Green light for new plant technology

Brilliant green turf all-year round, needing less maintenance and mowing, could soon be available through technology developed at The University of Queensland.

UQ Associate Professor Jimmy Botella hopes to develop the new turf varieties based on his discovery of a common plant gene which can be 'switched-on' to make a plant greener as well as produce more flowers.

This technology and two others discovered by Associate Professor Botella and his UQ team have been patented and packaged into a deal valued at $3.26 million, by UniQuest Pty Ltd, UQ's main technology commercialisation company.

UniQuest Innovation and Commercial Development manager Andrew Cecil said the new turf cultivar would be ideal for golf courses.

"We intend for this new grass to be lush, slow-growing and require less frequent mowing and fertilising than existing cultivars," Mr Cecil said.

"Other new products will include unique varieties of flowering plants for potted colour and a cultivar of papaya that is slow to ripen. Also, the technologies could be applied to substantially increase the production of important crops like rice."

Item provided courtesy of The University of Queensland