Understanding and Improving Crop Root Function

"…a well-curated collection of chapters that provides a broad state-of-the-art survey of how roots contribute to plant crop performance and edaphic stress tolerance…Given the urgency to deploy sustainable and resilient agricultural technologies, this excellent collection demonstrates how novel approaches and collaborative trans-disciplinarity can prepare the field of root biology for transformative, real-world impacts." (Annals of Botany)

Recent decades have seen a dramatic increase in research on plant roots. A deeper understanding of the complex ways roots interact with soils is making it possible to ‘design’ roots to optimise nutrient/water uptake in low-input environments, as well as deliver other benefits such as improved soil health and reduced nutrient leaching. Continued research is needed in this important area so that it can contribute to more sustainable, ‘climate-smart’ crop production.

Understanding and improving crop root function features authoritative reviews of current research in all aspects of root science, including root growth regulators, root anatomy, nutrient acquisition and root system architecture. This collection discusses the responses of plant roots to abiotic and biotic stresses and how understanding nutrient uptake can be exploited to optimise root function. The book concludes with a dedicated section on methods used to improve crop root function and crop nutrient use efficiency, such as the use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR).

With its eminent editor and international array of expert authors, Understanding and improving crop root function will be a standard reference for university researchers in crop physiology and nutrition, government and other agencies supporting agriculture, companies supplying crop nutrition products and services, as well as farmers.

Dr Peter J. Gregory is Emeritus Professor of Global Food Security at the University of Reading, UK, where he was previously Professor of Soil Science. Amongst many distinctions, Professor Gregory is a former President of the International Society of Root Research (ISRR) as well as former Chief Executive of the Scottish Crop Research Institute (now part of the James Hutton Institute) and East Malling Research (now NIAB-EMR). He is internationally-renowned for his research in soil and crop root science.