Skip Navigation

Journal of Experimental Botany 2009 60(7):1885-1891; doi:10.1093/jxb/erp121
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow E-letters: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when E-letters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Wilkinson, S.
Right arrow Articles by Hartung, W.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Wilkinson, S.
Right arrow Articles by Hartung, W.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Wilkinson, S.
Right arrow Articles by Hartung, W.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author [2009]. Published by Oxford University Press [on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology]. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

eXtra Botany

Food production: reducing water consumption by manipulating long-distance chemical signalling in plants

Sally Wilkinson1,* and Wolfram Hartung2

1Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Bailrigg, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK
2Lehrstuhl Botanik I der Universität Würzburg, Julius von Sachs Platz 2, D-97082 Würzburg, Germany

* To whom correspondence should be addressed: E-mail: sally.wilkinson@lancaster.ac.uk

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.


   Introduction
 
One of the great challenges for the future is the production of sufficient food for a dramatically growing population during a period of climate change where water supplies are dwindling, and phytotoxic air pollutants such as ozone are increasing. By 2050 global grain demand is expected to double (Postel, 1998; Tilman et al., 2002; Schiermeier, 2008). Greater food production, however, will require larger areas of irrigated land unless the water use efficiency (WUE) of crop plants can be increased. To increase and sustain food production the following ecophysiological, genetic, and agronomic actions have been suggested (Postel, 1998; Tilman et al., 2002; Schiermeier, 2008).

(i) Improving irrigation practices and equipment (sprinkler, drip irrigation).
(ii) Implementation of small-scale water-harvesting, terracing, improved rainwater storage, and increased soil moisture retention by improving soil structure (for example by adding manure, mulching).
(iii) Improving crop water . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   The ABA signalling pathway
 

   Manipulating the ABA signalling pathway using deficit irrigation
 

   How else can we manipulate ABA concentration? Some open questions
 
Soil micro-organisms
Apoplastic barriers
ABA-glucose ester (ABA-GE)
ABA-metabolism
ABA biosynthesis

   How can we increase stomatal sensitivity to ABA?
 
Manipulating xylem/apoplastic pH
Soil fertilization
Manipulating ethylene production/perception

   Conclusions and future research
 

Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J Exp BotHome page
I. C. Dodd
Rhizosphere manipulations to maximize 'crop per drop' during deficit irrigation
J. Exp. Bot., July 1, 2009; 60(9): 2454 - 2459.
[Full Text] [PDF]