Agriculture
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Research grant will help assessment of prairie seed banks
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois Natural History Survey has received a grant from the Conservation 2000 Program to assess seed banks at the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie in Will County. According to principal investigator Brenda Molano-Flores, who is an adjunct professor of plant biology and of entomology at the University of Illinois and a researcher […]
Researchers study role of natural organic matter in environment
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The decomposition of plant, animal and microbial material in soil and water produces a variety of complex organic molecules, collectively called natural organic matter. These compounds play many important roles in the environment. By studying the molecular mechanisms responsible for the complex behavior of natural organic matter, researchers at the University of […]
Watching, planning key to avoiding soybean rust in Illinois
Soybean rust has been detected in three Southern Illinois counties: Massac, Pope and White. Samples from adjacent counties are being incubated for diagnosis. The finding of soybean rust was not unexpected, because Kentucky recently reported soybean rust in eight counties adjacent to Southern Illinois. Since 1992, Dr. Suzanne Bissonnette has been an Integrated Pest Management […]
Foodborne pathogens difficult to remove from produce
Will you ever feel comfortable eating fresh spinach again? All raw agricultural products carry a minimal risk of contamination, said a UI scientist whose research focuses on keeping foodborne pathogens, including the strain of E. coli found recently on spinach, out of the food supply. That won’t keep Scott Martin, a UI professor of food […]
Environmental effects of biofuels crops must be weighed, researchers say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Biofuels advocates should not ignore the potential ecological side effects of crops being developed to produce such fuels, a researcher at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign says in an article being published today in Science. While there is a great need for stable, non-polluting energy alternatives that reduce U.S. reliance on […]
Food-crop yields in future greenhouse-gas conditions lower than expected
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Open-air field trials involving five major food crops grown under carbon-dioxide levels projected for the future are harvesting dramatically less bounty than those raised in earlier greenhouse and other enclosed test conditions – and scientists warn that global food supplies could be at risk without changes in production strategies. The new findings […]
Fast-growing kudzu making inroads in Illinois, authorities warn
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – To all Illinois residents: Be on the lookout for kudzu. This high-climbing, fast-growing weed, which is illegal to buy, grow and plant in Illinois, smothers existing vegetation and has been spotted in more than 30 Illinois counties. “Many people are not aware that kudzu has been found in Illinois,” said George Czapar, […]
Hybrid grass may prove to be valuable fuel source
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Giant Miscanthus (Miscanthus x giganteus), a hybrid grass that can grow 13 feet high, may be a valuable renewable fuel source for the future, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign say. Stephen P. Long, a professor of crop sciences and of plant biology, recently took that message to Dublin, Ireland, […]
Nutritious frozen foods can play role in weight-loss programs
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Size matters when it comes to meal portions in weight-loss diets, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. And consuming convenient, nutritious frozen dinners may be a way to control portion size. Research dietitians Sandra M. Hannum and LeaAnn Carson, who work in the laboratory of food science and […]
Information on three new agricultural pests enhances web tool for farmers
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Three more pests – fruit tree leafroller, lilac borer and western bean cutworm – have been added this spring to the Illinois State Water Survey’s Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring program, a Web-based tool that provides helpful information for the state’s farmers. WARM, created in the late 1980s, helps the agricultural community […]
Arsenic removal from drinking water is focus of new projects
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – More stringent federal standards for acceptable levels of arsenic in public drinking water go into effect next year, a prospect that has resulted in four new research projects on arsenic. The research, funded by the Midwest Technology Assistance Center for Small Public Water Systems, will address the new standards, which will change […]
Unique weather a factor in record 2004 Midwest crop yields
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – If farmers talk big about 2004 crops as they get ready to head out into the fields this spring, let them talk. Believe them. Last year’s crop season saw record yields in every major crop amid the closest-to-perfect weather conditions of the last century, scientists say. “Never before have corn, soybeans, sorghum, […]