on a plant’s growth; its leaves grow significantly smaller and it produces fewer seeds than usual. A team has recently uncovered a transport pathway for manganese in plants and the role that BICAT3 plays in this process. The results could lay the groundwork for improved crop growth.
Scientists have traced back plant defence mechanisms to a single receptor that evolved over millions of years to recognise today’s diseases and pests.
Researchers have found that rhizobial bacteria are hijacking a key protein in legumes involved in molecular transport to control how the symbiotic cellular structures that allow the plants to take up nitrogen form between the two organisms.
Plants do not possess nerves and muscles that enable rapid movement in animals. However, Mimosa pudica, commonly called touch-me-not, shame or sensitive plant, moves its leaves by bending the motor organ “pulvinus” immediately in response to touch and wounds. Since the era of Charles Darwin, this spectacular leaf movement has been studied. However, the long-distance signaling molecules that trigger the rapid leaf movements and the physiological roles of this movement remain unexplored.
Scientists in Colombia show that well managed pasture can store more soil carbon while reducing nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions to offset the climate impact of livestock.
New research into the causes of the devastating global biodiversity crisis has found that the conversion of natural forests and grasslands to intensive agriculture and livestock is the biggest cause
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