Tiffany Lee - UNL Research and Economic Development

Woman sits near wall of soil — Judith Turk, associate professor in the School of Natural Resources, will use an $854,000 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Faculty Early Career Development Program to shed light on how human activity is impacting soil degradation in the Great Plains. (Photo by Craig Chandler, University Communication and Marketing)

Turk Investigating Soil Health Over Time, a Key to Climate Resilience Strategies

June 6, 2024

Turk’s research will inform soil carbon sequestration strategies and advance understanding of soil health, which is key to agricultural systems’ capacity to withstand extreme weather.

People holding sorghum plants toward camera — (From left) James Schnable, Rebecca Roston and Toshihiro Obata hold young sorghum plants outside of the Bioscience Greenhouses on City Campus. The researchers are part of a $1.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation to try to boost the cold tolerance of sorghum, and eventually corn and other crops, by harnessing the power of the plant’s circadian rhythms. (Photo by Craig Chandler, University Communication and Marketing)

Husker Researchers Aim to Help Crops Survive Cold Snaps

February 29, 2024

UNL researchers are examining the way sorghum defends itself against low temperatures and comparing it to the cold tolerance characteristics of foxtail millet to find answers on improving crop resilience.

Figure 1. Through a $2.7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, a University of Nebraska–Lincoln research team is developing ways to maximize sorghum potentials across the United States.

Nebraska Team Merges Machine Learning, Plant Genetics to Maximize Sorghum Potential

August 22, 2019

Sorghum is emerging as a star player in the biofuels industry. With its water use efficiency, resistance to heat, and low cost of seed, it could outpace corn, with a little boost from improved genetics. To aid that, a UNL team was recently awarded a $2.7 million grant to work on a rapid, efficient method for characterizing its gene functions.

Rebecca Roston, assistant professor of biochemistry, holds a pea plant outside the Beadle Hall greenhouses. Roston, who recently earned a National Science Foundation CAREER award, is studying how more than 30 species of plants respond to freezing. (Photo by Craig Chandler)

NSF Award Boosts Research into Freeze-Tolerant Crops

March 8, 2019

For some plants — like corn — below-zero temperatures trigger a cascade of lethal damage. For others, the damage isn't permanent. UNL biochemist Rebecca Roston is working to identify key properties so one day more freeze-tolerant crops might be developed.