Good to grow

• Autores: Katia Moskvitch
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 2961, 2014, págs. 46-49
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Alan Baker squatted to get a closer look at the delicate white flowers that shouldn't have been there. He knew that the soil in that part of England's Peak District was laced with metals toxic to most plants. Yet here, in the desolate surroundings of an old lead mine, he had found spring sandwort flourishing. That was 45 years ago and the flowers that Baker spotted on his hike have guided his career as a plant scientist. Over the years, he and his colleagues have shown how some plants can take up certain metals in such large quantities that it is possible to grow a crop of metals. The idea could help regenerate landscapes blighted by mining and help farmers improve poor soils. Here, Moskvitch details the concepts of phytomining.