In the course of evolution, plants have learned to communicate with their environment and protect themselves from threats. Their ability to adapt and thus survive fascinates Nicole van Dam. The biologist dedicates her research to plant biocommunication in order to make vegetable cultivation more sustainable.
In agriculture, large quantities of fertilizers are often used to increase yields per unit area. However, this practice has long been controversial because it damages soils, the environment and the climate alike. In addition, heat and drought are putting increasing pressure on soils and crops, leading to crop failures. How can we prevent soils from drying out while increasing yields to ensure food security in the future? A study led by the Leibniz Center for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) provides promising results.
Agricultural and food systems are under increasing pressure due to climate change. Both the management of fields and the production of food must therefore be adapted to the new challenges in order to ensure food security and protect the environment. The cultivation of legumes has great potential: Legumes such as lentils and peas are not only rich in protein, but at the same time act as natural soil conditioners, which can save on the use of fertilizers.
Arthropods are irreplaceable for the preservation of the forest ecosystem by providing numerous services: they act as pollinators, remove dead plant parts and recycle these substances so that new, fertile soil can form. They are also the food base for numerous animals such as birds, bats or hedgehogs. But biodiversity in forests is under threat.
Nature has always been a driving force for technical developments. Also Silvia Vignolini draws inspiration from Nature in her research work. At the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces (MPIKG) in Potsdam-Golm, the top physicist took over at the beginning of the year as Head of a newly established Department that focuses on the development of sustainable and bio-inspired materials. Her goal: artificial materials should be indistinguishable from natural materials.
Fallow land in agricultural landscapes of medium complexity has the greatest benefit for diverse bird life. This is the result of a nine-year study by the Thünen Institute, the Dachverband Deutscher Avifaunisten and the University of Göttingen. The researchers had evaluated correlations between the proportion of fallow land and the occurrence of agricultural birds.
A photo of a flower or leaf is usually enough for the app to recognize the plant. With Flora Incognita, researchers at the Illmenau University of Technology and the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry in Jena have not only given amateur botanists a tool to easily recognize plants. Many researchers have since also been accessing the data sets in order to explore the distribution of plant species, for example. With the help of artificial intelligence, the team of developers from Illmenau and Jena was able to improve the performance of the app many times over.
Agriculture is responsible for around 7.7% of Germany's greenhouse gas emissions. In order to achieve the climate targets, emissions of climate-damaging gases must be drastically reduced. In agriculture, this is to be achieved with the help of carbon farming. There are many measures that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store CO2 in the soil. But how does the principle work in agricultural practice and how effective are humus certificates? Carsten Paul from the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) studied this topic.
What will food production look like in the future? Already today, more people live in cities than in the countryside. However, the majority of food is produced in rural areas. Due to climate change, however, there is less and less land that is suitable for growing food. In the joint project CUBES Circle, researchers have been working on an alternative for years.
Innovations in the field of life sciences secure the food production of the future and make it more sustainable. To accelerate innovation through start-ups in the fields of agriculture, food technology and biotechnology, the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and UnternehmerTUM have launched the TUM Venture Lab Food-Agro-Biotech (FAB). The Lab FAB is one of now eleven TUM Venture Labs, which are designed to support TUM researchers and students in entrepreneurial spin-offs in the various fields of technology.