SCRI Articles and Research

Individual articles from the 2010 Report

lwakef — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 15:48:01 +0100

PDF file: Director's Introduction Peter J. Gregory (315 KB)

PDF file: SCRI Worldwide Phil Taylor (218 KB)

Research

gsquir — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 16:00:57 +0000

An introduction to research at the LEAF Innovation Centre, including the new long term research platform - the Centre for Sustainable Cropping.

Research priorities

Scientific research at the Institute covers a wide range of scales and disciplines from landscape processes to gene functioning. As a LEAF Innovation Centre, our priorities are:

International Workshop on Barley Leaf Blights

lwakef — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 16:05:38 +0000

The Fourth International Workshop on Barley Leaf Blights is being hosted by SCRI (The James Hutton Institute from 1 April 2011). It will be held at the West Park Conference Centre, Dundee from 27-29 June 2011.

Online booking now open.

Session topics:

Epidemiology and disease management
Resistance breeding
Pathogen populations and variation
Molecular plant-pathogen interactions
Special topic: Ramularia

Organising Committee:

Adrian Newton, Anna Avrova, Mark Looseley, Brian Steffenson (all SCRI), Neil Havis (SAC)

Attending

Venue

West Park Conference Centre
319 Perth Road
Dundee
DD2 1NN
Scotland, UK

Comment

gsquir — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 09:59:25 +0000

A new page to stimulate in-depth comment and discussion on topical issues, trends and new findings in sustainable agriculture and food.

Soil structure and quality - status and field aid

To move on, you should know where you are! The status of arable soils in Scotland was uncertain at the beginning of a major, five-year research project on Sustainable Crop Systems (2006-11) funded by the Scottish Government. A comprehensive survey was therefore undertaken in 2007-09 across arable fields in east Scotland from the Black Isle to the Borders. The map, right, shows the land classed as arable and the survey points. Probably the most detailed study of its type in Europe - it included not only many soil indicators but measures of the crops, biodiversity, food webs and agronomic inputs. The results of subsequent laboratory and statistical analysis are now nearing completion. They indicate many arable fields are below standard in terms of their capacity to support plant growth and the cycles of energy, carbon, nitrogen and other elements that are needed to maintain fields in good health. (Such degradation of soil appears to be a global phenomenon due to the intensity of cropping and is not restricted to the east of Scotland!)

Potatoes in Practice 2011

lwakef — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 15:27:28 +0000

Potatoes in Practice will be held at SCRI’s Balruddery Farm on Thursday 11 August 2011. It is the biggest field potato event in the UK and brings together variety trials and research in one place making it one of the most important dates in the potato industry calendar.

Photograph of visitors at field plots during Potatoes in Practice 2010

Potatoes in Practice is sponsored by Potato Council and features trials and demonstrations from SCRI, SAC, Masstock Arable (UK) Ltd. (formerly CSC Potato Care) and the potato industry.

Exhibitor booking open

Booking is now open and places are being reserved for marquee exhibits and outside space for machinery. Full information and the relevant booking forms can be found below.

July - December 2010 In the Press Archive

lwakef — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 14:07:07 +0000

Barley DNA helps whisky production

Dundee Evening Telegraph
29 December 2010
Scientists at a lab near Dundee today revealed how they're using DNA fingerprinting techniques normally associated with police investigations to improve Scotland's national drink.

Glasgow Herald
29 December 2010
Scientists are using DNA fingerprinting techniques to help keep whisky as a top Scottish export.

Aberdeen Press and Journal
29 December 2010
Scottish scientists have developed a technique normally used to catch criminals to enhance the quality of whisky.

Dundee Courier
29 December 2010
Work done by crop scientists at Scottish Crop Research Institute could help the whisky industry to remain as one of the country's top exports.

Centre for Sustainable Cropping

Helping farmers reduce reliance on fertiliser will benefit us all
The Scotsman
18 December 2010
Urgent Government Warning: The production of healthy food can seriously damage the health of the countryside. That’s why experts at the Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI) are conducting the first experiment into sustainable cropping.

Baseline Seedbank Surveys

chawes — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 11:04:21 +0000

Topographic map of the CSC fields

Spatial pattern in species richness of the arable weed seedbank

Spatial distribution of Capsella bursa-pastoris seeds in the seedbank

Spatial distribution of Epilobium spp seeds in the seedbank

Spatial distribution of Veronica spp seeds in the seedbank

Spatial distribution of Viola spp seeds in the seedbank

CSC News

chawes — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 12:26:10 +0000

24/25 Nov 2010: Wintery Weed Counts.

Our intrepid field ecologists ventured out last month for a very chilly couple of days counting weeds in the snow. Might sound mad, but this is the first biodiversity dataset to be gathered since the three winter crops (oilseed rape, barley and wheat) were sown and is a very important record of the initial differences in weed abundance between sustainable (min-till) and conventional (plough) management. Despite numb fingers, a good time was had by all! Honest!

3 Nov 2010: The Last of the Beetles.

Collecting in the pitfall traps after a month in the fields. This is the last of the baseline biodiversity measurements to be collected now that the first crops have been sown. These samples will be providing us with a good excuse to huddle over a nice warm microscope during the dark days of winter.

Around the farms

gsquir — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 12:13:39 +0000

A diary with photographs of the farming, wildlife and weather on the Institute's two farms at Mylnefield and Balruddery.

Drystane dykes

The use of loose or roughly dressed stone to make enclosures for stock animals is not uncommon in some lowland farming regions of east Scotland. The Mylnefield and Balruddery farms both have drystane dykes around many of the fields, reminders of the time when these holdings kept cattle or sheep. A few years ago, the farm began to repair or replace the drystane dykes at Mylnefield. Some of the stretches were still in good shape and would stand for many years with some mending and upkeep (see panel below). Lichen and moss have grown over them, making varied habitat for microorganisms and small animals.

Other stretches were so broken they had to be completely re-made, for example along part of the north boundary (see below). Here, tree saplings were planted on the grass and herb margin between the new dyke and the track. Repair of the drystane dykes is part of the plan to re-establish habitat networks across the landscape (see note on the Balruddery hedges lower down the page). Predators such as weasels, spiders and beetles move through the spaces between the stones to get between fields and wood lots. (Added 28 February 2011)

Tender Documents

rmccre — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 12:02:06 +0000

On 1 April 2011 SCRI (Scottish Crop Research Institute) based at Invergowrie, Dundee, and the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute (MLURI) based in Aberdeen, will merge to become The James Hutton Institute. The James Hutton Institute will be one of the biggest research centres in the UK and the first of its type in Europe. It is envisaged that operations will continue at both sites for the foreseeable future.

As part of the merger, contracts being offered for tender will initially be listed on both SCRI and MLURI websites. Details of current tender exercises are listed below.

Live tenders

Title	Tender reference	OJEU Reference (if applicable)	Closing date	Further details
There are currently no live tenders

Testing PDF viewer

rmccre — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 14:57:15 +0100

SCRI Annual Reports are available as online or as Acrobat files.

You can view the Annual Reports online from your browser by clicking on the publication below:

DRAT - Directed terminal Restriction Analysis Tool

lwakef — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 14:00:14 +0100

Overview
Conditions of use
Requirements
Detailed description
Download
Using DRAT
Credits
Troubleshooting

Overview

DRAT (Directed terminal Restriction Analysis Tool) is a software tool, developed to aid selection of restriction enzyme(s) to differentially identify targeted species/groups within complex communities based on user-supplied sets of sequences. It is applicable to any organisms/gene targets and can be directed to search for enzymes, or combinations of enzymes, to identify diagnostic Terminal Restriction Fragments (TRFs). It can use input files with multiple examples of each type, thus allowing understanding of intra-group variation.

DRAT is aimed at users designing diagnostic or monitoring tools for specific species or ‘functional groups’ within complex communities.

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