Biotech Updates

Developing Drought Tolerant Corn Hybrids

October 7, 2011

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has released on their website a short primer on Developing Drought Tolerant Corn Hybrids. Authored by Amy Lathrop, a distance education specialist in the Department of Agronomy and Deana Namuth, an extension plant genetics education and outreach specialist, the primer explains among other things: the process currently used to create drought tolerant corn; why drought tolerance is a trait which is difficult to improve in comparison to herbicide resistance or insect resistance traits; and the limitations and benefits of drought tolerant hybrids.

The authors offered pointers on the advantages and care to determine whether these particular hybrids are suitable for the farmers' operations considering yield, water supply, farm environment, and cost.

See the short primer at http://cropwatch.unl.edu/web/cropwatch/archive?articleID=4651852.