NC State Faculty Receive Ag Research Grants to Grow North Carolina Agriculture

Feb 05, 2026

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has awarded 11 NC State University researchers, including nine faculty from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, with approximately $900,000 in grants that support a range of agricultural projects to boost new crop production or innovative solutions that advance the state’s agricultural economy.

Since 2013, the North Carolina General Assembly has allocated funding for an agricultural research grant program. A total of $1 million in grants will support 12 projects for the 2025-26 funding cycle. The grants help researchers identify potential new crops, value-added products and agricultural innovations. The funding also supports the marketing and education essential to launching new crops and products commercially, creating profitable opportunities for North Carolina’s growers and agribusinesses.

“Investing in ag research is money well spent,” said Steve Troxler, agriculture commissioner for North Carolina. “Every dollar invested returns around $20, which is significant. I’m also proud that our research stations collaborate with these researchers to provide a platform for most if not all of these projects.”

NC State grant recipients include:

Michael Bradshaw, assistant professor of entomology and plant pathology: “Novel Antibiotics for North Carolina Agriculture,” which focuses on the discovery and characterization of new fungal-derived antibiotics to combat antimicrobial resistance and improve livestock health across North Carolina agriculture.

Source : ncsu.edu

Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.