Science briefs

Cumulative release of phosphate (P) during dissolution of hydroxyapatite with and without the addition of acetic acid (A), fumaric acid (B), maleic acid (C), tartaric acid (D), tricarballylic acid (E), and citric acid (F). The dissolution occurred at pH 8.01. Blue arrows indicate that the arrangement ("molecular configuration") of carboxylic acid functional groups is more important to the weathering process than their concentration (brackets). Adapted figure courtesy of Yaniv Fraiberg and Yuji Arai.

Phosphate mineral weathering by carboxylic acids is driven by functional group composition and orientation

July 2, 2026

From one photo to fruit count: How a model sees citrus trees of different complexity. Each image shows a real orchard photo overlaid with an AI attention map, where warmer colors indicate regions that the model weighted most heavily to estimate total fruit count. The model reads both visible fruits and overall canopy structure, arriving at a reliable count from a single smartphone photo. Photo courtesy of Hongchun Qu, first author on the study.

A smartphone can count your citrus crop

June 12, 2026

Progression of low pH and high aluminum’s effect on a panel of alfalfa populations, evaluated over multiple years. Field soil pictured was naturally acidic (pH = 5) and rich in aluminum (extractable aluminum = 11 mg/kg). The best plants from the best populations were selected for crossing and advancing to another cycle of recurrent selection. Photos courtesy of Ali Missaoui, University of Georgia.

Breeding alfalfa cultivars with high yield in acidic and aluminum-rich soils

June 10, 2026

Graphical abstract depicting how saltwater and freshwater differently affect oxygen levels in soil pores. Image courtesy of Nathan Johnson, science illustrator at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Coastal floods affect soil pores and oxygen flow

June 8, 2026

Eragrostis curvula plants naturally have two to eight sets of chromosomes, making the forage grass a great model species for studying polyploidy. Photo by USDA-NRCS Tucson Plant Materials Center (PMC) and courtesy of the USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database.

The molecular mechanisms underlying the polyploidization of a forage grass

June 5, 2026

Imaging of microplastic (blue to red indicating increasing concentrations) in a sandy soil as seen by combining x-ray and neutron tomography. Image courtesy of Andreas Cramer.

Microplastics and water in soils: two separate worlds

June 3, 2026

Left: Cover crop fields that have not been grazed. Right: Grazing on plots seeded with mixed cover crops. Photos courtesy of Said Hamido.

Integrated grazing and cover crop management enhances soil organic matter accumulation

May 28, 2026

Original drone picture from the pasture area (left) next to a modeling scheme and prediction map of grass and legume distribution generated using a convolutional neural network (right). Grass is shown in dark green and legumes in light green. Red areas represent non-vegetated zones or background. Paddocks are labeled from 1 to 9; paddocks 3, 5, and 9 contain a bahiagrass–rhizoma peanut mixture, while the others are bahiagrass only. Photo courtesy of Igor Bretas, first author on the study.

A new approach to estimate botanical composition in mixed pastures

May 26, 2026

Field photos showing unmined (a) and mined (b) landscapes in Tigray, Ethiopia, highlighting clear differences in vegetation cover and soil condition following traditional gold mining. Photos courtesy of Meaza Zenebe, Mekelle University.

Traditional gold mining reduces soil function in the drylands of Ethiopia

May 22, 2026

Left: Potato flowers showing anthers and part of the pistils. Right: In-vitro pollen germination. Styles and pollen were used to study S-RNases and SLFs. Photos courtesy of Mercedes Ames, first author on the study.

Decoding the potato's mating language

May 20, 2026

2027 ASA Southern Branch Annual Meeting

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