Why haven’t microbial products been more widely adopted by farmers?
Posted 14th October 2020 by Joshua Sewell
This is a question that drives me each day. Microbial products have been around for a long time; starting with rhizobium in legumes, dating back 125 years. Yet, in the United States, rhizobium inoculants have not been widely adopted by soybean farmers – some indicate less than 15% use overall in the United States. Why?
Vertically transmitted endophyte improved plant-rhizobacteria interaction
Posted 14th January 2020 by Joshua Sewell
Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) have been identified as potential biofertilizers, eco-friendly, renewable and have been demonstrated to actively restore soil fertility. Beyond this, they have been shown to be a promising biological resource to augment chemical fertilizer, and drastically reduce its application and subsequent negative effects.
Phytobiomes Alliance: Convergent Research & Regulatory Science Activities
Posted 20th December 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Kellye Eversole told us that “a major paradigm shift in agricultural production is required to meet the demands of a global world population projected to reach 9.7 billion in 2050. We have to increase crop productivity sustainably while preserving biodiversity, natural resources, and grower income in the context of climate change.”
Role of indigenous and inoculated Trichoderma spp. in managing soilborne fungal diseases
Posted 11th December 2019 by Joshua Sewell
David Butler is Associate Professor at the University of Tennessee, USA. His research focuses on soil-plant and soil-plant-microbe relationships in horticultural cropping systems. In particular, David is interested in understanding non-chemical and biological soil disinfestation techniques and their mechanisms of pathogen control, the effect of alternative soil disinfestation practices on soil fertility and crop nutrition, and the how the nutrient cycle dynamics of annual and perennial cover crops can alter to improve crop nutrition.
Presentation Slides from the 4th Partnerships in Biocontrol, Biostimulants & Microbiome Congress: USA
Posted 4th December 2019 by Joshua Sewell
At the recent 4th Partnerships in Biocontrol, Biostimulants & Microbiome Congress: USA we heard a number of interesting presentations on how plant and soil microbiome research is identifying microbes to enhance crop productivity and disease resistance.
Thanks to some of our speakers, we have made the following slides discussing the current regulatory landscape from Sarah Caffery, Keith Matthews, and Terry Stone available to view.
Improving crop production through understanding the soil microbiome
Posted 24th July 2019 by Jane Williams
Sarah Strauss is a soil microbial ecologist at the University of Florida. Her interests lie in understanding the interactions between soil microbes and crops, with the hope that improved understanding will benefit crop production.
We spoke to her about her work ahead of her presentation at the 4th Partnerships in Biocontrol, Biostimulants & Microbiome Congress: USA.
The interactions between soil microbes and plants are still very much uncharted territory, which makes it an exciting area of study. This is especially the case for the interactions between soil microbes and crops in agricultural systems. For example, we know that there are bacteria and fungi that can influence plant growth or soil nutrient availability, but most of those studies have been done with only a few plant species or under very specific growing conditions. Much of my research is looking at what interactions are occurring between specific crops in field conditions – and how those interactions might differ based on specific conditions or crops in a farmer’s field.
The Plant Genomics and Gene Editing Congress Presentation Slides
Posted 22nd July 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Following the Plant Genomics and Gene Editing Congress: Europe, we have made the following presentation slides from Ana Atanassova, Ian Bancroft, Nigel Halford and Kim Hammond-Kossack available.
A novel fungal endophyte confers fitness benefits to crops
Posted 14th June 2019 by Joshua Sewell
Researchers at the Polytechnic University of Madrid (UPM) in Spain, in collaboration with scientists with PlantResponse Biotech, S.L., are conducting research on a novel fungal endophyte that confers crop fitness benefits, particularly in alkaline soils.