Plant breeding for organic and sustainable, low-input agriculture

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Preface Progress in yield and quality of crops is rightfully claimed as mainly dominated by plant breeding. But we have second thoughts whether the available products of plant breeding are suitable for the demands of Organic and low-input Agriculture (O-LI-A). Without a doubt, numerous breeding goals are the same in the different cropping systems. Thus, cultivars for practical use in O-LI-A need to fulfil general traits such as high yield potential, high product quality and high disease resistance, too. But the question is whether a yield progress that we have seen mainly based on a higher harvest index will lead to the intended results under O-LI-A conditions. For example, litter straw of cereals is needed for bedding and for feeding animals in mixed farms. Due to lower crop stand density and lower leaf area index (LAI) longer culms and more planophile upper leaves are necessary to enhance competitiveness against weeds. Until the 1980s it was regarded as certain among breeders that the most successful cultivars in mainstream agriculture were successful under low-input conditions as well, although even then genotype by environment interactions could be assumed known as essential. There is no doubt that the crop environment in O-LI-A surely is a different one than in mainstream cultivation with intensive supply of nutrients and numerous synthetic inputs. The general growth conditions in O-LI-A can be characterized as follows: limited soil nutrient availability (especially nitrogen) and no split-application of nitrogen. Nitrogen availability in O- LI-A is a function of precrop effects, rotation design and a delayed mineralization and nitrification under the conditions of temperate climate in early spring, normally all resulting in delayed early development. Thus, LAI, leaf area duration, crop ground cover, water use efficiency, light interception and crop yield are limited. For O-LI-A, breeding has to make nutrients in the system internally available by increasing rooting density and efficiency of nutrient absorption. Selection of an efficient root system, adapted to limited soil nutrient availability has to consider limited competition for shoot assimilates and an extended active root surface. Cultivars that realise small root diameters might result presumably more successfully under these conditions. High root-length density and a high percentage of active young and fine roots can result from high branching and include per se a higher number of root hairs that further increase the root surface considerably. As has been demonstrated by the so-called nitrogen efficient wheat cultivars, selection under less favourable soil conditions can result in a better adaptation for nutrient acquisition and nitrogen utilisation efficiency which allows the general conclusion that breeding programs performed under the specific growing condition should per se result in well-adapted cultivars. But no doubt: to realize a high baking quality under conditions of limited nitrogen availability can still be considered as a big challenge. 1
Selection for a high nitrogen efficiency has resulted in cultivars of winter wheat corresponding with the morphology of ideotypes that realize high crop competitiveness against weeds. The evaluation of new cultivars in relation to weed suppression has to focus on growth habit and speed of early development. Generally, a high season-long crop ground cover and leaf area duration are important. Ground cover is based on different parameters and weed suppression cannot be attributed to a single characteristic only. Selection for weed competitiveness that includes tall types and morphological features such as higher insertation height of flag leaf or longer flag leaf to ear-distance must not result in lower-yielding cultivars when selection is performed under conditions of O-LI-A. Thus, breeders looking for ideotypes suitable for O-LI-A are facing a broad spectrum of topics that have to be solved. A lot of knowledge has been gained in previous workshops of SUSVAR (COST 860) network and working groups of COST 851. I very much appreciate that the expertise of breeders of different origin and a highly reputed organisation like EUCARPIA have found together now. I would like to thank the organisers, especially Prof. Dr. Edith Lammerts van Bueren, for all their efforts in realizing this symposium. May this event become a valuable cornerstone for the evolution of plant breeding for Organic and Low-Input Agriculture. Ulrich Köpke President ISOFAR 2
Page 1 and 2: EUCARPIA Symposium 7 - 9 November 2
Page 3 and 4: Lammerts van Bueren, E.T., I. Goldr
Page 5 and 6: On-farm dynamic management of wheat
Page 7 and 8: Agronomic properties of triticale (
Page 9: The effect of the selection environ
Page 13 and 14: Developments in breeding cereals fo
Page 15 and 16: Quantitative-genetic basis of breed
Page 17 and 18: Do varieties rank differently in or
Page 19 and 20: Additive main effects and multiplic
Page 21 and 22: Participatory varietal selection: a
Page 23 and 24: On-farm dynamic management of wheat
Page 25 and 26: Relation between growth characteris
Page 27 and 28: SUSVAR - Winter wheat ringtest over
Page 29 and 30: Cultivar x growing cycle interactio
Page 31 and 32: Selection Criteria 22
Page 33 and 34: The pattern of N uptake in time, N
Page 35 and 36: Quantifying genotype and environmen
Page 37 and 38: Yield performance of yellow rust re
Page 39 and 40: Genotypic variation of attack degre
Page 41 and 42: Methodology of testing of the suita
Page 43 and 44: Breeding for organic greenhouse pro
Page 45 and 46: Selection of tomato cultivars for o
Page 47 and 48: Agronomic properties of triticale (
Page 49 and 50: Morphological parameters used in th
Page 51 and 52: What is a stable characteristic of
Page 53 and 54: Selection for weed tolerance in soy
Page 55 and 56: Breeding Strategies 46
Page 57 and 58: Organic cereal breeding - towards a
Page 59 and 60: Heritability and genotype x environ
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Potato cultivar Lady Balfour, an ex
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Dynamics of doubled haploidy breedi
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Appropriate breeding approach and t
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Organic outdoor tomatoes - regional
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Identification of the components of
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Do we need a separate breeding prog
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The effect of the selection environ
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Participatory Approaches 66
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Evolution of diversity during 20 ye
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Bread wheat variety testing in orga
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Farmer`s eye and breeder`s eye - fi
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Plant breeding for organic and sustainable, low-input agriculture

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