Researchers have discovered a system that helps seeds survive when there is too much salt in the soil. The system helps young germinating embryos keep the right balance of sodium and potassium as they begin to grow. Understanding how it works could eventually help scientists develop crops that grow better in salty soils.

Kyoto, Japan -- Plants are home to a diverse array of microorganisms that support their growth and help them adapt to environmental stress -- of which there has been an abundance of late. High temperatures and drought caused by human-induced climate change have led to reduced crop yields and the use of biofertilizers such as rhizosphere microorganisms, which help plants absorb nutrients and increase their resistance to disease and stresses. Yet single microorganisms have difficulties sustaining themselves in crops and remaining functional in the fluctuating environment of an agricultural field. This is where microbial communities can help.

A recent approach involves creating defined microbial communities -- DMCs -- by combining multiple microorganisms, which in turn influence each other and can thereby strengthen their resilience. However, the composition and function of such a community changes depending on plant-specialized metabolites and environmental conditions, rendering these rather impractical to use in conventional trial-and-error experiments aiming to find optimal microbial communities from amongst a vast number of combinations.

This motivated a team of researchers from Kyoto University, with help from colleagues at Tohoku University and RIKEN, to integrate microorganism data and establish a rational, predictable method for designing DMCs. The team chose the humble tomato as their plant subject.

A new study presents a mathematical model explaining why trees can support grass growth in dry environments but suppress it as rainfall increases. By separating the effects of canopy shade and tree roots, the researchers show when interactions shift from facilitation to competition, offering practical insights for afforestation, ecosystem restoration and land management.

SUNY Cobleskill Ag & Tech has received a $30,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to build a prototype virtual reality (VR) course in agricultural engineering and lay the groundwork to test it with students, a step toward giving rural and place-bound farmers a way to gain technical skills without leaving their land. 

Labour-intensive harvesting, complex processing: the macadamia is one of the most expensive nuts in the world. This makes it all the more important to protect the trees from pests. An international research team led by the University of Göttingen has now investigated how natural vegetation in and around macadamia plantations affects pest infestation, paying particular attention to bird and bat populations. The researchers were able to demonstrate that the higher the level of bat activity, the lower the incidence of pest infestation. At the same time, yields increased in landscapes with a higher proportion of natural vegetation. The findings were published in the journal Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.

An IIT Gandhinagar-Indian Council of Agricultural Research-DRMR study has characterised the self-rejection genes in India’s commercial mustard varieties, toria and yellow sarson. Combining molecular genetics with Artificial Intelligence-based protein structure prediction, the team mapped the four genes that allow some mustard flowers to turn away their own pollen. The study sheds light on a natural mechanism breeders can harness to produce the high-yielding hybrids the country needs to cut its heavy reliance on imported edible oil. 

Wildfires in the Mediterranean region are becoming drastically more intense. The recent major fires in France, Spain and Greece show that firefighting efforts are reaching their limits. An international research team led by the Universities of Göttingen and Kassel is therefore calling for a fundamentally new approach to landscape design: in the journal iScience, the researchers demonstrate that wildfire prevention should be conceived and planned in conjunction with nature conservation, agriculture and rural development.

The new method, as well as allowing study of individuals, also reduces the potential for louse faecal contamination. It allows collection of high-quality samples from a single louse per test, with substantial yields of secretory proteins per louse.