A team from the Salk Institute has discovered that plants accelerate their aging process when under environmental stress. The study, led by Joseph Swift, PhD, found that plants are able to accelerate aging when they have enough resources. This discovery could allow farmers to increase output even as water becomes scarce. The research involved Arabidopsis thaliana, a fast-growing weed that is used as a model organism for botanists worldwide. They found that a specific gene, FRO6, is turned off during drought conditions and genetically engineered the plant to ensure this switch stays on. This could be used to develop drought-tolerant crops that perform well even under stress. However, farmers will have to adjust to less watering and learn to survive again with less nourishing conditions.