Agricultural Biodiversity Weblog

September 14, 2021September 14, 2021

Fruit portraits

Masumi Shiohara was born in Nagano Prefecture in 1974. He worked as a development engineer at a microfabrication manufacturer. After leaving the company, he took over his family’s orchard from his parents, and is now running the farm. He is also involved in breeding and has developed a number of varieties.

He also takes amazing photos to record the characteristics of the different varieties he grows.

When filing a plant patent application, we keep records to identify each of the varieties and to compare those with other similar varieties. A collection of these records is called a characteristic table. As a fruit farmer and breeder, I continue to use photographic techniques to illustrate all of the important items in the trait table in a single piece of work. My photographs become a form of botanical art.

Art indeed. For a more mundane approach to varietal identification, however, check out these resources on Orchard Notes.

September 13, 2021August 31, 2021

Brainfood: Mapping double, Niche modelling, CGIAR impacts, Pathogen genebank, Data stewardship, Breeding tradeoffs, Organic vs conventional, Agronomic trials, Teff evaluation, Eggplant genetic resources, Quinoa phenotyping

Conservation needs to break free from global priority mapping. Couldn’t agree more. And less.
National climate and biodiversity strategies are hamstrung by a lack of maps. Wait, what?
The evolutionary genomics of species’ responses to climate change. You need to combine niche modelling with genetic adaptation to get the best maps.
Payoffs to a half century of CGIAR research. A benefit-to-cost ratio (BCR) of 10:1. Not counting the genebanks. And all the maps.
A case for conserving plant pathogens. But will it be worth it?
Poor data stewardship will hinder global genetic diversity surveillance. What’s the BCR for decent metadata?
Mitigating tradeoffs in plant breeding. Cutting out the cross-talk changes tradeoff to payoff.
Comparing Productivity of Organic and Conventional Farming Systems: A Quantitative Review. Conventional is more productive. But should yield be the only criterion?
Priority micronutrient density in foods. Right. Micronutrients are also important.
Reconciling yield gains in agronomic trials with returns under African smallholder conditions. And how was yield measured anyway?
Data-driven, participatory characterization of traditional farmer varieties discloses teff (Eragrostis tef) adaptive and breeding potential under current and future climates. This might well be an example of applying the lessons of the above.
Genetic Diversity and Utilization of Cultivated Eggplant Germplasm in Varietal Improvement. The wild relatives will save us.
Quinoa Phenotyping Methodologies: An International Consensus. But will it work for the wild relatives? Just kidding, this is an important development for another crop (with the above) which doesn’t have something like the CGIAR and its 10:1 BCR behind it…

September 9, 2021September 9, 2021

Featured comment: Using genebanks

Important reminder from Maarten van Ginkel as part of a comment on yesterday’s post about the Australian genebanking publication.

We need strong awareness raising and encouragement to see gene banks not just as final resting places for historic exotic germplasm, but also as portals for highly needed useful genetic diversity for future introgression into modern crops.

Maarten was closely involved in both CIMMYT’s Wheat Genebank and the Australian Grains Genebank.

September 8, 2021September 8, 2021

How to genebank, and why

The third edition of “Strategies and guidelines for developing, managing and utilising ex situ collections” from the Australian Network for Plant Conservation is out and it’s nothing short of monumental. Here’s the contents.

Chapter 1: Introduction.
Chapter 2: Options, major considerations and preparation for plant germplasm conservation.
Chapter 3: Genetic guidelines for acquiring and maintaining collections for ex situ conservation.
Chapter 4: Seed and vegetative material collection.
Chapter 5: Seed banking: orthodox seeds.
Chapter 6: Identifying and conserving non-orthodox seeds.
Chapter 7: Seed germination and dormancy.
Chapter 8: The role of the plant nursery in ex situ conservation.
Chapter 9: Tissue culture.
Chapter 10: Cryopreservation.
Chapter 11: Living plant collections.
Chapter 12: Isolation, propagation and storage of orchid mycorrhiza and legume rhizobia.
Chapter 13: Special collections and under-represented taxa in Australasian ex situ conservation programs.
Chapter 14: Risk management and preparing for crises.
Chapter 15: Maintenance, utilisation and information storage.

There are also 50 case studies, focusing on Australian examples, including this on sorghum wild relatives.

And, given the news about the threats to crop wild relatives and trees, it’s all just as well.

September 6, 2021August 31, 2021

Brainfood: Extreme events, Hot livestock, Decentralized breeding, Rice evaluation, Maize relatives double, Peanut hybrids, Tanzanian cassava, Microbiome, Brassica pests, Hop terroir, Beer taste

Extreme climate events increase risk of global food insecurity and adaptation needs. Factoring in climate variability shows that just considering the change in the average climate underestimates the food security hit.
Increases in extreme heat stress in domesticated livestock species during the twenty-first century. And the hit is already landing.
Data-driven decentralized breeding increases prediction accuracy in a challenging crop production environment. What we therefore need is 3-D breeding.
Novel Sources of Pre-Harvest Sprouting Resistance for Japonica Rice Improvement. Including for resistance to pre-harvest sprouting in rice due to unexpected typhoons.
The genome of stress tolerant crop wild relative Paspalum vaginatum leads to increased biomass productivity in the crop Zea mays. For sure crop wild relatives are going to help.
Megabase-scale presence-absence variation with Tripsacum origin was under selection during maize domestication and adaptation. If they haven’t helped already.
Registration of three peanut allotetraploid interspecific hybrids resistant to late leaf spot disease and tomato spotted wilt. Sometimes you need multiple CWR.
Collection, genotyping and virus elimination of cassava landraces from Tanzania and documentation of farmer knowledge. But landraces too will come in handy, especially if farmers’ knowledge is properly documented.
Prioritizing host phenotype to understand microbiome heritability in plants. And don’t forget the microbiome.
Economic analysis of habitat manipulation in Brassica pest management: Wild plant species suppress cabbage webworm. Not to mention the ecosystem as a whole.
Relevance of hop terroir for beer flavour. Oh hell, I give up, time for a craft beer.
On the Trail of the German Purity Law: Distinguishing the Metabolic Signatures of Wheat, Corn and Rice in Beer. Maybe even a weissbier.