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Old 04-06-2013, 11:01 PM posted to rec.gardens.edible
Billy[_10_] Billy[_10_] is offline
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Default 'superwheat' that boosts crops by 30%



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...heat-boosts-cr
ops-30--Creation-new-grain-hailed-biggest-advance-farming-generation.html


The Cambridge-based team selected early wheat and grass varieties from
seed banks across the globe and cross-bred them for maximum potential.

'This year our crop had a 30 per cent better yields, which took us a bit
by surprise,' said Dr Barsby. 'Although to is in the early stages, we
are very optimistic.

'In the past decade, our wheat yield had started to plateau off and we
needed another increase in productivity to meet demand.

'It is about finding novel characteristics from the original ancestors
of wheat and breeding them to make them as productive and resilient as
possible.' Dr Barsby said the technique involved breeding selected
species of wheat and grass, and that no GM-technology was involved.

'You can sometimes become too focused on one technology like GM and not
look at other techniques that can bring you similar success,' she said.

Over the next 50 years, the world needs to grow more wheat than has been
produced in the 10,000 years since agriculture began.
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