This invention relates to fertilizer and herbicide compositions. The
present invention provides a composition for selective fertilization of a
transgenic plant comprising a polypeptide which metabolizes a D-amino
acid substrate; said composition comprising said D-amino acid substrate.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a selective herbicide
composition comprising a D-amino acid. Such a herbicide will inhibit or
reduce the growth of plants which do not contain the appropriate D-amino
acid metabolizing enzyme, while the growth of transgenic plants which are
able to metabolize the D-amino acid will be unaffected or, more
preferably, be increased or enhanced. Methods and means are also provided
for selectively modulating the growth and stress tolerance such plants
using D-amino acids. The methods can be used either for detoxification of
phytotoxic D-amino acids such as D-alanine and D-serine, thereby allowing
for selection of plants comprising said D-amino acid metabolizing
enzymes, or for enhancing toxicity of lesser phytotoxic D-amino acids
such as D-isoleucine, thereby allowing for selection of plants not
comprising said D-amino acid metabolizing enzymes.