The Borlaug Blog

These last six weeks in Hyderabad have been nothing but enlightening and insightful. As I near the completion of my flowering stage experiment for the waterlogging project, I am now transitioning into the harvesting stage. This phase involves carefully removing the stem, leaf, and roots of each plant. Once the plants are harvested, I carefully extract the nodules from each root and place them into individual brown bags. This stage is extremely important for distinguishing waterlogged plants from healthy plants. Plant 183, for instance, showed signs of hypoxia due to waterlogging; its roots are thin and broken, and there are no visible nodules. In contrast, plant 127, a healthy control mungbean, had a large number of nodules which showed its strong root health and effective nitrogen fixation. When more nodules are present in mungbean and urdbean plants, it means the roots are healthy and the plants grow better. On the other hand, fewer or no nodules indicate poor root health and weaker growth (waterlogging).

After bagging the nodules, I place them into a larger white cloth bag, which is then stored in an oven. To determine the dry weight and biomass of the harvested plant parts, the nodules must be dried. They are kept in a drying chamber set at 63 degrees Fahrenheit for two days. The goal of this step is to remove all moisture and achieve accurate biomass measurements.

This week was particularly one of the best of the trip because Zara and I took a little getaway adventure to Kerala, India which is located in South India to see my family. It’s always so nice to return to Kerala. We landed in Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) and then took a one-and-a-half-hour drive to my grandparents’ house. I never would have guessed that on this experience, I would also have the chance to see family. I hugged both of my grandparents tightly, and they brought red rose garlands for Zara and me to wear when we arrived. On the ride back, I could see familiar buildings and landmarks, making it feel like I was just here yesterday. Compared to Hyderabad, Kerala is more peaceful in a way, and by that, I mean that the calming environment provides a much-needed respite...[CONTINUE READING]