- Physiological traits associated with drought resistance in Andean and Mesoamerican genotypes of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Maybe more common in the Mesoamerican genepool, and associated with pod harvest index.
- Estimating potential range and hence climatic adaptability in selected tree species. It’s better if you have trial results.
- Genetic diversity and population structure of ‘Khao Kai Noi’, a Lao rice (Oryza sativa L.) landrace, revealed by microsatellite DNA markers. More variation between than within accessions of same landrace, three genetic groups, and a possible origin in Vietnam.
- Characterization of a mini core collection of Japanese wheat varieties using single-nucleotide polymorphisms generated by genotyping-by-sequencing. Core collection of 96 accessions based on passport and pedigree data turns out to reflect geography and breeding history.
- Variation in cooking and eating quality traits in Japanese rice germplasm accessions. Mainly down to one gene.
- Population genomic analysis reveals differential evolutionary histories and patterns of diversity across subgenomes and subpopulations of Brassica napus L. Spring (SP), winter Europe (WE), and winter Asia (WA) groups, enriched genetic diversity within the WA group, different geographic origins for the C (WE) and A (WA) subgenomes.
- Molecular markers to distinguish ‘Thar Shoba’, a variety of khejri [Prosopis cineraria (L.) Druce], from trees in natural populations. Since the thing has a great morphological marker in being spineless, I don’t really see the point of going all molecular on it, but anyway.
- Assessment of the genetic relationship of tef (Eragrostis tef) genotypes using SSR markers. Molecular markers confirm distinctness of agronomically distinct varieties.
- Linkage between crop diversity and agro-ecosystem resilience: Nonmonotonic agricultural response under alternate regimes. Crop diversity increases productivity during normal conditions, decreases it in adverse conditions, increases the likelihood of staving off an adverse regime.
- Genetic differentiation and regional adaptation among seed origins used for grassland restoration: lessons from a multispecies transplant experiment. Local is best. At least in Germany.
Nibbles: Sapote taste, Coffee breeding, Genes to ecosystems, Medicinal trifecta, Ganja, Aboriginal fire, Lupins, Endophytes, Oil algae, Schultes maps, Yeast diversity, Bees & diversity, CSA
- You know you want to try black sapote.
- Podcast on how to save coffee. And it probably needs it.
- Once we’ve saved the cultivated species, maybe we should save it in the wild as well?
- If not, there are other species, other drugs, I guess. No, really.
- Indigenous fire management in Australia.
- Everything you need on lupins. You’re welcome.
- Is anyone collecting endophytes? Or microalgae for that matter?
- Marvellous interactive atlas of the botanical collecting of Richard Evans Schultes in the Amazon.
- Wine yeasts are way inbred. Which can’t be altogether good.
- Watermelons need flower diversity.
- One does feel for climate-stupid varieties.
Nibbles: BananaGuard, Wheat has a blast, Grow your own antibiotic, Bhutanese cypress, Natural history collections, Genebanks big & small, Better grasslands, Local foodways
- Who needs resistant banana varieties when you have synthetic biology? And more.
- More trouble for wheat, and climate change is to blame. Maybe Vavilov can help there too?
- DIY penicillin.
- Saving the sacred cypress. Try saying that quickly.
- What have herbaria ever done for us? Apart from giving us endless joy, you mean?
- The Indian and other genebanks securing the future of food. But see also our earlier post on Dr Tyagi’s paper.
- Aboriginal community gets a genebank.
- We need better grass. No, not that kind of grass. Well, not only that kind of grass.
- A pean for African food cultures. And Pacific ones too.
Nibbles: Strampelli, Gender, State of World’s Plants, Wild peanuts, Istambul gardens, ICRAF & CIFOR DG chat, Biofortification, Cowpea genome, SSEx Q&A, Rice resilience, Cacao & coffee microbiome, Mapping crops, BBC Discovery, EU seed law
- “È curioso che il grano Cappelli, ora diventato un simbolo della “pasta da gourmet”, fosse una volta il comune grano della pasta di tutti i giorni, e che venga da alcuni considerato “autoctono” quando in realtà è una varietà tunisina.” Curious indeed.
- A woman’s crop? Not as straightforward as it may sound.
- State of the World’s Plants symposium, 11-12 May.
- Above will no doubt consider crop wild relatives such as the peanut’s.
- More on the urban vegetable gardens of Istanbul.
- Tree DGs in the garden getting coffee. On International Forest Day.
- The “Bernie Sanders” vision of biofortification.
- Cowpea to get a genome.
- Q&A with John Torgrimson of Seed Savers Exchange.
- The resilience of rice: “You never find a crop that can span this latitude and altitude.” Really? Wheat?
- Cacao and coffee have a microbial terroir.
- Crop mixes are geographically stable.
- Prof. Kathy Willis of Kew on Feeding the World, including using crop wild relatives. IRRI Kew genebanks featured.
- Denmark interprets EU law to allow seed saving.
Nibbles: CC & death, GBIF enhancements, Killer fungi, Lion trees, Old oaks, Gourmet ganja, Wild horses, Resistant cassava, Contested agronomy, p-values
- Climate change is going to hit us where we live. Or die.
- How to make GBIF more relevant for agrobiodiversity: a 10-point plan.
- Killer fungi on the loose? ‘Twas ever thus. But genomics will save us?
- Planting trees is good for lions too.
- There are still medieval oaks in England.
- “…where sommelier-like ‘budtenders’ sell gourmet ganja in a designer showroom.”
- Rewilding the wild horse.
- More about the cassava variety Kasetsart 50, poster child for CGIAR impact.
- It’s not just genetic resources that are contested. Yep, agronomy too.
- “Scientific conclusions and business or policy decisions should not be based only on whether a p-value passes a specific threshold.”