New man-made materials developed by scientists have been successfully used to confuse and trick harmful spores which attack wheat crops into growing on an alternative host to help farmers protect their food production. By working with the industry partners, these crop surveillance sensors use the latest generation of ‘Internet of Things‘ electronics and machine-learning techniques. The sensors do this by literally tricking the fungal disease spores into growing within the team’s novel biomaterials, in the ‘belief’ that they have found their specific plant host and food source. The innovative new system which was trialled in Ethiopia and detailed in the journal, Fluids, demonstrates success in distracting the harmful spores before they have begun to grow and disrupt a wheat crop. This affords farmers extra security without needing to wait until signs of spore damage appear before reacting to save their crop.

Source: Ethiopian News July 13, 2020 13:18 UTC