微生物可帮助玉米抵御可怕害虫

Nontoxic approach bolsters plant’s own defenses ERIK STOKSTAD “T here’s no silver bullet for corn rootworm,” says Julie Peterson, an entomologist at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Dreaded by farmers, the western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) attacks the roots of corn plants, which weaken and fall over in the wind. The damage costs in excess of $1 billion each year in the United States alone. And battling the pest has become harder as it has evolved resistance to synthetic insecticides, genetically modified crops, and even crop rotation. Now, it appears that corn plants can be coaxed to defend themselves. …