US researchers use working farms to cultivate climate resilience in agriculture

Researchers at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University are working on studies to help farmers adapt to changing weather. It's one of several initiatives taking place at the university's working farm. The nearly 500-acre site serves as a research and demonstration farm. It's where new crops and farming practices are tested before introducing them to the state's farming community. One of the goals is to find new varieties of fruit trees and plants that can better withstand warmer winters. Lydian Bernhardt with NC A&T's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences says researchers are also looking at climate impacts on livestock. "Sows when they get too hot, they can't produce milk," says Bernhardt. "There is a plant called moringa. The effects of that on heat-stressed mother pigs is a study that we just got funded that's currently underway." N.C. A&T focuses on helping small, limited-resource, and minority farmers find ways to thrive and meet challenges. ...