Harnessing Maize's 'Warning Signals' for Climate-Resilient Agriculture
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Science and Technology (Biotechnology in Agriculture, Plant Hormones); Indian Agriculture (Major Crops - Maize, Pests and Diseases like Fall Armyworm); Environment (Climate Resilient Agriculture).
Mains:
General Studies Paper 3 (Agriculture & S&T): Major crops and cropping patterns; Technology missions; Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life; Awareness in the fields of Bio-technology. This is a perfect example of a new S&T development with applications in agriculture.
Key Highlights from the News
Plants like Maize communicate with each other about pest attacks and collectively build up defenses, a new scientific study finds. 🌿
When attacked, maize plants release the chemical linalool into the air as a "warning signal."
Neighboring plants that receive this signal release a defensive chemical into the soil. This stimulates beneficial soil bacteria, which then prepare other plants to defend against pests.
This discovery can help reduce the use of chemical pesticides and develop sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture methods.
However, when this defense mechanism is active, plant growth and yield may decrease. This is called "growth-defence trade-off."
In the future, this knowledge may help genetically modify plants so farmers can activate this defense system only when needed.
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