URBANA, Ill. – At the southern tip of the Himalayas, farmers in the Kangra region of India’s Himachal Pradesh graze cattle among rolling hills and forests. The forests, under management by the state or farmer cooperatives, are thriving. But a new University of Illinois study shows, unlike state-managed forests, farmer cooperatives directly benefit both forest health and farmers.
URBANA, Ill. - The Midwest Cover Crops Council (MCCC), in collaboration with University of Illinois Extension, will be holding its annual meeting in Springfield, Feb. 20-21. This is the first time Illinois will be the host state for the MCCC conference. The meeting will be held at the Northfield Inn Suites & Conference Center, located at 3280 Northfield Drive, Springfield.
As a former plant scientist, I understand how chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides work to enhance crop performance and yield, and I know that those chemicals are rigorously tested and strictly regulated to ensure consumer and environmental safety. But I’ll admit I still reach for organic products at the grocery store whenever I can.
URBANA, Ill. – Every summer, a “dead zone” forms in the Gulf of Mexico. Plumes of oxygen-robbing algae, fed by excess nitrogen coming in from the Mississippi River, kill off marine life and threaten the livelihoods of those who fish the Gulf. States bordering the Mississippi River are putting strategies in place to limit nitrogen from wastewater treatment plants, surface runoff, and agricultural fields.
URBANA, Ill. - The ongoing partial government shutdown halted the release of many key USDA reports. If the USDA releases the reports as scheduled on Jan. 11, they hold implications for forming expectations on corn and soybean prices in 2019, says University of Illinois agricultural economist Todd Hubbs.
URBANA, Ill. – Plants convert sunlight into energy through photosynthesis; however, most crops on the planet are plagued by a photosynthetic glitch, and to deal with it, evolved an energy-expensive process called photorespiration that drastically suppresses their yield potential. Today, researchers from the University of Illinois and U.S.
URBANA, Ill. – Just as a new farm bill sailed its way through the U.S. Senate and House last week, a newly released book by a University of Illinois law and policy expert explores the 100-year history of the farm bill, tracing the political evolution of American farm and food legislation.
URBANA, Ill. – In biomedical research, plant breeding, and countless other endeavors, geneticists are on the hunt for the specific genes responsible for disease susceptibility, yield, and other traits of interest. Essentially, they’re looking for needles in the enormous haystack that is the genome of an organism.
As a frame of reference, the human genome is made up of 3.2 billion base pairs, an estimated 30,000 genes. Where do geneticists even start?
For the past 15 years, many have relied on genome-wide association studies (GWAS).
URBANA, Ill. – When humans experience stress, their inner turmoil may not be apparent to an outside observer. But many animals deal with stressful circumstances – overcrowded conditions, not enough food – by completely remodeling their bodies. These stress-induced forms, whether they offer a protective covering or more camouflaged coloration, can better withstand the challenge and help the animal survive until conditions improve.
URBANA, Ill. – A team based in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois will help Sierra Leone enhance its institutions of higher education by supporting outcome-based education and developing a framework for quality control as part of a project funded by the United Kingdom (UK)’s Department for International Development (DFID).