An interview with Professor Honermeier: about methods that make higher yields possible

I can see promising approaches in the application of modern plant breeding methods, in particular. For example, hybrid breeding can lead to significant increases in yields in the future. This method has already been used for many years to cultivate crosspollinated varieties, such as corn, rye, sugar beet and tomato. Hybrid varieties are the result of crossing two inbred lines that are genetically very different and have a significantly higher yield than the parent plants. Using this method has meant that corn, which originated in warmer regions, is now the most important feed and energy crop in temperate climates such as in Europe and Germany.

The further development of precision farming methods will play a major role in the production of crops in the future. This allows for arable land and plant populations to be managed on a site-specific basis with the help of GPS and sensorcontrolled agricultural machinery. This means that all cultivation measures, from soil tillage to sowing, weed control, fungal disease control and fertilization, can be applied much more precisely, depending on the soil and the needs of the plants.

Crop plant researchers are also working on other solutions to achieve improved plant growth and higher yields in the future. These include research into mycorrhizal fungi, a form of symbiosis between plant roots and fungi that influences the uptake of water and nutrients by plants. Trials with wheat have already shown that the mycorrhization of plants under phosphorus and water-deficient conditions resulted in higher yields.

Other measures that could be used to achieve higher or more stable crop yields in the future include measures to improve the water retention of soil. These include adding carbon to topsoil and subsoil (for example, through biochar, digestate, compost, straw, manure and plant residues) and diversifying crop production through agro-forestry and mixedcrop systems.