Environment
Agricultural biotechnology is any technique in which living organisms, or parts of organisms are altered to make or modify agricultural products, to improve crops, or develop microbes for specific uses in agricultural processes. Simply put, when the tools of biotechnology are applied to agriculture, it is termed as “agricultural biotechnology”. Genetic engineering is also a part of agricultural biotechnology in today’s world. It is now possible to carry out genetic manipulation and transformation on almost all plant species, including all the world’s major crops.
Plant transformation is one of the tools involved in agricultural biotechnology, in which genes are inserted into the genetic structure or genome of plants. The two most common methods of plant transformation are Agrobacterium Transformation – methods that use the naturally occurring bacterium; and Biolistic Transformation – involving the use of mechanical means. Using any of these methods the preferred gene is inserted into a plant genome and traditional breeding method followed to transfer the new trait into different varieties of crops.
Production of food crops has become much cheaper and convenient with the introduction of agricultural biotechnology. Specific herbicide tolerant crops have been engineered which makes weed control manageable and more efficient. Pest control has also become more reliable and effective, eliminating the need for synthetic pesticides as crops resistant to certain diseases and insect pests have also been engineered. Phytoremediation is the process in which plants detoxify pollutants in the soil, or absorb and accumulate polluting substances out of the soil. Several crops have now been genetically engineered for this purpose for safe harvest and disposal, and improvement of soil quality.
Modern agricultural biotechnology has now become a very well-developed science. The use of synthetic pesticides that may be harmful to man, and pollute groundwater and the environment, has been significantly lessened with the introduction of genetically engineered insect-resistant cotton. Herbicide-tolerant soybeans and corn have also enabled the use of reduced-risk herbicides that break down more quickly in soil. These are nontoxic to plants or animals, and herbicide-tolerant crops help preserve topsoil from erosion since they thrive better in no-till or reduced tillage agriculture systems. Papayas resistant to the ringspot virus were also developed through genetic engineering, which saved the U.S. papaya industry.
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Once the final harvest is done in the autumn, it is time to clean up your garden and carefully prepare it for the next season. Most of this work can be done over the winter months. Having too much debris in your beds from the year before can attract pest and plant diseases that can emerge with a vengeance next spring, so it is important to clean up as much as possible beforehand. All the dead plants, leaves, stalks and weeds should be collected and thrown into your winter compost pile. However, if you have already had plant diseases in your garden, it is important to not throw this material in your compost pile. Quite simply, many plant diseases, especially those that flourish in the soil itself, may thrive in the compost environment; therefore it is better to avoid any contamination if at all possible.
If you planted blubs during the autumn, be sure to remember this when cleaning out your garden as some winter maintenance may be called for. Further, since winter provides a good opportunity to turn your soil and remove unwanted root systems, remembering where your bulbs are planted can help you avoid destroying them before they can emerge in the spring.
Outdoor potted plants should also be cleaned up, especially if you have many clay pots. Clay pots absorb moisture and can freeze and crack during the winter, so emptying them and cleaning them out thoroughly is a good idea. The plants themselves can be composted, as can the soil, providing you with a wealth of potting soil for the next season. To recycle your potting soil, just put it in the compost pile and it will rejuvenate it thoroughly. As is the case with your garden debris, be careful avoid throwing any plant debris that comes from diseased plants into your compost pile as this may lead to the disease surviving and coming back to haunt you the next year.