Tag Archives: crop rotation

Making grass greener: CIAT breeds tropical pasture that suppresses greenhouse gas emissions

Posted on September 29, 2013 by

Originally posted on ILRI Clippings:
Guillermo Sotelo of CIAT’s entomology team, working with brachiaria grass in a greenhouse at the institution’s headquarters in Colombia (picture credit: CIAT/Neil Palmer). ‘. . . On 13 September, researchers announced that they have bred…

Posted in agriculture, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

GMO Corn Fails To Protect Fields From Pest Damage

Posted on September 24, 2013 by

Originally posted on Ann Novek( Luure)–With the Sky as the Ceiling and the Heart Outdoors:
Researchers in the key corn-growing state of Illinois are finding significant damage from rootworms in farm fields planted in a rotation with a genetically…

Posted in agriculture, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Golden Rice is ‘no solution’ to malnutrition

Posted on September 9, 2013 by

GRAIN says that Golden Rice is no solution to malnutrition. Golden Rice is a variety of rice (Oryza sativa) which has been genetically modified (GM, also called genetically engineered or GE) to make beta-carotene in its grains. After you eat … Continue reading →

Posted in food, human health, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Could Food Insecure Africa Have Found a Saviour in Farming God’s Way?

Posted on August 13, 2013 by

Originally posted on The Plantwise Blog:
Proponents term it the long awaited messiah that food-insecure Africa has been yearning for! ‘Farming God’s way’ promises to end fertilizer woes of resource-poor farmers in the continent by providing a cheaper and less…

Posted in food, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Neonics and Asian rice

Posted on May 22, 2013 by

A few weeks ago three ‘bee killers’, neonicotinoid sprays and seed treatments, were temporarily banned in Europe. The banned insecticides are dinotefuran, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. Now cereal farmers outside Europe are talking about what the neonic ban means for them. … Continue reading →

Posted in agriculture, ecology, horticulture, miniculture | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

10 Things I Didn’t Know About Nitrogen Fertilizer

Posted on April 27, 2013 by

Originally posted on Food (Policy) For Thought:
I recently read this brief history of the use of nitrogen fertilizer, and it was so interesting to learn more about this crucial agricultural input! In my agricultural economics classes, we often use…

Posted in agriculture, horticulture, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Research Breakthrough: Less Inputs = More Yields?!

Posted on April 14, 2013 by

Originally posted on Food (Policy) For Thought:
“The food crisis can only be conquered with even greater intensification.” “A new ‘Green Revolution’ to match that of South-East Asia is needed to improve yields further.” “Organic farming is a cute idea,…

Posted in agriculture, food, knowledge transfer | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments