Rediscovered seeds unite African community around the taste of home — and improve organic corn breeding
When Chris Mujjabi found an envelope marked ‘Kitale Synthetic’ in a cold storage room at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the corn breeder knew he had stumbled on something special.
Darin Joos named a 2025 Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Award recipient
Darin Joos, Crop Sciences Research Agronomist, has been named a 2025 Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Award recipient.
Joos began his Illinois career in 1994 as a graduate student and went on to lead the state’s crop variety testing program, which evaluated commercial varieties of corn, wheat, and soybean at 14 sites across Illinois. After nearly three decades in that role, he now manages the Crop Sciences Research and Education Center farms in Champaign.
U of I researchers trace genetic code’s origins to early protein structures
Genes are the building blocks of life, and the genetic code provides the instructions for the complex processes that make organisms function. But how and why did it come to be the way it is?
Explore agriculture at U. of I.’s Harvest Open House
Looking for a family-friendly event this weekend? Check out the fourth annual Crop Sciences Harvest Open House from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 20 at the Crop Sciences Research and Education Center south of campus.
ACES student discovers professional purpose at crop sciences conference
A few months ago, Greta Hall traveled from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to South Dakota State University and found herself listening to a lecture about SDSU’s invention of cookies and cream ice cream.
U. of I., College of ACES appoints Matthew Vann to lead Illinois Extension
Matthew Vann has been named the new associate dean and director of University of Illinois Extension, the flagship public engagement organization housed in the
Bioreactors reduce phosphorus from agricultural drainage water, Illinois study shows
Tile drainage is a common practice used in agricultural fields to remove excess water, but it also transports harmful nutrients into water bodies, contributing to algal blooms that deprive aquatic life of oxygen. Woodchip bioreactors are an efficient way to reduce nitrogen pollution by treating the water as it exits the field. However, these denitrifying bioreactors may leach phosphorus from the woodchips into the environment.
Genomic techniques can streamline breeding for grain quality
Small grains researcher Juan David Arbelaez-Velez knows the secret to making perfect rice — and it’s not about how you cook it. Arbelaez and his team are investigating the genetic blueprint that determines different grain attributes such as appearance, cooking time, and texture.