Agricultural Research & Scientific Publications - Page 6
The Land Institute’s work advances agricultural scientific knowledge and is conducted in an innovative yet rigorous professional context. Explore our findings and ideas via articles authored or co-authored by members of our staff and published in peer-reviewed journals.
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Perennial wheat germ plasm lines resistant to eyespot, Cephalosporium stripe, and wheat streak mosaic
A perennial wheat cropping system on the Palouse Prairie of eastern Washington may provide an alternative to the Federal Conservation Reserve Program and reduce soil erosion while providing a harvestable…
Poverty and Agricultural Policies: We Ain’t Winnin’ Because the Old Dominant Idea Has a Way of Reasserting Itself
Soil fertility has been the basis of all past civilizations. The current agricultural system supplements declining soil fertility with petroleum, which is being rapidly depleted. This system reflects the deeply…
The creation of diverse prairie-like communities
Abstract: We tested the prediction that we are more likely to create persistent, species-rich plant communities by increasing the number of species sown and allowing communities to assemble over six…
Agriculture and Biodiversity Loss: Genetic Engineering and the Second Agricultural Revolution
Genetic engineering has many and varied effects on biodiversity, but its likely long-term result will be a decrease in genetic variability of crops and other species. Open a PDF of…
Economic Feasibility Review for Community-Scale Farmer Cooperatives for Biodiesel
Biodiesel, an alcohol ester, is a renewable fuel because its agricultural production and processing have a positive energy balance of roughly 2.5:1. Also, no appreciable difference between biodiesel and diesel…
Agriculture and Biodiversity Loss: Industrial Agriculture
Over the last fifty to eighty years, most of the world’s agriculture has been transformed into an “industrial agriculture.” Download PDF
Comparison of Nutrient Return and Plant Uptake in Agricultural Systems
Maintenance of agricultural productivity requires sustained soil fertility by import or return of nutrients. While intensive farming systems obtain nutrients through purchased fertilizers and/or supplemental feed, extensive systems import little…
The Mirage of Genetic Engineering
The extensive adoption of transgenic plants now underway has provoked heated debate about its effects on human health, rural life, and the environment. But too many critics are neglecting to…
Natural Systems Agriculture: A Radical Alternative
Abstract: The Natural Systems Agriculture (NSA) idea was developed at The Land Institute in 1977 and was published in 1978.This new paradigm features an ecologically sound perennial food-grain-producing system where…
Breeding perennial grain crops (part 3 of 3)
Part 3: One-third of the planet’s arable land has been lost to soil erosion in recent decades, and the pace of this degradation will increase as the limits of our…
Breeding perennial grain crops (part 2 of 3)
Part 2: One-third of the plant’s arable land has been lost to soil erosion in recent decades, and the pace of this degradation will increase as the limits of our…
Breeding perennial grain crops (part 1 of 3)
Part 1: One-third of the planet’s arable land has been lost to soil erosion in recent decades, and the pace of this degradation will increase as the limits of our…