Isolated bioactive priming peptides and bioactive priming compostions comprising bioactive priming polypeptides and/or inducer compounds are provided that are useful when applied to plants in agricultural formulations. Methods of using the isolated bioactive priming peptides and/or compositions are also provided which are applied exogenously to the surface of a plant or a plant cell membrane or endogenously to the interior of a plant or to a plant cell. The isolated bioactive priming peptides and/or bioactive priming compositions when applied to a plant, a plant part, or a plant growth medium or a rhizosphere in an area surrounding the plant or the plant part increase growth, yield, health, longevity, productivity, and/or vigor of a plant or a plant part and/or protect the plant or the plant part from disease, and/or increase the innate immune response of the plant or the plant part and/or improve the quality and/or quantity of juice obtained from a plant or plant part.

An electrical energy processing unit of an apparatus to kill a plant or at least attenuate plant growth is disclosed. The electrical energy processing unit includes a converter and a control circuit. Also disclosed are an apparatus that includes the electrical energy processing unit and a method of utilizing the apparatus. Further disclosed are a computer program for a processor of the control circuit of the electrical energy processing unit and a non-transitory computer readable medium that includes the computer program.

An electrical energy processing unit of an apparatus to kill a plant or at least attenuate plant growth is disclosed. The electrical energy processing unit includes a converter and a control circuit. Also disclosed are an apparatus that includes the electrical energy processing unit and a method of utilizing the apparatus. Further disclosed are a computer program for a processor of the control circuit of the electrical energy processing unit and a non-transitory computer readable medium that includes the computer program.

The present invention relates to methods for producing plants with increased fungal resistance, preferably seedling resistance against Northern Corn Leaf Blight. Further provided are methods for introducing, modifying, or modulating at least one wall-associated kinase (WAK) in(to) a plant cell, tissue, organ, or whole plant and thereby causing a reduced synthesis of benzoxazinoid and in turn increased fungal resistance. There are further provided methods to identify and/or modify downstream effector molecules in a WAK signalling cascade. Finally, plant cells, tissues, organs or whole plants having increased fungal resistance and methods using substances to activate signalling pathways in a targeted way are provided. The present invention thus relates to WAKs as master regulators and crucial signaling mediators in plant defense against fungal disease and the regulation and cross-talk mechanisms in the WAK signaling cascade and further gives examples for establishing novel anti-fungal strategies relevant for a series of crop plants.

The present invention relates to a method of controlling the flowering time of a plant by regulating the formation of the SVP-FLM- protein complex, based on the finding that the SVP-FLM- protein complex is a regulating factor for plant flowering that senses small changes in ambient temperature. The FLM- RNAi and SVP RNAi for controlling flowering time according to the present invention can be used to control flowering time by inhibiting the expression of FLM- and SVP or regulating the interaction therebetween, and thus, they can prevent a decrease in crop production or a change in the ecosystem from being caused by a sudden change in temperature.

A method of applying a Chemical Hybridization Agent (CHA) to a plant. The method includes providing a CHA source and bringing the CHA source in contact with a root of the plant. The method further includes having the root take up a part of the CHA. The disclosure further relates to methods of producing a haploid and/or doubled-haploid plant or hybrid seed. The disclosed method may be used in various aspects of plant breeding.

A method of producing an agricultural product for improving immunity, the agriculture product being rice, includes: (1) soaking seeds of the agricultural product in a solution containing a magnetic material and a -glucan; (2) before planting the seeds, applying a bottom fertilizer to a paddy field for the agricultural product, the bottom fertilizer including an organic fertilizer, the magnetic material, an oyster shell powder, the (3-glucan and an organic zinc; and (3) at tillering stage, applying a topdressing to the paddy filed, the topdressing including the -glucan and the organic zinc.

The present invention relates to a method for increasing the content of mogroside V in Siraitia grosvenorii suspended cells. In the method, 10-200 mg/L of a yeast inducer and 50-260 mg/L of methyl jasmonate are respectively added on days 5 to 11 of the culture cycle of Siraitia grosvenorii suspended cells, thereby increasing the synthesis rate and yield of mogroside V, and also reducing the amount of mogroside II secreted. The method is beneficial for the market-oriented and large-scale production and quality control management of mogroside V.

The subject invention provides compositions and methods of using the same for improving plants' defense by employing naturally-derived chemicals. In a specific embodiment, the composition is from Parthenium argentatumGray, also known as the guayule plant. Preferred compositions can up-or down-regulate growth genes responsible for the targeted plants' defense mechanisms in order to create physical and/or chemical barriers, and produce detouring exudates, antagonistic compounds, or fumigating compounds that prevent and treat damages from pests in agronomic or non-agronomic plants.

The subject invention provides compositions and methods of using the same for improving plants' defense by employing naturally-derived chemicals. In a specific embodiment, the composition is from Parthenium argentatumGray, also known as the guayule plant. Preferred compositions can up-or down-regulate growth genes responsible for the targeted plants' defense mechanisms in order to create physical and/or chemical barriers, and produce detouring exudates, antagonistic compounds, or fumigating compounds that prevent and treat damages from pests in agronomic or non-agronomic plants.