By Blake Jackson
As climate change exacerbates global droughts and threatens crop production, finding ways to capture and store the atmospheric carbon contributing to these conditions has become increasingly urgent.
In response, researchers at Penn State have developed an innovative tool that could revolutionize how crops manage drought, absorb nitrogen, and store carbon deeper in the soil.
Their breakthrough, detailed in Crop Science, introduces a method to estimate the depth of plant roots by scanning leaves using X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy.
This technique detects chemical elements in the foliage, which can then be correlated with root depth. Since roots absorb elements based on their depth, this method allows researchers to infer root depth without needing to excavate plants.
Jonathan Lynch, a distinguished professor of plant nutrition and leader of the research team, notes the significance of this development.
The new technology, which is the subject of a provisional patent application by Penn State, could significantly speed up the plant-breeding process.
"We've known about the benefits of deeper-rooting crops for a long time, but the problem has been how to measure root depth in the field," Lynch explained.
"To breed deeper-rooted crops, you need to look at thousands of plants. Digging them up is expensive and time-consuming. Everybody wants deep-rooted crops but until now, we didn't know how to get them."
This tool could expedite the breeding of crops with deeper roots, helping them better withstand drought conditions, absorb more nitrogen, and sequester carbon more effectively in the soil.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-klosfoto
Categories: Pennsylvania, Crops