Crop Residues Shape Soil Health for Next Crop
Research from The James Hutton Institute and Universidade Catolica Portuguesa finds pea and bean residues influence the growth of the following barley crop.
Global Botany News
Reporting here follows botany and plant science — new species discoveries, plant behavior and communication research, botanical garden conservation programs, crop disease threats and the plant-based compounds that reach medical and agricultural applications. Coverage spans the science and what it produces.
Recent news
November 7, 2026
Liverwort Stalks Pump Water Against GravityResearchers found the outer surface of the female common liverwort stalk moves water upward to eggs at its top.
November 7, 2026
Ants Have Farmed Fungi for 66 Million YearsA Smithsonian-led study in Science traces an ant-fungus partnership that began after an asteroid impact wiped out much of Earth's plant life.
November 6, 2026
Africa Urged to Boost Wheat Seed and Irrigation FundingA three-day Addis Ababa workshop adopted a communiqué calling for higher government investment in African wheat research and farming systems.
November 6, 2026
FAO Opens First Global Pollinator ConferenceThe Food and Agriculture Organization convened its inaugural conference on pollinators in Rome, where members backed work toward a Global Pollinator Platform.
November 5, 2026
Miracle Pine Seeds to Be Stored in BritainSeeds from the lone pine that survived Japan's 2011 tsunami will be sent to the Millennium Seed Bank by the end of 2026.
November 5, 2026
Ancient Siberian Tomb Reveals Early Cannabis UseResearchers dated the earliest known human cannabis use to 2,800 years ago, based on seeds and preserved hair from a Scythian burial mound.
November 5, 2026
Date Palm Genomes Show Salt-Tolerance Gene SweepsA study of 197 date palm genomes finds signs of selection in genes that help the plant cope with salty soil.
November 5, 2026
Ethylene Pathway Found to Suppress Chrysanthemum PigmentResearchers mapped a gene cascade that ethylene uses to reduce anthocyanin production in chrysanthemum flowers.
November 5, 2026
Roots Bend Away From Rotting Plant MatterResearchers have identified a new growth response in which plant roots turn away from decaying organic material.
November 5, 2026
Hormones Help Cotton Plants Pull PotassiumResearchers found ethylene and jasmonate together switch on potassium uptake in cotton when soil potassium runs low.
More in Botany
This section follows new species identification and the expeditions and collections behind them, plant communication and behavior research, botanical garden conservation and seed banking programs, crop disease surveillance and its agricultural implications, plant-based pharmaceutical and material applications and the habitat loss and climate studies that track how plant communities are changing. Crop disease coverage sits at the intersection of botany and agriculture, since pathogens that threaten staple crops generate economic and food security stories that reach well beyond the scientific literature. Plant-based compound research has produced a steady stream of findings with pharmaceutical, nutritional and industrial applications, connecting botanical science to drug development, materials science and food technology in ways that give the field broader coverage relevance than its academic profile might suggest. Seed banking and ex-situ conservation programs have grown as a coverage subject as the pace of habitat loss has accelerated the urgency of preserving genetic diversity before wild populations disappear.