Disappearing under a thick canopy of leaves, Tran Thi Ha is quick to point out five different types of the root crop cassava on her farm – and their somewhat unusual uses. “We use the stems of cassava stakes as a medium to grow mushrooms,” she says, pointing to a line of cut cassava stems. Nestling in the foothillsRead More …
We invite you to feast your eyes and your mind on the online version of CIAT’s Annual Report 2014-2015: Pathways to Development Impact – our first virtual and fully interactive publication*. Like our printed annual reports of the past, this one offers a comprehensive overview of the Center’s achievements in the last year – including its contributions to theRead More …
CIAT mourns the loss of research assistant Orlando Toro-Chica, whose death on 22 January has deprived the Center’s Genetic Resources Program of a friend and a highly dedicated professional. He spent 40 years documenting the diversity of Phaseolus beans conserved in the Center’s genebank. An internationally recognized expert on bean genetic resources, Orlando was always willing to dedicate timeRead More …
Of all the efforts now underway to incorporate improved Brachiaria grass into Africa’s mixed farming (see part 1 in this blog series), the biggest and most successful was prompted less by its well-known value as livestock feed and more by another important role for the grass that CIAT scientists never imagined. This and other experiences with Brachiaria are summarizedRead More …
Ask any non-African what they usually associate with this continent – at least when a crisis like the current Ebola outbreak isn’t capturing everyone’s attention – and they’re likely to mention Africa’s spectacular big game. But what if someone were to make the case that a far less charismatic slice of Africa’s biological diversity – particularly an un-photogenic forageRead More …
RTBMaps is a flagship online atlas developed by the CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB) that provides all sorts of geographic information on RTB crops worldwide for the benefit of the research and development community. RTBMaps aggregates individual maps provided by researchers and scientists around the world through “scientific crowdsourcing”, hence compiling a wealth of criticalRead More …
Crop Scientists have discovered a gene in rice that could significantly improve its resistance to drought, according to new research. The DEEPER ROOTING 1 (DRO1) gene makes the roots of rice plants grow downwards instead of outwards, enabling them to reach water held deeper in the soil. It means that even under conditions of extreme water stress, the plantsRead More …
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