Farming

With nearly half the world's soil degraded, growing enough food to feed a global population is getting increasingly difficult and costly. Scientists believe they've got one solution, and it's already all around us: Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

The Gyr cattle farmed in Tanzania handle the African heat well, but they produce much less milk than less-tolerant Holstein or Jersey cows. Scientists have set about addressing that problem, by creating hybrid cattle that combine both attributes.

More than 17 million US households now have chickens. The world's first smart Coop, which is an ideal gateway to help novices raise chooks, has now rolled out Cluck Talk, which can tell you just what your chatty birds are saying to each other and to you.

After attracting more than 15,000 growers across 10 countries since its 2021 launch, the Auk indoor garden is now on its way to the US for the promise of year-round herbs, greens and tomatoes direct from the kitchen countertop.

Folks looking to harvest a steady supply of fresh greens from their kitchen may have limited success with pots at the window. SproutHub automates growing on the countertop, with the promise of an easy weekly harvest.

Back in 2015, French startup Véritable hit Kickstarter with a countertop Garden designed to automate growing of fresh micro-greens and herbs. Now the company has returned with a modular system that can be tweaked for indoor and outdoor use.

Hog barns typically aren't the nicest places to be at the best of times, but try living in one during a heat wave. Scientists at Indiana's Purdue University have developed a self-activating hog-cooling pad for just such situations.

Nothing can rescue a bland meal quite like fresh herbs, but not everyone has access to outdoor space to grow their own. That's where indoor smart gardens come in, and the latest from Plantone allows growers to use regular soil and seeds.

I grew up with a ready supply of freshly picked greens and veggies from my parents' garden, but apartment dwellers don't have such luxuries. This is where indoor growing units can help, and the Nutroponics Garden Tower can host up to 100 plants.

Move over, cow burps. A team of scientists has shifted gears from the front to the back end of these methane-production powerhouses, using algae to curb gas emanating from their poop. It's a crap gig, but nature's best methane inhibitor is on the job.

While farmers have to perform a number of difficult tasks, tending to the grain stored inside grain bins (aka granaries) is particularly arduous – not to mention dangerous. That's where the Grain Weevil grain bin management robot is made to come in.

In an effort to keep livestock safe from coyotes while not harming the predators themselves, researchers ran experiments with a remote-controlled vehicle. The solution worked, hinting at a future in which robot ranch hands could work night patrol.