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Plant breeding is the science of changing the traits of
plants Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude ...
in order to produce desired characteristics. It has been used to improve the quality of nutrition in products for humans and animals. The goals of plant breeding are to produce crop varieties that boast unique and superior traits for a variety of applications. The most frequently addressed agricultural traits are those related to biotic and abiotic stress tolerance, grain or biomass yield, end-use quality characteristics such as taste or the concentrations of specific biological molecules (proteins, sugars, lipids, vitamins, fibers) and ease of processing (harvesting, milling, baking, malting, blending, etc.). Plant breeding can be performed through many different techniques ranging from simply selecting plants with desirable characteristics for propagation, to methods that make use of knowledge of genetics and chromosomes, to more complex molecular techniques. Genes in a plant are what determine what type of qualitative or quantitative traits it will have. Plant breeders strive to create a specific outcome of plants and potentially new plant varieties, and in the course of doing so, narrow down the genetic diversity of that variety to a specific few biotypes. It is practiced worldwide by individuals such as gardeners and farmers, and by professional plant breeders employed by organizations such as
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
institutions, universities, crop-specific industry associations or research centers. International development agencies believe that breeding new crops is important for ensuring
food security Food security speaks to the availability of food in a country (or geography) and the ability of individuals within that country (geography) to access, afford, and source adequate foodstuffs. According to the United Nations' Committee on World ...
by developing new varieties that are higher yielding, disease resistant, drought tolerant or regionally adapted to different environments and growing conditions.


History

Plant breeding started with sedentary agriculture and particularly the domestication of the first
agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...
plants, a practice which is estimated to date back 9,000 to 11,000 years. Initially early farmers simply selected food plants with particular desirable characteristics, and employed these as
progenitor In genealogy, the progenitor (rarer: primogenitor; german: Stammvater or ''Ahnherr'') is the – sometimes legendary – founder of a family, line of descent, clan or tribe, noble house, or ethnic group.. Ebenda''Ahnherr:''"Stammvater eines ...
s for subsequent generations, resulting in an accumulation of valuable traits over time.
Grafting Grafting or graftage is a horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the rootstock. The succ ...
technology had been practiced in China before 2000 BCE. By 500 BCE grafting was well established and practiced.
Gregor Mendel Gregor Johann Mendel, OSA (; cs, Řehoř Jan Mendel; 20 July 1822 – 6 January 1884) was a biologist, meteorologist, mathematician, Augustinian friar and abbot of St. Thomas' Abbey in Brünn (''Brno''), Margraviate of Moravia. Mendel was ...
(1822–84) is considered the "father of
genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar work ...
". His experiments with plant
hybridization Hybridization (or hybridisation) may refer to: *Hybridization (biology), the process of combining different varieties of organisms to create a hybrid *Orbital hybridization, in chemistry, the mixing of atomic orbitals into new hybrid orbitals *Nu ...
led to his establishing laws of inheritance. Genetics stimulated research to improve crop production through plant breeding. Modern plant breeding is applied genetics, but its scientific basis is broader, covering
molecular biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and phys ...
,
cytology Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living an ...
,
systematics Biological systematics is the study of the diversification of living forms, both past and present, and the relationships among living things through time. Relationships are visualized as evolutionary trees (synonyms: cladograms, phylogenetic t ...
,
physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemic ...
,
pathology Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in ...
,
entomology Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as ara ...
,
chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the elements that make up matter to the compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their composition, structure, proper ...
, and
statistics Statistics (from German: '' Statistik'', "description of a state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a scientific, indust ...
(
biometrics Biometrics are body measurements and calculations related to human characteristics. Biometric authentication (or realistic authentication) is used in computer science as a form of identification and access control. It is also used to identify i ...
). It has also developed its own technology.


Classical plant breeding

One major technique of plant breeding is selection, the process of selectively propagating plants with desirable characteristics and eliminating or "culling" those with less desirable characteristics. Another technique is the deliberate interbreeding (crossing) of closely or distantly related individuals to produce new crop varieties or lines with desirable properties. Plants are crossbred to introduce traits/
gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...
s from one variety or line into a new genetic background. For example, a
mildew Mildew is a form of fungus. It is distinguished from its closely related counterpart, mould, largely by its colour: moulds appear in shades of black, blue, red, and green, whereas mildew is white. It appears as a thin, superficial growth consi ...
-resistant
pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
may be crossed with a high-yielding but susceptible pea, the goal of the cross being to introduce mildew resistance without losing the high-yield characteristics. Progeny from the cross would then be crossed with the high-yielding parent to ensure that the progeny were most like the high-yielding parent, (
backcrossing Backcrossing is a crossing of a hybrid with one of its parents or an individual genetically similar to its parent, to achieve offspring with a genetic identity closer to that of the parent. It is used in horticulture, animal breeding, and produ ...
). The progeny from that cross would then be tested for yield (selection, as described above) and mildew resistance and high-yielding resistant plants would be further developed. Plants may also be crossed with themselves to produce inbred varieties for breeding. Pollinators may be excluded through the use of pollination bags. Classical breeding relies largely on
homologous recombination Homologous recombination is a type of genetic recombination in which genetic information is exchanged between two similar or identical molecules of double-stranded or single-stranded nucleic acids (usually DNA as in cellular organisms but may ...
between chromosomes to generate
genetic diversity Genetic diversity is the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species, it ranges widely from the number of species to differences within species and can be attributed to the span of survival for a species. It is dis ...
. The classical plant breeder may also make use of a number of ''in vitro'' techniques such as
protoplast fusion Somatic fusion, also called protoplast fusion, is a type of genetic modification in plants by which two distinct species of plants are fused together to form a new hybrid plant with the characteristics of both, a somatic hybrid. Hybrids have b ...
,
embryo rescue Embryo rescue is one of the earliest and successful forms of in-vitro culture techniques that is used to assist in the development of plant embryos that might not survive to become viable plants. Embryo rescue plays an important role in modern pl ...
or
mutagenesis Mutagenesis () is a process by which the genetic information of an organism is changed by the production of a mutation. It may occur spontaneously in nature, or as a result of exposure to mutagens. It can also be achieved experimentally using lab ...
(see below) to generate diversity and produce hybrid plants that would not exist in
nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...
. Traits that breeders have tried to incorporate into crop plants include: # Improved
quality Quality may refer to: Concepts *Quality (business), the ''non-inferiority'' or ''superiority'' of something *Quality (philosophy), an attribute or a property *Quality (physics), in response theory * Energy quality, used in various science discipl ...
, such as increased nutrition, improved flavor, or greater beauty # Increased yield of the crop # Increased
tolerance Tolerance or toleration is the state of tolerating, or putting up with, conditionally. Economics, business, and politics * Toleration Party, a historic political party active in Connecticut * Tolerant Systems, the former name of Veritas Software ...
of environmental pressures (
salinity Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt (chemistry), salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensio ...
, extreme
temperature Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measured with a thermometer. Thermometers are calibrated in various temperature scales that historically have relied o ...
,
drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D.  Jiang, A.  Khan, W.  Pokam Mba, D.  Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
) # Resistance to
virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsk ...
es,
fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately fr ...
and
bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were am ...
# Increased tolerance to
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pa ...
pests # Increased tolerance of
herbicide Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page f ...
s # Longer storage period for the harvested crop


Before World War II

Successful commercial plant breeding concerns were founded from the late 19th century.
Gartons Agricultural Plant Breeders Dr John Garton, of the firm of Garton Brothers of Newton-le-Willows in the United Kingdom was the Originator of Scientific Farm Plant Breeding. He is credited as the first scientist to show that the common grain crops and many other plants are ...
in England was established in the 1890s by John Garton, who was one of the first to commercialize new varieties of agricultural crops created through cross-pollination. The firm's first introduction was Abundance
Oat The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural, unlike other cereals and pseudocereals). While oats are suitable for human con ...
, one of the first agricultural grain varieties bred from a ''controlled'' cross, introduced to commerce in 1892. In the early 20th century, plant breeders realized that Mendel's findings on the non-random nature of
inheritance Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Of ...
could be applied to
seedling A seedling is a young sporophyte developing out of a plant embryo from a seed. Seedling development starts with germination of the seed. A typical young seedling consists of three main parts: the radicle (embryonic root), the hypocotyl (emb ...
populations produced through deliberate
pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an Stamen, anther of a plant to the stigma (botany), stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by Anemophily, wind. Pollinating agents can ...
s to predict the frequencies of different types. Wheat hybrids were bred to increase the crop production of
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
during the so-called "
Battle for Grain The Battle for Grain (), also known as the Battle for Wheat, was a propaganda campaign launched in 1925 during the fascist regime of Italy by Benito Mussolini, with the aim of gaining self-sufficiency in wheat production and freeing Italy from ...
" (1925–1940).
Heterosis Heterosis, hybrid vigor, or outbreeding enhancement is the improved or increased function of any biological quality in a hybrid offspring. An offspring is heterotic if its traits are enhanced as a result of mixing the genetic contributions o ...
was explained by
George Harrison Shull George Harrison Shull (April 15, 1874 – September 28, 1954) was an eminent American plant geneticist and the younger brother of botanical illustrator and plant breeder J. Marion Shull. He was born on a farm in Clark County, Ohio, graduated fr ...
. It describes the tendency of the progeny of a specific cross to outperform both parents. The detection of the usefulness of heterosis for plant breeding has led to the development of inbred lines that reveal a heterotic yield advantage when they are crossed.
Maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...
was the first species where heterosis was widely used to produce hybrids.
Statistical Statistics (from German: '' Statistik'', "description of a state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a scientific, industr ...
methods were also developed to analyze gene action and distinguish heritable variation from variation caused by environment. In 1933 another important breeding technique,
cytoplasmic male sterility Cytoplasmic male sterility is total or partial male sterility in plants as the result of specific nuclear and mitochondrial interactions. Male sterility is the failure of plants to produce functional anthers, pollen, or male gametes. Background ...
(CMS), developed in maize, was described by Marcus Morton Rhoades. CMS is a maternally inherited trait that makes the plant produce sterile
pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametop ...
. This enables the production of hybrids without the need for labor-intensive
detasseling Detasseling corn is removing the pollen-producing flowers, the tassel, from the tops of corn (maize) plants and placing them on the ground. It is a form of pollination control,United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
in the early 20th century. Similar yield increases were not produced elsewhere until after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the
Green Revolution The Green Revolution, also known as the Third Agricultural Revolution, was a period of technology transfer initiatives that saw greatly increased crop yields and agricultural production. These changes in agriculture began in developed countrie ...
increased crop production in the developing world in the 1960s.


After World War II

Following
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
a number of techniques were developed that allowed plant breeders to hybridize distantly related species, and artificially induce genetic diversity. When distantly related species are crossed, plant breeders make use of a number of
plant tissue culture Plant tissue culture is a collection of techniques used to maintain or grow plant cells, tissues or organs under sterile conditions on a nutrient culture medium of known composition. It is widely used to produce clones of a plant in a method known ...
techniques to produce progeny from otherwise fruitless mating. Interspecific and intergeneric hybrids are produced from a cross of related species or genera that do not normally
sexually reproduce Sexual reproduction is a type of reproduction that involves a complex life cycle in which a gamete ( haploid reproductive cells, such as a sperm or egg cell) with a single set of chromosomes combines with another gamete to produce a zygote th ...
with each other. These crosses are referred to as ''Wide crosses''. For example, the
cereal A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food ...
triticale Triticale (; × ''Triticosecale'') is a hybrid of wheat (''Triticum'') and rye (''Secale'') first bred in laboratories during the late 19th century in Scotland and Germany. Commercially available triticale is almost always a second-generation ...
is a
wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
and rye hybrid. The cells in the plants derived from the first generation created from the cross contained an uneven number of chromosomes and as a result was sterile. The
cell division Cell division is the process by which a parent cell divides into two daughter cells. Cell division usually occurs as part of a larger cell cycle in which the cell grows and replicates its chromosome(s) before dividing. In eukaryotes, there ...
inhibitor
colchicine Colchicine is a medication used to treat gout and Behçet's disease. In gout, it is less preferred to NSAIDs or steroids. Other uses for colchicine include the management of pericarditis and familial Mediterranean fever. Colchicine is taken b ...
was used to double the number of
chromosome A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins ar ...
s in the
cell Cell most often refers to: * Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life Cell may also refer to: Locations * Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
and thus allow the production of a fertile line. Failure to produce a hybrid may be due to pre- or post-
fertilization Fertilisation or fertilization (see spelling differences), also known as generative fertilisation, syngamy and impregnation, is the fusion of gametes to give rise to a new individual organism or offspring and initiate its development. Pro ...
incompatibility. If fertilization is possible between two species or genera, the hybrid
embryo An embryo is an initial stage of development of a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male spe ...
may abort before maturation. If this does occur the embryo resulting from an interspecific or intergeneric cross can sometimes be rescued and cultured to produce a whole plant. Such a method is referred to as
embryo rescue Embryo rescue is one of the earliest and successful forms of in-vitro culture techniques that is used to assist in the development of plant embryos that might not survive to become viable plants. Embryo rescue plays an important role in modern pl ...
. This technique has been used to produce
new rice for Africa New Rice for Africa ("NERICA") is a cultivar group of interspecific hybrid rice developed by the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) to improve the yield of African rice cultivars. Although 240 million people in West Africa rely on rice as the p ...
, an interspecific cross of Asian rice ''(Oryza sativa)'' and
African rice ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown in West Africa around 3,000 years ago. In agriculture, it has largely been replaced by higher-yielding Asian ri ...
''(Oryza glaberrima)''. Hybrids may also be produced by a technique called
protoplast Protoplast (), is a biological term coined by Hanstein in 1880 to refer to the entire cell, excluding the cell wall. Protoplasts can be generated by stripping the cell wall from plant, bacterial, or fungal cells by mechanical, chemical or e ...
fusion. In this case protoplasts are fused, usually in an electric field. Viable recombinants can be regenerated in culture. Chemical
mutagen In genetics, a mutagen is a physical or chemical agent that permanently changes genetic material, usually DNA, in an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level. As many mutations can cause cancer i ...
s like EMS and DMS,
radiation In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or through a material medium. This includes: * ''electromagnetic radiation'', such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visi ...
and
transposon A transposable element (TE, transposon, or jumping gene) is a nucleic acid sequence in DNA that can change its position within a genome, sometimes creating or reversing mutations and altering the cell's genetic identity and genome size. Tra ...
s are used to generate
mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It ...
s with desirable traits to be bred with other
cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
s – a process known as ''Mutation Breeding''. Classical plant breeders also generate genetic diversity within a species by exploiting a process called
somaclonal variation Somaclonal variation is the variation seen in plants that have been produced by plant tissue culture. Chromosomal rearrangements are an important source of this variation. The term somaclonal variation is a phenomenon of broad taxonomic occurrenc ...
, which occurs in plants produced from tissue culture, particularly plants derived from
callus A callus is an area of thickened and sometimes hardened skin that forms as a response to repeated friction, pressure, or other irritation. Since repeated contact is required, calluses are most often found on the feet and hands, but they may o ...
. Induced
polyploidy Polyploidy is a condition in which the biological cell, cells of an organism have more than one pair of (Homologous chromosome, homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have Cell nucleus, nuclei (eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they ha ...
, and the addition or removal of chromosomes using a technique called chromosome engineering may also be used. When a desirable trait has been bred into a species, a number of crosses to the favored parent are made to make the new plant as similar to the favored parent as possible. Returning to the example of the mildew resistant pea being crossed with a high-yielding but susceptible pea, to make the mildew resistant progeny of the cross most like the high-yielding parent, the progeny will be crossed back to that parent for several generations (See
backcrossing Backcrossing is a crossing of a hybrid with one of its parents or an individual genetically similar to its parent, to achieve offspring with a genetic identity closer to that of the parent. It is used in horticulture, animal breeding, and produ ...
). This process removes most of the genetic contribution of the mildew resistant parent. Classical breeding is therefore a cyclical process. With classical breeding techniques, the breeder does not know exactly what genes have been introduced to the new cultivars. Some
scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosop ...
s therefore argue that plants produced by classical breeding methods should undergo the same safety testing regime as
genetically modified Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including ...
plants. There have been instances where plants bred using classical techniques have been unsuitable for human consumption, for example the
poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...
solanine Solanine is a glycoalkaloid poison found in species of the nightshade family within the genus '' Solanum'', such as the potato (''Solanum tuberosum''), the tomato (''Solanum lycopersicum''), and the eggplant (''Solanum melongena''). It can occ ...
was unintentionally increased to unacceptable levels in certain varieties of
potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
through plant breeding. New potato varieties are often screened for solanine levels before reaching the marketplace. Even with the very latest in
biotech Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used ...
-assisted conventional breeding, incorporation of a trait takes an average of seven
generation A generation refers to all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It can also be described as, "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and gr ...
s for clonally propagated crops, nine for self-fertilising, and seventeen for
cross-pollinating Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, bird ...
.


Modern plant breeding

Modern plant breeding may use techniques of molecular biology to select, or in the case of genetic modification, to insert, desirable traits into plants. Application of biotechnology or molecular biology is also known as
molecular breeding Molecular breeding is the application of molecular biology tools, often in plant breedingVoosen P (2009Molecular Breeding Makes Crops Hardier and More Nutritious Markers, knockouts and other technical advances improve breeding without modifying gen ...
.


Marker assisted selection

Sometimes many different genes can influence a desirable trait in plant breeding. The use of tools such as molecular markers or
DNA fingerprinting DNA profiling (also called DNA fingerprinting) is the process of determining an individual's DNA characteristics. DNA analysis intended to identify a species, rather than an individual, is called DNA barcoding. DNA profiling is a forensic t ...
can map thousands of genes. This allows plant breeders to screen large populations of plants for those that possess the trait of interest. The screening is based on the presence or absence of a certain gene as determined by laboratory procedures, rather than on the visual identification of the expressed trait in the plant. The purpose of marker assisted selection, or plant genome analysis, is to identify the location and function (
phenotype In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology (biology), morphology or physical form and structure, its Developmental biology, developmental proc ...
) of various genes within the genome. If all of the genes are identified it leads to genome sequence. All plants have varying sizes and lengths of genomes with genes that code for different proteins, but many are also the same. If a gene's location and function is identified in one plant species, a very similar gene likely can also be found in a similar location in another related species genome.


Reverse breeding and doubled haploids (DH)

Homozygous Zygosity (the noun, zygote, is from the Greek "yoked," from "yoke") () is the degree to which both copies of a chromosome or gene have the same genetic sequence. In other words, it is the degree of similarity of the alleles in an organism. Mo ...
plants with desirable traits can be produced from
heterozygous Zygosity (the noun, zygote, is from the Greek "yoked," from "yoke") () is the degree to which both copies of a chromosome or gene have the same genetic sequence. In other words, it is the degree of similarity of the alleles in an organism. ...
starting plants, if a haploid cell with the alleles for those traits can be produced, and then used to make a doubled haploid. The doubled haploid will be homozygous for the desired traits. Furthermore, two different homozygous plants created in that way can be used to produce a generation of
F1 hybrid An F1 hybrid (also known as filial 1 hybrid) is the first filial generation of offspring of distinctly different parental types. F1 hybrids are used in genetics, and in selective breeding, where the term F1 crossbreed may be used. The term is some ...
plants which have the advantages of heterozygosity and a greater range of possible traits. Thus, an individual heterozygous plant chosen for its desirable characteristics can be converted into a heterozygous variety (F1 hybrid) without the necessity of
vegetative reproduction Vegetative reproduction (also known as vegetative propagation, vegetative multiplication or cloning) is any form of asexual reproduction occurring in plants in which a new plant grows from a fragment or cutting of the parent plant or spe ...
but as the result of the cross of two homozygous/doubled haploid lines derived from the originally selected plant. Plant tissue culturing can produce haploid or double haploid plant lines and generations. This cuts down the genetic diversity taken from that plant species in order to select for desirable traits that will increase the fitness of the individuals. Using this method decreases the need for breeding multiple generations of plants to get a generation that is homogeneous for the desired traits, thereby saving much time over the natural version of the same process. There are many plant tissue culturing techniques that can be used to achieve haploid plants, but microspore culturing is currently the most promising for producing the largest numbers of them.


Genetic modification

Genetic modification Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including ...
of plants is achieved by adding a specific gene or genes to a plant, or by knocking down a gene with
RNAi RNA interference (RNAi) is a biological process in which RNA molecules are involved in sequence-specific suppression of gene expression by double-stranded RNA, through translational or transcriptional repression. Historically, RNAi was known by ...
, to produce a desirable
phenotype In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology (biology), morphology or physical form and structure, its Developmental biology, developmental proc ...
. The plants resulting from adding a gene are often referred to as transgenic plants. If for genetic modification genes of the species or of a crossable plant are used under control of their native promoter, then they are called cisgenic plants. Sometimes genetic modification can produce a plant with the desired trait or traits faster than classical breeding because the majority of the plant's genome is not altered. To genetically modify a plant, a genetic construct must be designed so that the gene to be added or removed will be expressed by the plant. To do this, a promoter to drive transcription and a termination sequence to stop transcription of the new gene, and the gene or genes of interest must be introduced to the plant. A marker for the selection of transformed plants is also included. In the
laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physi ...
,
antibiotic resistance Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from the effects of antimicrobials. All classes of microbes can evolve resistance. Fungi evolve antifungal resistance. Viruses evolve antiviral resistance. ...
is a commonly used marker: Plants that have been successfully transformed will grow on media containing antibiotics; plants that have not been transformed will die. In some instances markers for selection are removed by
backcrossing Backcrossing is a crossing of a hybrid with one of its parents or an individual genetically similar to its parent, to achieve offspring with a genetic identity closer to that of the parent. It is used in horticulture, animal breeding, and produ ...
with the parent plant prior to commercial release. The construct can be inserted in the plant genome by
genetic recombination Genetic recombination (also known as genetic reshuffling) is the exchange of genetic material between different organisms which leads to production of offspring with combinations of traits that differ from those found in either parent. In eukaryo ...
using the bacteria ''
Agrobacterium tumefaciens ''Agrobacterium radiobacter'' (more commonly known as ''Agrobacterium tumefaciens'') is the causal agent of crown gall disease (the formation of tumours) in over 140 species of eudicots. It is a rod-shaped, Gram-negative soil bacterium. Symptom ...
'' or '' A. rhizogenes'', or by direct methods like the gene gun or microinjection. Using plant
virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Since Dmitri Ivanovsk ...
es to insert genetic constructs into plants is also a possibility, but the technique is limited by the host range of the virus. For example,
Cauliflower mosaic virus Cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) is a member of the genus ''Caulimovirus'', one of the six genera in the family ''Caulimoviridae'', which are pararetroviruses that infect plants. Pararetroviruses replicate through reverse transcription just like ...
(CaMV) only infects
cauliflower Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species ''Brassica oleracea'' in the genus '' Brassica'', which is in the Brassicaceae (or mustard) family. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed. Typically, only the head is eaten – t ...
and related species. Another limitation of viral vectors is that the virus is not usually passed on to the progeny, so every plant has to be inoculated. The majority of commercially released transgenic plants are currently limited to plants that have introduced resistance to
insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pa ...
pests PESTS was an anonymous American activist group formed in 1986 to critique racism, tokenism, and exclusion in the art world. PESTS produced newsletters, posters, and other print material highlighting examples of discrimination in gallery represent ...
and
herbicide Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page f ...
s. Insect resistance is achieved through incorporation of a gene from ''
Bacillus thuringiensis ''Bacillus thuringiensis'' (or Bt) is a gram-positive, soil-dwelling bacterium, the most commonly used biological pesticide worldwide. ''B. thuringiensis'' also occurs naturally in the gut of caterpillars of various types of moths and butterf ...
'' (Bt) that encodes a
protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, res ...
that is toxic to some insects. For example, the
cotton bollworm Cotton bollworm is a problem in growing cotton. "A major pest in hot countries of irrigated crops. Enters into a summer diapause when irrigated crops are not present and the soil and air temperatures are high. When the end of the dry season comes, ...
, a common cotton pest, feeds on
Bt cotton Bt cotton is a genetically modified pest resistant plant cotton variety, which produces an insecticide to combat bollworm. Description Strains of the bacterium ''Bacillus thuringiensis'' produce over 200 different Bt toxins, each harmful to ...
it will ingest the toxin and die. Herbicides usually work by binding to certain plant enzymes and inhibiting their action. The enzymes that the herbicide inhibits are known as the herbicides ''target site''. Herbicide resistance can be engineered into crops by expressing a version of ''target site'' protein that is not inhibited by the herbicide. This is the method used to produce glyphosate resistant (" Roundup Ready") crop plants. Genetic modification can further increase yields by increasing stress tolerance to a given environment. Stresses such as temperature variation, are signalled to the plant via a cascade of signalling molecules which will activate a
transcription factor In molecular biology, a transcription factor (TF) (or sequence-specific DNA-binding factor) is a protein that controls the rate of transcription of genetic information from DNA to messenger RNA, by binding to a specific DNA sequence. The f ...
to regulate
gene expression Gene expression is the process by which information from a gene is used in the synthesis of a functional gene product that enables it to produce end products, protein or non-coding RNA, and ultimately affect a phenotype, as the final effect. T ...
. Overexpression of particular genes involved in cold acclimation has been shown to produce more resistance to freezing, which is one common cause of yield loss Genetic modification of plants that can produce
pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and ...
s (and industrial chemicals), sometimes called ''
pharming Pharming is a cyberattack intended to redirect a website's traffic to another, fake site by installing a malicious program on the computer. Pharming can be conducted either by changing the hosts file on a victim's computer or by exploitation of a ...
'', is a rather radical new area of plant breeding. The debate surrounding genetically modified food during the 1990s peaked in 1999 in terms of media coverage and risk perception, and continues today – for example, "''Germany has thrown its weight behind a growing European mutiny over
genetically modified crops Genetically modified crops (GM crops) are plants used in agriculture, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering methods. Plant genomes can be engineered by physical methods or by use of ''Agrobacterium'' for the delivery of ...
by banning the planting of a widely grown pest-resistant corn variety.''" The debate encompasses the ecological impact of genetically modified plants, the safety of
genetically modified food Genetically modified foods (GM foods), also known as genetically engineered foods (GE foods), or bioengineered foods are foods produced from organisms that have had changes introduced into their DNA using the methods of genetic engineering. Gene ...
and concepts used for safety evaluation like
substantial equivalence In food safety, the concept of substantial equivalence holds that the safety of a new food, particularly one that has been genetically modified (GM), may be assessed by comparing it with a similar traditional food that has proven safe in normal use ...
. Such concerns are not new to plant breeding. Most countries have regulatory processes in place to help ensure that new crop varieties entering the marketplace are both safe and meet farmers' needs. Examples include variety registration, seed schemes, regulatory authorizations for GM plants, etc.


Breeding and the microbiome

Microbiomes of breeding lines showed that hybrid plants share much of their bacterial community with their parents, such as Cucurbita seeds and apple shoot endophytes. In addition, the proportional contribution of the microbiome from parents to offspring corresponds to the amount of genetic material contributed by each parent during breeding and domestication.


Phenotyping and artificial intelligence

machine learning and especially deep machine learning has recently become more commonly used in
phenotyping In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology or physical form and structure, its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological proper ...
.
Computer vision Computer vision is an interdisciplinary scientific field that deals with how computers can gain high-level understanding from digital images or videos. From the perspective of engineering, it seeks to understand and automate tasks that the human ...
using ML has made great strides and is now being applied to leaf phenotyping and other phenotyping jobs typically performed by human eyes. Pound et al. 2017 and Singh et al. 2016 are especially salient examples of early successful application and demonstration of the general usability of the process across ''multiple'' target plant species. These methods will work even better with large, publicly available open data sets.


Speed breeding

Speed breeding is introduced by Watson et al. 2018. Classical (human performed) phenotyping ''during'' speed breeding is also possible, using a procedure developed by Richard et al. 2015. it is highly anticipated that SB and automated phenotyping will, combined, produce greatly improved outcomes see above.


Genomic selection (GS)

The NGS platform has substantially declined the time and cost required for sequencing and facilitated SNP discovery in model and non-model plants. This in turn has led to employing large-scale SNP markers in genomic selection approaches which aim at predicting genomic breeding values/GEBVs of genotypes in a given population. This method can increase the selection accuracy and decrease the time of each breeding cycle. It has been used in different crops such as maize, wheat, etc.


Participatory plant breeding

Participatory plant breeding (PPB) is when farmers are involved in a crop improvement programme with opportunities to make decisions and contribute to the research process at different stages. Participatory approaches to crop improvement can also be applied when plant biotechnologies are being used for crop improvement. Local agricultural systems and genetic diversity are developed and strengthened by crop improvement, which participatory crop improvement (PCI) plays a large role. PPB is enhanced by farmers knowledge of the quality required and evaluation of target environment which affects the effectiveness of PPB.


Issues and concerns


Breeding and food security

Issues facing plant breeding in the future include the lack of arable land, increasingly harsh cropping conditions and the need to maintain food security, which involves being able to provide the world population with sufficient nutrition. Crops need to be able to mature in multiple environments to allow worldwide access, which involves solving problems including drought tolerance. It has been suggested that global solutions are achievable through the process of plant breeding, with its ability to select specific genes allowing crops to perform at a level which yields the desired results.


Environmental stressors

Plant breeding of hybrid crops has become extremely popular worldwide in an effort to combat the harsh environment. With long periods of drought and lack of water or nitrogen stress tolerance has become a significant part of agriculture. Plant breeders have focused on identifying crops which will ensure crops perform under these conditions; a way to achieve this is finding strains of the crop that is resistance to drought conditions with low nitrogen. It is evident from this that plant breeding is vital for future agriculture to survive as it enables farmers to produce stress resistant crops hence improving food security. In countries that experience harsh winters such as
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
and further east in Europe, plant breeders are involved in breeding for tolerance to frost, continuous snow-cover, frost-drought (desiccation from wind and solar radiation under frost) and high moisture levels in soil in winter.


Long-term process

Breeding is not a quick process, which is especially important when breeding to ameliorate a disease. The average time from human recognition of a new fungal disease threat to the release of a resistant crop for that pathogen is at least twelve years.


Maintaining specific conditions

When new plant breeds or cultivars are bred, they must be maintained and propagated. Some plants are propagated by asexual means while others are propagated by seeds. Seed propagated cultivars require specific control over seed source and production procedures to maintain the integrity of the plant breeds results. Isolation is necessary to prevent cross contamination with related plants or the mixing of seeds after harvesting. Isolation is normally accomplished by planting distance but in certain crops, plants are enclosed in greenhouses or cages (most commonly used when producing F1 hybrids).


Nutritional value

Modern plant breeding, whether classical or through genetic engineering, comes with issues of concern, particularly with regard to food crops. The question of whether breeding can have a negative effect on
nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...
al value is central in this respect. Although relatively little direct research in this area has been done, there are scientific indications that, by favoring certain aspects of a plant's development, other aspects may be retarded. A study published in the ''
Journal of the American College of Nutrition The American Nutrition Association (ANA) is a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization established to encourage the scientific investigation of nutrition and metabolism. The ANA publishes the ''Journal of the American Nutrition Association'' ...
'' in 2004, entitled ''Changes in USDA Food Composition Data for 43 Garden Crops, 1950 to 1999'', compared nutritional analysis of
vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the edible flower, flowers, ...
s done in 1950 and in 1999, and found substantial decreases in six of 13
nutrient A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excre ...
s measured, including 6% of
protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, res ...
and 38% of
riboflavin Riboflavin, also known as vitamin B2, is a vitamin found in food and sold as a dietary supplement. It is essential to the formation of two major coenzymes, flavin mononucleotide and flavin adenine dinucleotide. These coenzymes are involved i ...
. Reductions in
calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar ...
,
phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ea ...
,
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in ...
and
ascorbic acid Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits and vegetables, also sold as a dietary supplement and as a topical 'serum' ingredient to treat melasma (dark pigment spots) ...
were also found. The study, conducted at the Biochemical Institute,
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
, concluded in summary: ''"We suggest that any real declines are generally most easily explained by changes in cultivated varieties between 1950 and 1999, in which there may be trade-offs between yield and nutrient content."'' Plant breeding can contribute to global food security as it is a cost-effective tool for increasing nutritional value of forage and crops. Improvements in nutritional value for forage crops from the use of analytical chemistry and rumen fermentation technology have been recorded since 1960; this science and technology gave breeders the ability to screen thousands of samples within a small amount of time, meaning breeders could identify a high performing hybrid quicker. The genetic improvement was mainly in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) resulting in 0.7-2.5% increase, at just 1% increase in IVDMD a single Bos Taurus also known as beef cattle reported 3.2% increase in daily gains. This improvement indicates plant breeding is an essential tool in gearing future agriculture to perform at a more advanced level.


Plant breeders rights

Plant breeders' rights Plant breeders' rights (PBR), also known as plant variety rights (PVR), are rights granted to the breeder of a new variety of plant that give the breeder exclusive control over the propagating material (including seed, cuttings, divisions, tissue ...
is an important and controversial issue. Production of new varieties is dominated by commercial plant breeders, who seek to protect their work and collect royalties through national and international agreements based in
intellectual property rights Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...
. The range of related issues is complex. In the simplest terms, critics of the increasingly restrictive regulations argue that, through a combination of technical and economic pressures, commercial breeders are reducing biodiversity and significantly constraining individuals (such as farmers) from developing and trading seed on a regional level. Efforts to strengthen breeders' rights, for example, by lengthening periods of variety protection, are ongoing.


Yield

With an increasing population, the production of food needs to increase with it. It is estimated that a 70% increase in food production is needed by 2050 in order to meet the Declaration of the World Summit on Food Security. But with the degradation of agricultural land, simply planting more crops is no longer a viable option. New varieties of plants can in some cases be developed through plant breeding that generate an increase of yield without relying on an increase in land area. An example of this can be seen in Asia, where food production per capita has increased twofold. This has been achieved through not only the use of fertilisers, but through the use of better crops that have been specifically designed for the area.


Role of plant breeding in organic agriculture

Some critics of organic agriculture claim it is too low-yielding to be a viable alternative to conventional agriculture in situations when that poor performance may be the result in part of growing poorly-adapted varieties. It is estimated that over 95% of organic agriculture is based on conventionally adapted varieties, even though the production environments found in organic vs. conventional farming systems are vastly different due to their distinctive management practices. Most notably, organic farmers have fewer inputs available than conventional growers to control their production environments. Breeding varieties specifically adapted to the unique conditions of organic agriculture is critical for this sector to realize its full potential. This requires selection for traits such as: * Water use efficiency * Nutrient use efficiency (particularly nitrogen and
phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ea ...
) * Weed competitiveness * Tolerance of mechanical weed control * Pest/disease resistance * Early maturity (as a mechanism for avoidance of particular stresses) * Abiotic stress tolerance (i.e. drought, salinity, etc...) Currently, few breeding programs are directed at organic agriculture and until recently those that did address this sector have generally relied on indirect selection (i.e. selection in conventional environments for traits considered important for organic agriculture). However, because the difference between organic and conventional environments is large, a given genotype may perform very differently in each environment due to an interaction between genes and the environment (see gene–environment interaction). If this interaction is severe enough, an important trait required for the organic environment may not be revealed in the conventional environment, which can result in the selection of poorly adapted individuals. To ensure the most adapted varieties are identified, advocates of organic breeding now promote the use of direct selection (i.e. selection in the target environment) for many agronomic traits. There are many classical and modern breeding techniques that can be utilized for crop improvement in organic agriculture despite the ban on genetically modified organisms. For instance, controlled crosses between individuals allow desirable genetic variation to be recombined and transferred to seed progeny via natural processes. Marker assisted selection can also be employed as a diagnostics tool to facilitate selection of progeny who possess the desired trait(s), greatly speeding up the breeding process. This technique has proven particularly useful for the introgression of resistance genes into new backgrounds, as well as the efficient selection of many resistance genes pyramided into a single individual. Unfortunately, molecular markers are not currently available for many important traits, especially complex ones controlled by many genes.


List of notable plant breeders

* Thomas Andrew Knight * Keith Downey (agricultural scientist), Keith Downey * Luther Burbank * Nazareno Strampelli * Niels Ebbesen Hansen * Norman Borlaug * Yvonne Aitken


See also

* Bioactive compound * Cisgenesis * Crop * Crop breeding in Nepal * Cultivated plant taxonomy * Double-pair mating * EUCARPIA * Family based QTL mapping * Genomics of domestication * International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants * Marker assisted selection, Marker-assisted selection (MAS) * Orthodox seed * QTL mapping * Recalcitrant seed * Selection methods in plant breeding based on mode of reproduction * Smart breeding * Composite cross population * Bioprospecting, Bioprospecting / biopiracy / Access and Benefit Sharing Agreement * Plant Treaty / Convention on Biological Diversity and Nagoya Protocol * International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, UPOV Convention on New Varieties of Plants * Farmers rights / Peasants' rights * Genetic resources (disambiguation)


References


General

* * Briggs, F.N. and Knowles, P.F. 1967. ''Introduction to Plant Breeding''. Reinhold Publishing Corporation, New York. * Curry, Helen Anne. ''Evolution Made to Order: Plant Breeding and Technological Innovation in Twentieth-Century America'' (U of Chicago Press, 2016). x, 285 pp. * *
The Origins of Agriculture and Crop Domestication – The Harlan Symposium
' * Schlegel, Rolf (2009
Encyclopedic Dictionary of Plant Breeding
2nd ed. (), CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp 584 * Schlegel, Rolf (2007
Concise Encyclopedia of Crop Improvement: Institutions, Persons, Theories, Methods, and Histories
(), CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp 423 * Schlegel, Rolf (2014) Dictionary of Plant Breeding, 2nd ed., (), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Taylor & Francis Group, Inc., New York, USA, pp 584 * * * * Thro, A.M.; Spillane, C. (1999
Biotechnology assisted participatory plant breeding: Complement or contradiction?
CGIAR Program on Participatory Research and Gender Analysis, Working Document No.4, CIAT: Cali. 150pp. * *


External links


Plant Breeding and Genomics eXtension Community of Practice
– education and training materials for plant breeders and allied professionals
Plant Breeding Updates

Hybridization of Crop Plants
– large practical reference on plant hybridization


Glossary of plant breeding terminology by the Open Plant Breeding Foundation

National Association of Plant Breeders (NAPB)

The Global Partnership Initiative for Plant Breeding Capacity Building – GIPB

FAO/IAEA Programme Mutant Variety Database


*[https://www.vermontlaw.edu/sites/default/files/2020-01/Defensive-Publication-Guide.pdf A Breed Apart: The Plant Breeder's Guide to Preventing Patents through Defensive Publication] by Cydnee V. Bence & Emily J. Speigel, 2019 {{Authority control Plant breeding, Agronomy, Breeding Molecular biology Plant reproduction, Breeding Pollination management, Breeding