Collaborate Disseminate
The spotted-wing drosophila is a type of fruit fly that can destroy berry crops if not killed by the liberal use of insecticides. According to a new study, the smell of a crop-damaging fungus could provide an eco-friendly alternative to such toxic chem… Continue reading Sweet smell of fungus could keep insects from decimating berry crops
Plant parasitic nematodes are microscopic soil-dwelling creatures that damage crops by feeding on their roots. Scientists have now developed a greener and more efficient means of eradicating them, using a modified plant virus.Continue ReadingCategory: … Continue reading Plant virus recruited to save crops from root-eating nematodes
Hog barns typically aren’t the nicest places to be at the best of times, but try living in one during a heat wave. Scientists at Indiana’s Purdue University have developed a self-activating hog-cooling pad for just such situations.Continue ReadingCateg… Continue reading High-tech pig pad designed to cool hot hogs
Although the gel of the aloe vera plant is commonly used to treat sunburn, moisturize skin and boost gut health (among other applications), its peels are typically discarded. New research now suggests that those peels could also be used, to make non-to… Continue reading Waste aloe vera peels may be a source of eco-friendly insecticide
Farmers have long known that it’s a good idea to rotate crops, and that concept is now getting a new spin. A Swiss study indicates that wheat yields are boosted when those crops are planted in fields previously used to grow maize, which altered the soi… Continue reading Maize crops shown to improve wheat yields, by boosting soil microbes
Commercial industrial agriculture is responsible for providing food to the world’s population at an incredibly low cost, especially when compared to most of human history when most or a majority …read more Continue reading Automated Drone Takes Care of Weeds
A particularly impressive red alga has already shown great promise in dramatically reducing the alarming levels of methane gas produced by a cow’s enteric digestive system. Now, a team of scientists has moved from the animal’s belches to its tail end, … Continue reading Red alga added to cow poop slashes methane emissions by almost half
Just like their field-dwelling counterparts, plants grown in greenhouses are preyed upon by flying insects. The Dutch-designed PATS system is designed to help, by sending tiny drones to chop those insects up in mid-air.Continue ReadingCategory: Drones,… Continue reading PATS tech calls in drone strikes on greenhouse pests
Great strides are being made in the field of lab-grown meat, but its price remains a barrier to wide commercial use. British startup Moolec has created what it claims is a less costly alternative, in the form of soya plants that produce pig-protein-ric… Continue reading Transgenic soybeans could replace pork, by producing pig proteins
There are now several devices that help you keep food waste out of landfills by converting it to compost … but what if you don’t have a garden in which that compost can be used? Well, the Mill converts such waste into dried grounds which are sent off t… Continue reading Mill kitchen bin turns food waste into chickenfeed supplement