Askew

The Seeds Bill 2004, which aims to replace the Seeds Act, 1966, is with the Indian Parliament. It is a bone of contention. Between interests of farmers and the private seeds industry. Parliament's standing committee on agriculture is looking into this bill, drawing widespread criticism for favouring the seed industry and compromising the interest of the farmer.

Friends for rice

THE benign mychorrhizal fungi live in a mutually beneficial arrangement in the roots of most plants.

GMs renegade genes

WHEN plants are genetically modified, there is nothing to ensure that pollen from them would not be carried to their wild kin by pollinators. How the gene, originally introduced into the cultivated plants, settles down in an environment not meant for it requires observation. The gene’s presence in the cultivated plant, too, makes it susceptible to unexpected trouble.

Fixing nitrogen

leguminous plants enrich the soil because their roots produce nitrogen-fixing nodules in the presence of rhizobium bacteria. But recently, a team of scientists managed to trigger nodule formation in legumes without the bacteria.

A software to manage weed

a new open source software to identify and manage the major weed species of rice-wheat cropping systems of the Indo-Gangetic plains was launched recently. It targets farmers, extension workers, students, researchers and grass roots organisations.

Banana bonus

the genetic make-up of banana and plantain varieties grown in India indicates they can yield good quality fibre in abundance, according to scientists from the National Research Centre for Banana in Trichy, Tamil Nadu.

Frost-free crops

australian scientists have discovered a gene that could prevent frost damage to crops, thus saving billions of dollars a year worldwide. The anti-freeze" gene has been identified in the Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia antarctica) by a team headed by German Spangenberg of La Trobe University in Victoria. It allows the grass to tolerate temperatures as low as minus 30 c.

Flexible option

an indian study has taken the global search for an alternative to the rubber tree a step closer to reality. A team of researchers from the Pondicherry University claims to have identified a set of key proteins that help guayule -- a perennial shrub of Mexican origin -- produce better quality natural rubber.

Reaping a double benefit

continuous submerged paddy cultivation doesn't harm soil as believed. Rather, it improves fertility as compared to other agricultural systems, claims a study by researchers from Hyderabad-based International Crop Research Institute for Semi Arid Tropics (icrisat) and the National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Pattern, Nagpur.

One more shot

chinese scientists have come out with an improved live vaccine to protect poultry and other birds from avian flu. Developed at the country's Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, the vaccine also protects birds from the Newcastle Disease.