Today (May 22) is United Nations International Day for Biological Diversity, drawing attention to a critical resource for developing crops that are resilient or resistant to extreme weather and other ...

How does plant breeding support organic farming? Students are developing new crops that help organic farmers grow healthy, ...

One of the great mysteries in plant biology is how, given the clouds of pollen released by dozens of plant species all at the same time, an individual plant can recognize which particular species' ...

A team of scientists led by a horticulture professor who leads a pome fruit (apples and pears) breeding program, found that public plant breeding programs are seeing decreases in funding and personnel ...

Breeding of diverse varieties like these peppers, bred at the Student Farm at UC Davis, is increasingly important for organic growers. A new effort to provide California growers with seeds for tomato, ...

Most of the new plants we see in nurseries didn't come about by chance. Plant breeding is a highly specialised and scientific process. And at plant breeding nurseries like this, there's a lot of work ...

While developing seeds suited to the specific conditions of organic farming still faces significant challenges, ...

Genetically engineered (GE) seeds are often sold to farmers and the public on the grounds that they are the wave of the future, taking over where conventional plant breeding left off by improving ...

Your morning cereal or oatmeal. The bread on your sandwich. The corn chips for your snack, and the cookies for dessert. Not one would be possible with the humblest of ingredients: the seed. Seeds such ...

Commercial crops have an extremely narrow genetic base, which makes them vulnerable to environmental threats. The induced mutation technique is becoming increasingly important to bring about heritable ...