"Serious study has not yet begun"

R Uma Shankar, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, speaks to Down To Earth

"We need to be more proactive"

Dr. S. Ramani, senior scientist (Agricultural Entomology), Project Directorate of Biological Control (Indian Council of Agricultural Research), …

"Biological control is the way out"

Dr. R D Gautam, principal scientist and in-charge of the Plant Health Clinic, speaks to Down To Earth

Better paranoid

Than regret loss that happens in millions

Appalling ability

What makes a species invasive?

To save the future

A change is needed in government policy to discourage the use of fossil fuels. Strict pollution control measures have to be implemented

Alarming situation

If fossil fuel emissions go unchecked, there is a possibility of sulphur dioxide emissions increasing four-fold in India by 2020

Early signals

Scientists became aware of acid rain more than a century ago

Dying repositories of the world's biodiversity

Rich in flora and fauna, rain forests are nevertheless ecologically fragile. Their loss due to human depredation could result in environmental …

Taxman's hedge

Searching for the great hedge in the UK, Dileep Chinchalker uncovers the story of a hedge that ran from Torbela near Rawalpindi to Calcutta in …

The wonder tree kait

Is neglected due to slipshod policies, says BHASKAR RAY

Health is skin deep

Peel of fruits and vegetables is more nutritious than the food

A multi-pronged attack

The people of southern Zimbabwe have found a variety of ways and means to upgrade the quality of the environment in their part of the world

Rank display

Flowers are unquestionably la mode in India

Sands of life

Beyond the Thar's austere barrenes, a battle of survival rages - between the region's treasure-trove of floral diversity and marauders like humans,…

More than intoxicating

Yet government policy has forced many people to give up mahua -- their nutritious staple food

The cactus and its uses

Cacti are prickly, and pleasing. Extremely ungainly, they flourish in arid conditions where no plant will survive. Succulent inside, their thick …

Tang Pangs

The juice runs out of Nagpur's orange orchards

The Cherry Blossoms of Japan

Green is the all pervading colour of nature. Beatiful and breathtaking. But not can stir the soul and the mind as the dazziling white of sakura, …

BOW BEFORE THE ORCHIDS

A look into what could be the world's most- elevated plant family

Checking in Quietly

Bad regulation equals contaminated imports

BOW BEFORE THE ORCHIDS

A look into what could be the world's most- elevated plant family

The lotus effect

Water doesn't stick to lotus leaves. Nature has given the plant a self-cleaning mechanism. Crack the science of it, and you have the formula for …

Common science

A website helps people observe and understand nature while gathering scientific data

Bitten by the betel

Paan is the delicacy among all communities in India. Its cultivation and propagation will serve to strengthen not just the various rituals …