Rothamsted

Rothamsted Discover the science of feeding the world! at a molecular level) as well as from their interactions with the environment (e.g. with air, soil, water etc.).

Established in 1843, our mission is to deliver the knowledge and new practices to increase crop productivity and quality and to develop environmentally sustainable solutions for food and bioenergy production. This is delivered through a comprehensive scientific strategy that uses a dynamic and integrated approach to crop science, allowing us to study plants from within (e.g. This strategy is deliv

ered through four interdependent programmes:
• 20:20 Wheat: Increasing wheat productivity to yield 20 tonnes per hectare in 20 years TM Designing seeds
• Designing Seeds: Harnessing our expertise in seed biology and biochemistry to deliver improved health and nutrition through seeds Delivering sustainable systems
• Cropping Carbon: Designing, modelling and assessing sustainable agricultural systems that increase productivity while minimising environmental impact
• Sustainable Systems: Optimising carbon capture by grasslands and perennial energy crops, such as Willow, to help underpin the UK's transition to a low carbon economy

These programmes are underpinned by four national capabilities:
• North Wyke (Devon) Farm Platform: a 250ha experimental farming system where inputs and outputs can be accurately measured in situ.
• The long-term experiments, sample archive and eRA database: running since the mid-19th century and provide a unique experimental system and archive.
• The Insect Survey: operates two national networks for monitoring insect populations in the UK.
• PHI-base: is a database of multiple pathogen-host interactions maintained at Rothamsted Research with considerable input from the international community. Rothamsted Research is truly unique, offering:
• 170 years’ experience of delivering agricultural science and innovation.
• extensive international and multi-sector collaborative networks developed over many years.
• a truly multi-disciplinary workforce, bringing together knowledge from many different fields.
• the ability to combine detailed laboratory studies (using state-of-the-art scientific equipment) with extensive fieldwork (over 700 ha of experimental land) all within a single facility.

22/01/2025

Productive morning at UK Parliament for Sense about Science Evidence Week sharing our research on the link between land use, soil erosion and extreme weather. Adie Collins, Hari Upadhayay and Steve Granger did the talking, meeting with numerous MPs including George Freeman MP Victoria Collins for Harpenden & Berkhamsted Roz Savage MP Blake Stephenson MP Claire Young MP for Thornbury & Yate Calum Miller for Bicester and Woodstock & Jonathan Davies MP.
Read the policy brief here:https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Documents/Policy%20Brief%20Muddy%20Flooding%20Jan%202025.pdf

21/01/2025

Sir Peter Kendall has been appointed as interim Board Chair at Rothamsted Research.
Sir Peter is a fifth-generation arable and poultry farmer from Bedfordshire and was President of the NFU - National Farmers' Union from 2006 until 2014. He has also served as president of the World Farmers' Organisation and as chair of the AHDB . He was a board member of the Lawes Agricultural Trust. He was knighted in the 2015 New Year Honours.
Full story: www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/sir-peter-kendall-becomes-interim-chair-rothamsted-research-board

16/01/2025

Work with wheat?🚜👩‍🔬 Join us for the next Wheat Genetic Improvement Network meeting! WGIN started in 2003 and has provided the delivery of tools, resources and expertise for the identification of naturally occurring (useful) genetic variation in a broad range of new traits for hexaploid .

📅5th Feb, 9:30-16:30
📍John Innes Centre, Norwich and Online
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Register for in-person attendance: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/22nd-wgin-stakeholders-meeting-2025-in-person-registration-tickets-1137790364609?aff=oddtdtcreator
💻Register for online attendance: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/22nd-wgin-stakeholders-meeting-2025-on-line-registration-tickets-1137836472519

NIAB Met Office

15/01/2025

Thank you to all that attended Café Scientifique with Andy Gregory on Monday! Save the date for our next event - "Small Creatures, Big Impact: How Microbes are Shaping Climate Change" on 11th Feb with Dr Adriana Torres-Ballesteros.

14/01/2025

Ever wondered why w**ds always seem to win? Curious about how they outsmart our w**d control methods and easily overcome environmental challenges? Join Dana for this lunchtime talk at Farm ED.

Get your ticket now (includes a delicious lunch): https://www.farm-ed.co.uk/event-details.asp?calid=62

13/01/2025

TONIGHT in the Harpenden Arms Pub, learn about the longest-running experiments in the world, growing here in ! Everyone is welcome to come along and ask questions at this free event.

12/01/2025

Happening tomorrow,7pm at the Harpenden Arms Pub - the next FREE Café Scientifique will teach you about the longest-running experiments in the world! Everyone is welcome to come along and learn more about the influential science happening on your doorstep.

08/01/2025

A new version of the influential data curation tool PHI-base has been developed and aims to provide more depth on how genes affect the outcome of interactions between pathogens and their hosts.
Full story: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/pathogen-host-database-refocuses-genes

Full paper: https://academic.oup.com/nar/article/53/D1/D826/7908791?login=false

06/01/2025

The next FREE Café Scientifique will teach you about the longest-running experiments in the world! Everyone is welcome to come along and learn more about the influential science happening on your doorstep.

31/12/2024

Congratulations to Professor Lin Field, awarded a CBE for services to crop protection and the environment in the New Year Honours list.
Full story: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/prof-lin-field-awarded-cbe-new-year-honours

18/12/2024

Our sediment sleuths are digging up the past to help make farming more resilient in the future, here's how 👇📽️

Using soil cores, field trials, and computer modelling, Resilient Farming Futures aims to understand the resilience of agriculture production to future ecosystem stresses. Find out more here: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/project/resilient-farming-futures

11/12/2024

Rain, rain, rain...Out at every opportunity this season, the farm team will not be beaten by the weather. We had a long harvest and are now very behind on the autumn drilling but a good window of weather has allowed them to catch up as much as possible. Just 5-6 field trials to go, those with later vernalisation varieties have been left to last and, although not ideal, they still have time to get those in -hopefully this side of Christmas!

05/12/2024

3, 2, 1, BAKE! We're looking for a perfect crumb and no soggy bottoms in the Rothamsted tent this ...Follow our recipe for a perfect soil 👇

20/11/2024

Don't miss this free webinar, sign up here: https://www.aab.org.uk/event/applied-tree-and-forest-biology-group-webinar-december-2nd/

16/11/2024

Tomorrow at 5pm, the power of millet will be the topic of the next Café Scientifique! Completely free to attend and open to everyone, join us at the Harpenden Arms pub to learn a little science👩‍🔬

10/11/2024

1 WEEK TO GO until the next Café Scientifique! Join Dr Swati Puranik to learn more about the power of millet...Everyone is welcome 🤗

08/11/2024

Meet Gwen 🐄 one of the residents of Britain's most-measured farm. She helps our scientists in Devon find out whether we can farm beef and dairy more sustainably. Watch her new moo-vie now👇

🎞️Created by TomLawSays

07/11/2024

Our labs have changed a little in 170 years but our purpose remains the same: empowering society with the best scientific knowledge to produce sufficient nutritious food, whilst caring for the environment.

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Videos

Our sediment sleuths are digging up the past to help make farming more resilient in the future, here's how 👇📽️ Using soil cores, field trials, and computer modelling, Resilient Farming Futures aims to understand the resilience of agriculture production to future ecosystem stresses. Find out more here: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/project/resilient-farming-futures #agriculture #soil

3, 2, 1, BAKE! We're looking for a perfect crumb and no soggy bottoms in the Rothamsted tent this #WorldSoilDay...Follow our recipe for a perfect soil 👇

Swarming midges are attracted towards the centre of the group and repelled by one another in almost equal measure, according to a new study. This pattern of behaviour maximises breeding success by attracting mates. Even when a female enters the swarm, and is pursued by a male, the swarm keeps its shape. Individuals may be drawn towards her, but this force of attraction is weaker than the negative "impulse" for the males to stay away from each other. Read more: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/midges-keep-their-distance #entomology #insects #physics

It's #NationalPastaDay 🍝Why is '00' Grade flour so good for making pasta? Why does dough need to rest? There are no fu-silli questions when it comes to the science of pasta! #pasta #wheat

To celebrate #UKFungusDay, why not see what spores are in the air around you? Here's how to set up a simple spore trap... UK Fungus Day - The flagship outreach of the British Mycological Society

There's something in the air...and our scientists are investigating every spore 🔍 Using spore-trapping devices, we hope to inform farmers about what's in their fields so they can make informed decisions when harvesting crops and using fungicides.

What could the future of pest management look like? Instead of shooting insecticides all over the field, Sam Cook suggests lasers instead… Machine learning could help identify pests and their natural enemies in the field, reducing the use of insecticides. Find out more 📽️ #IPM #agriculture #farming

In celebration of the 9th Resistance Conference at Rothamsted this week, we’re taking a look at the agricultural science of the past, present, and future tackling pesticide use. Did you know that the insecticides you might find in your mosquito repellent and flea treatments were discovered here at Rothamsted? Andrew Farnham explains his role in the development of synthetic pyrethroids… #Resistance2024 #pesticides #agriculture #farming

How are scientists creating a MAGIC oilseed rape population? It doesn’t involve a wand and a top hat… Dr Mollie Langdon explains 📽️ Scientists at Rothamsted Research and the John Innes Centre are breeding thousands of OSR plants to better understand their genetics – that’s MAGIC (Multi-Parent Advanced Generation Inter-Cross). This research will be used to build a community resource of genetic traits which will help inform farmers to grow OSR more sustainably. #OSR #agriculture #farming #agronomy #genomics

This #WorldOceanDay, help scientists protect our oceans by completing the short survey on king prawns below🦐👇 https://sites.exeter.ac.uk/kingprawn/2024/05/31/survey-of-king-prawn-consumption-in-the-uk/ The UK Sustainable King Prawn Project is exploring the potential to create a new, environment-friendly, food production sector for warm water king prawn (penaeus vannamei) in the UK. #fishing #sustainability University of Exeter University of Reading

Happening this Saturday at Rothamsted Manor - get your FREE ticket before it's too late! Stroll with our scientists and learn how to spot the signs of tree disease and what's growing on the world's oldest experiment... https://www.tickettailor.com/events/rothamstedresearch2/1215011 #StAlbans #Harpenden #hertfordshire @PlantDay18May #PlantDay

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Our Story

We are world-leading, non-profit research centre that focuses on agricultural science to benefit the environment, farmers and society worldwide. Our work addresses food security, malnutrition, poverty, climate change and the environment. Our people are experts in their field and come from all areas of the globe.

We are home to three unique National Capabilities that are open to researchers from all over the world; The Long Term Experiments, Rothamsted Insect Survey, North Wyke Farm Platform for grazing-livestock systems research.

Rothamsted Research is the oldest continually operating agricultural research station in the world. Its foundation dates from 1843 when John Bennet Lawes the owner of the Rothamsted estate appointed Joseph Henry Gilbert, a chemist as his scientific collaborator.