No 'Miracle' Crops

Currently, no "miracle" crops exist that could economically replace the water-hungry ones in California and yet require substantially less water, according to Professor Theodore C. Hsiao, a plant physiologist at UC Davis with extensive research experience in the use of water by crops and the responses and adaptation of plants to drought. The features that allow plants to withstand drought -- such as a smaller leaf area or more extensive rooting -- are costly in terms of growth and usually the opposite of those sought in agricultural crops. "Plants that require little water may be very drought tolerant, but are certainly not productive," says Hsiao, noting that most crop productivity is linked to water use. The exceptions are plants with a different mechanism of photosynthesis, and very few crop species belong to that group. One example is pineapple, which does not fare well in California, and another is agave, grown in Mexico to produce tequila. Now is a critical time for California growers, he says, since they must choose which crops to grow and whether to reduce the planting acreage or the water used per acre to address the water shortage for the coming season.

Media Resources

Pat Bailey, Research news (emphasis: agricultural and nutritional sciences, and veterinary medicine), 530-219-9640, pjbailey@ucdavis.edu