How America’s Favorite Fruit Is Getting a High-Tech Upgrade Each autumn, apples take center stage in farmers markets, grocery stores, and family kitchens across the country. As producers work to meet consumer demand, they are also navigating labor shortages, rising production costs, and environmental pressures. Land-grant universities, equipped with a new generation of technology, are helping apple producers improve efficiency, …
Beyond the Farm: Agricultural Research Advances American Nutrition, Economies, and Innovation
Land-grant universities were founded with a unique mission to make game-changing discoveries in the lab that transform the outside world. Through their education, research, and Extension missions, public and land-grant universities strengthen American agriculture by preparing the next generation of farmers and food scientists, driving groundbreaking research and innovation, and delivering practical, research-based support to communities through Extension. APLU recently …
From Hive to Habitat: How Land-Grant Universities are Protecting Bees
Bees are essential to our food systems, pollinating many of the fruits, vegetables, and other crops we rely on every day. However, pollinator populations face growing threats, from pests and disease to habitat loss and environmental stress. Across the country, land-grant universities are stepping up to meet these challenges. Through cutting-edge research, on-the-ground Cooperative Extension, and strong community partnerships, land-grant experts are developing …
Building Resilient Water Systems: Improving Water Management for Agriculture
A safe and reliable water supply is critical for profitable agriculture, healthy people, and thriving communities. Land‑grant universities nationwide are pioneering smarter, more efficient approaches to agricultural water use. From affordable soil‑moisture sensors to advanced crop‑modeling tools, researchers are transforming how water is measured, conserved, and delivered in the field. These efforts help producers continue to thrive in the face of shrinking water supplies, rising …
The Land-grant Impact is Evergreen
From a tiny seedling in the soil to the spot of honor in your living room, your Christmas tree’s journey was likely shaped by the work of a land-grant university. Through research and Extension, land-grant university (LGU) experts help farmers raise healthy trees. From discovering best planting and management practices, to providing advice about additional income opportunities through agritourism, LGUs …
Managing nutrients and water quality
Nutrients are essential for crops, but must be managed properly. Nutrients provided by fertilizer, manure, compost, cover crops, and other means are essential for the profitable, sustainable production of crops for food, fiber, and bioenergy. Nutrient management is key to maintaining or increasing plant productivity, ensuring soil health, protecting ground and surface water resources from potential harm, and using farmers’ …
Managing water resources
Managing our water resources is essential. Clean water is essential for drinking, agriculture, energy, recreation, aquatic habitats, and other uses, but America’s water resources face complex issues such as climate change, pollution, and increasing demand. Many farmers, communities, and leaders are concerned about water scarcity and quality. Research guides effective solutions. Researchers at land-grant universities and partners across the U.S. are working …
Sustainable solutions to bee health
Bees provide essential pollination for many of the nut, berry, fruit, vegetable, and seed crops grown in the U.S. To supplement wild bee pollination, farmers often rent managed honey bee colonies. Demand is skyrocketing, but catastrophic die-offs are threatening the supply of healthy honey bee colonies. Parasitic mites, pathogens, pesticide chemicals, nutritional deficits, and environmental conditions have contributed to the …
Mitigating the impacts of agrochemicals
Pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and other agrochemicals are used on farms to protect crop yield and quality and in urban and residential settings to control pests and weeds. Despite important uses, agrochemicals can leach into soil and groundwater or flow into surface waters, where the chemicals can adversely affect human and environmental health. Agrochemicals can also accumulate in edible organisms, creating …