News > Day One > Building a better leaf may boost crop yields Plant architecture can help improve yields, said keynote speaker Steve Larocque, an independent crop advisor based out of Three Hills, Alta.

Growth regulators may help orient plants for improved photosynthesis, Steve Larocque suggests. -- Alexis Kienlen photo

Larocque, the owner of Beyond Agronomy, was a Nuffield Scholar. As part of the program, he spent two years traveling the globe to seven countries to discover ways to boost yields in Western Canada.

"One of the keys to increasing yields is to maximize the photosynthetic area of the plant," he told an audience at the FarmTech 2010 conference starting Jan. 27 in Edmonton.

Some of the leaves in the European varieties in wheat stick straight out and act as solar panels, which receive the maximum amount of sunlight. By contrast, he said, western Canadian varieties have leaves that stick straight out and are floppy, which reduces photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis may also be reduced by overcrowding plants which then have to compete against each other for sunlight, Larcoque said.

Plant efficiency and sunlight can also have an impact on grain fill. The top two leaves in a wheat plant contribute about 65 per cent of the grain fill, and 80 per cent in barley.

Larocque has seen positive results from using growth regulators, which can help point plant stems and heads up to help plants penetrate canopies and improve yield.

Changing the angle of the leaves, so they rest at a 75° angle, may also help prevent diseases such as rust and spores, which infect plants by resting on their surfaces.

Larocque recommends investigating the leaf architecture from crop varieties of other countries to create plants that maximize yield.

-- Alexis Kienlen is a reporter with Alberta Farmer in Edmonton.