Drought-resistant cereals such as sorghum are being developed. Using sorghum lines from Ethiopia and Nigeria with high resistance to water stress, plant breeders have developed 'stay-green' plants containing other useful traits, such as midge-resistance and high grain yield. Stay-green lines are being genetically mapped and molecular markers identified. The research will reveal the identify and function of the different genes involved in stay-green, offering sorghum breeders the tools to develop a new generation of crops adapted to dry conditions.