Plant Industry

Understanding the impact of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) provides essential information to help make decisions about their release into the environment.

GM wheat and barley trial DIR117

The Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR) has approved an application from CSIRO to establish a small field plot of experimental genetically modified (GM) wheat and barley in central New South Wales. (2 pages)

RNAi team wins 2005 CSIRO Chairman's Medal

The RNAi-based gene silencing team received the 2005 CSIRO Chairman's Medal.

Gene silencing information sheet

This two-page information sheet is about CSIRO’s gene silencing technology and its potential applications.

Gene technology: gene silencing

CSIRO's gene silencing technology is enabling researchers around the world protect animals from diseases and develop new crop varieties.

Hairpin RNAi

RNA interference (RNAi) is one of the most powerful technologies for discovering important trait genes and for use in the development of novel traits in plants.

Enabling the gene silencing revolution

CSIRO’s hairpin RNAi gene silencing technology promises to revolutionise molecular biology and the way some diseases are treated in the future. CSIRO’s hairpin RNAi gene silencing technology promises to revolutionise molecular biology and the way some diseases are treated in the future.

BARLEYmax grain FAQs

BARLEYmax™ grain is a natural wholegrain with enhanced nutritional benefits. This 'supergrain' is now available to consumers in a range of products. Find out how and where to buy these products.

Dr Michelle Watt: helping wheat roots take up water

Dr Michelle Watt researches how roots grow and take up water from soil, and how they interact with soil microorganisms.

Deep roots for a dry country

Indian and Australian scientists are working together to develop new wheat varieties with deeper root systems that can reach stored water deep in the soil.

Canberra: Black Mountain, ACT (Black Mountain laboratories)

CSIRO’s Black Mountain laboratories are the central research facilities of CSIRO Plant Industry, CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences and CSIRO Land and Water.

Dr Karen Aitken: taming the sugarcane genome

Dr Karen Aitken specialises in the molecular genetics of sugarcane with particular emphasis on application of markers to sugarcane plant breeding programs.

Rice Functional Genomics Project

The Plant Industry Rice Functional Genomics Project was initiated in 1998 and scaled down in 2006, but the results achieved are still of interest to the scientific community. Here, researchers can find out more details about the project and access the results obtained.

Dr Lars Kamphuis: discovering plant defence mechanisms

Dr Lars Kamphuis is investigating how plants defend themselves against attack from pests and disease.

Mr David Bush: breeding trees for low rainfall environments

Mr David Bush's research focuses on the interaction of genotypes with environments and development of products such as untreated, naturally durable timber for use in viticulture and agriculture.

The Australian National Herbarium

The Australian National Herbarium is the national collection of plant specimens that provides a warehouse of information about Australia's native flora.

Australian Tree Seed Centre operations manual

This manual documents the CSIRO Australian Tree Seed Centre's standardised procedures in seed handling, from planning seed collections through to seed dispatch. (158 pages)

Dr Junji Miyazaki: revealing host plant resistance to cotton pests

Dr Junji Miyazaki's research focus is on the defence mechanisms against cotton pests.

Doing a PhD at CSIRO in plant science

CSIRO Plant Industry provides doctoral students enrolled at a a University with world class facilities and the opportunity to work with Australia’s leading plant scientists.