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Agriculture

New Research

Research Reveals How and Why Sunflowers Turn Their Golden Heads

A new study shows sunflowers have an internal clock and face east to keep bees and other insects happy

Haiqiang Chen tests his UV oven at the University of Delaware

New Research

Summer Produce Could Last Longer With These Five New Technologies

Scientists seek solutions to slow the inevitable process of decomposition

Tiny nurse ants tending to white ant larvae are dwarfed by the queen ant in the upper right. All the ants feed upon protein-rich food produced by a white-grey fungus that they cultivate underground.

Were Ants the World’s First Farmers?

A new study shows that a group of ants have been conducting a subsistence type of farming since shortly after the dinosaurs died out

Trending Today

Five Things to Know About the New GMO Labeling Bill

Congress just passed a bill requiring GMO labeling, but it’s not as straightforward as you might think

The FarmBot Genesis Brings Precision Agriculture to Your Own Backyard

Developed by a team from California, this machine plants seeds, pulls weeds and waters plants individually

Cool Finds

Why the Humble Sweet Potato Won the World Food Prize

Researchers are helping to fight malnutrion and childhood blindness in Africa with new varieties of starchy, orange-fleshed sweet potatoes

California's Bar SZ Ranch offers daily hayrides.

Plan a Back-40 Getaway at One of These Four Exceptional Farm Stays

Plan an overnight adventure on a working farm

Fraises Des Bois, the Best Strawberry You’ve Never Had

Supermarket strawberries are big, perfectly red, perfectly heart-shaped, and perfectly flavorless—at least compared with what they could be

Jayson Mesman and his truffle hunting dog Samson hard at work at The Truffle Farm.

These Adorable Rescue Dogs Lead Truffle Hunting Tours in Australia’s Majura Valley

An Australian farmer trains these abandoned canines to sleuth out a gourmet delicacy

Wieger Wamelink inspects his "Martian" crops

New Research

Researchers Will Soon Get Their First Taste of “Martian” Vegetables

After testing them for heavy metals, the scientists will eat vegetables grown in simulated Martian soil later this week

New Research

New Report Says Genetically Engineered Crops Are Safe—But It’s Complicated

The National Academies of Science looked at over 900 studies on GMOs. Here are the five things you need to know

Paradoxically, food aid can cause game like the black curassow to be overhunted.

What’s the Best Way to Help the Amazon’s Indigenous People?

Can a pioneering computer model save the rainforest’s residents from our best intentions?

At Sky Hill, guests learn how to throw pottery and make sweet-scented hay by gathering grass into small heaps that will dry in the sun. Marius and Cornelia bought the land in 2006 and have used it to teach travelers of all ages about organic farming and construction.

Europe

Try Your Hand at Organic Farming in Southwest Romania

By hosting travelers, local farmers hope to reverse the impact of big industry

The Keukenhof Floral Park in Lisse, The Netherlands.

Where to See Thousands and Thousands of Tulips

From the Netherlands to Kashmir, get lost in tulip mania

Cascade, Centennial and Goldings hops are three varietals planted in Persephone’s demonstration hop yard.

Canada

From Farm to Bottle: Sip Brews Among the Hop Bines at This Vancouver-Area Beer Farm

Persephone Brewing Company brings beer and farming to the Sunshine Coast

Don't worry...there's more than enough cheese to go around.

Trending Today

The U.S. Has a Massive Cheese Surplus

Imagine 1.19 billion pounds of cached cheese

When quinoa prices rise, do quinoa farmers starve?

New Research

Don’t Worry: Eating Quinoa Doesn’t Hurt Peruvian Farmers

A new study shows that the grain helps rather than hurts

New Research

Genes of Ancestral Peanuts May Help Feed the World

Researchers have sequenced the genome of peanuts and its ancient cousins, which could lead to disease and drought-resistant varieties

Crops certainly can be grown in the popular Hollywood stand-in for Mars, the valley Wadi Rum in southern Jordan.

New Research

Move Over Matt Damon: Scientists Grow Ten Crops In Faux Martian Soil

A new experiment shows that with a little help, soil on Mars could readily support agriculture

New Research

Cats May Have Been Domesticated Twice

But only one ended up as the house cat

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