- Creation of a core set of durum wheat accessions based on agro-morphological traits with maximum diversity and lower redundancy. From 710 to 13 accessions (2%!) using 32 morphological traits, thanks to Power Core.
- Construction of a core collection of Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton Germplasm in the South Korean gene bank using agro-morphological traits. From 1227 to 235 accessions (19%) using 17 morphological traits, thanks to a bunch of different methods.
- Comprehensive Phenotyping of 1,807 Indian Barnyard Millet (Echinochloa frumentacea Link) Accessions from Indian National Genebank: Unlocking Diversity for Core Set Development. From 1,807 to 271 accessions (15%) using 23 quantitative traits, thanks to Core Hunter 3.
- Genomic resequencing reveals genetic diversity, population structure, and core collection of durian germplasm. From 114 to 26 accessions (23%) using 39 million high-quality SNPs across the genome.
- Development of a composite core collection from 5,856 sesame accessions being conserved in the Indian National Genebank. From 5,856 to 1,768 accessions (30%) using SNPs and phenotypic data.
- Optimizing core collections for genetic studies: a worldwide flax germplasm case study. From 1,593 to 350 accessions (22%) using phenotypic and genotypic data, times 200, thanks to CoreCollection, corehunter III, TrainSel, and more.
- An Optimized Core Sample of the Wild Potato Solanum fendleri in the USA. From 269 accessions, to 38 plants, to 1 accession (0.4%!). Beat that!
- Countrywide Corchorus olitorius L. core collection shows an adaptive potential for future climate in Benin. From 305 to 54 accessions (18%) using 1,114 high-quality SNPs, thanks to ShinyCore. Some indication of usefulness.
- Multi-environmental evaluation of barley core collection against spot blotch for genetic variability and identification of promising genotypes exhibiting resistance. From a core collection of 678 accessions to 2 genotypes that might actually be useful to breeders. Finally!
Open Sesame!
The journal Plant Genetic Resources is planning a special edition on Unlocking the Potential of National Genebanks: Tools, Strategies and Impact Metrics for sustainable Global Conservation. Katherine Baum of the Australian Grains Genebank is the Guest Editor, and the deadline is 31 October 2025. Sounds like fun.
Old knowledge, new respect
An excellent article by friend-of-the-blog Alex Chepstow-Lusty in The Conversation highlights how the Incas built resilience into their landscapes in ways that modern farmers — and policymakers for that matter — would do well to revisit. By combining dung-producing llamas, irrigated terraces and carefully placed trees, Andean communities developed agricultural systems that thrived for centuries in a very challenging, and changing, environment.
These practices weren’t stop-gaps. They were sophisticated, locally adapted strategies, tested and refined over generations, that now offer clues for how to face climate change, in the high Andes and beyond.
But here’s the challenge: how do we, in today’s world, decide which elements of Indigenous knowledge to adopt, and how to adapt them? That’s where Chad Orzel’s thoughtful essay offers a valuable perspective. He argues that subjecting traditional practices to the same rigorous scientific standards as modern innovations is not an act of dismissal: it’s an act of respect. To test Indigenous methods carefully and fairly is to take them seriously, on an equal footing with other forms of knowledge.
The Inca legacy so well documented by Alex and his collaborators shows us that ancient practices can hold real solutions for modern crises. Orzel reminds us that by evaluating them with rigour, we not only unlock their potential, but also honour the people who developed and sustained them.
Indigenous knowledge deserves both recognition and respect — and the best way to respect knowledge is to test it, and put it to work.
The Kunming Manifesto surfaces
Readers with a long memory will remember that I promised I would keep an eye on the manifesto that was supposed to come out of the 3rd International Agrobiodiversity Congress, held back in May. Well, it has arrived, the 2025 Kunming Manifesto: Agrobiodiversity for People and Planet. Here’s a taster:
The agrobiodiversity conservation, use, and success stories are largely the domain of women, who are often the most marginalized in marginalized groups. In tandem with greater inclusion, unlocking agrobiodiversity’s potential to help solve the world’s greatest challenges requires transformative intervention by governments around the world. This includes repurposing agricultural subsidies, enacting policies to support the seed production and distribution systems and embedding agrobiodiversity in the global fora that work to mitigate climate change, reverse biodiversity loss, control desertification, and eliminate hunger.
There are “actionable recommendations” on each of the topics of the Congress…
- Agrobiodiversity for Economic Growth
- Agrobiodiversity for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation
- Agrobiodiversity for Improved Environmental Health and Biodiversity
- Agrobiodiversity for Healthy Diets
- Agrobiodiversity for Gender and Social Inclusion
- Agrobiodiversity Conservation and Management Strategies
…followed by suggested “next steps” for farmers and practitioners, policy makers, scientists, and the private sector.
Anything on genebanks? Well, lots on community seed banks, that’s for sure. But also this:
Because community seed banks are vital platforms for action learning and seed system strengthening, incentives and rights-based policies should be implemented to reward the contributions of custodian farmers. Additionally, increased support is needed for local and national genebanks, enhanced documentation and conservation of wild PGRFA and landraces, and greater investment in participatory plant breeding. Stronger national policies that enable farmers to commercialize seeds of farmer varieties need to be in place.
I have to say that, given some the people involved, I would have expected at least a passing reference to international genebanks, but I guess this particular Congress wasn’t the right place for that.
How to stay in touch with us here
Attentive readers will have noticed that the little service we used to have here, whereby you’d get an email whenever there was a new post, is no longer available. Sorry about that. The reason is that it was too expensive. I do share new posts on my social media, but the best way to keep abreast of developments here remains our RSS feed. Nobody talks about RSS any more, but if you hate algorithms, it’s the way for you to follow the sites you want, the way you want. Just choose a feed reader and insert the link. It’s really easy, and liberating in a way. But if you don’t want to mess with a feed reader, and don’t mind an ad or two, you could try Blogtrottr. Just give it the RRS link and your email, choose “daily digest,” and sit back and wait for the email alerts to flood into your inbox. I’ve tried it and it’s ok.