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Scientists Use Pasta Machines To Help Native Grasses

Vanessa Schroeder operates a pasta machine to make seed pellets. The dough squeezes through circular "spaghetti" holes and is then sliced into pellets with a rotating blade. (Amanda Peacher/OPB)
Vanessa Schroeder operates a pasta machine to make seed pellets. The dough squeezes through circular "spaghetti" holes and is then sliced into pellets with a rotating blade. (Amanda Peacher/OPB)

Threatened sage grouse rely on native grasses for food, but their desert habitat is often overtaken by invasive plants. Now, scientists in Oregon have come up with a way to give native seeds a boost. They create seed “pillows,” full of compounds that nurture the seeds. And it’s no coincidence that the seed pillows look like brown ravioli. Amanda Peacher from Here & Now contributor Oregon Public Broadcasting has the story.

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