Transferring Survival Skills from 'Resurrection Plants' into Everyday Crops

Could harnessing the power of "resurrection plants" - with the ability to survive severe water shortages for years - hold the secret to feeding a hungry planet?

Jill Farrant, a biology professor at Cape Town University, hopes that by putting resurrection plants' survival skills into crops, making them drought-tolerant, the world's population could be better fed.

Farrant and her team are currently testing the technique on maize, but in theory, it could be applied to any crop, she said. "Give (the plants) water, and they are fully active within 24 to 48 hours," Farrant told the Thomson Reuters Foundation at her office.

Farrant's research has shown that survival mechanisms found in the 135 varieties of resurrection plants, such as the 'Rose of Jericho' and 'Siempre Viva' desert plants, are similar to the desiccation processes found in crop seeds.

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Seán A. O'Hara

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