UK soil breakthrough could cut farm fertiliser use and advance sustainable agriculture

Research group says discovery could lead to new type of environmentally friendly farmingA biological mechanism that makes plant roots more attractive to soil microbes has been discovered by scientists in the UK. The breakthrough - by researchers at the John Innes Centre in Norwich, Norfolk - opens the door to the creation of crops requiring reduced amounts of nitrate and phosphate fertilisers, they say."We can now think of developing a new type of environmentally friendly farming with crops that require less artificial fertiliser," said Dr Myriam Charpentier, whose group carried out the research. Continue reading...