Selection for Orchardgrass Seed Yield in Target vs. Nontarget Environments

Abstract

Simultaneous improvement of forage traits and seed yield in orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) has been problematic because of geographic separation of forage and seed production locations. Previous work has shown that a complex multilocation selection program in forage production environments can increase forage yield as well as seed yield in Oregon. The objective of this experiment was to compare target‐environment (TE) and nontarget–environment (NTE) selection approaches for increasing seed yield of orchardgrass in Oregon. Two cycles of recurrent phenotypic selection for panicle seed mass (PSM) and agronomic traits were conducted on four populationsin four eastern USA locations (NTE) and one Oregon location (TE). Seed yield was increased in three of four orchardgrass populations by TE selection, averaging 5.1% cycle−1, but was improved by NTE selection in only one of four populations. Conversely, TE selection for PSM and agronomic traits resulted in no changes to forage yield in the eastern USA and Canada, while NTE selection for PSM and agronomic traits increased forage yield in two of four populations, confirming results of a previous study. It appears that the most efficient system for simultaneously improving forage and seed traits of orchardgrass would be to practice selection for forage traits in forage production environments and seed traits in seed production environments, with sufficiently large populations to allow multitrait selection.

Genetic Gains in Grain Yield of a Maize Population Improved through Marker Assisted Recurrent Selection under Stress and Non-stress Conditions in West Africa

“…As selection for drought tolerance resulted in a negative response to selection for grain yield under Striga infestation (non-target traits), it is important to choose parents with tolerance to multiple stress and conduct selection under the different stress conditions to attain the desirable improvement in performance of the progenies derived from bi-parental cross. This was in agreement with the findings of Casler et al (2003) , who reported little improvement on the non-target trait from the simultaneous improvement of forage yield and seed yield of orchard grass bred for an increase in forage yield. Contrary to these findings, Lafitte and Edmeades (1995) and Edmeades et al (2006) , reported significant improvements in the non-target trait in a research selected for tolerance to drought.…”

Genetic Variation for Morphology and Maturity Among the Half‐Sib Progeny of Nine Orchardgrass Germplasm Populations

“…The lack of variation for location and genotype × location interaction was unexpected. The effect of production environment and the interaction between environment and genotype typically have an effect on orchardgrass flowering and seed production (Barker et al, 1997; Stratton and Ohm, 1989; Casler et al, 2003). The spring of 2008 was cooler and wetter than normal in the Intermountain United States, including the two locations used in this study (Western Regional Climate Center, 2012).…”

Breeding gain from exploitation of regional adaptation: An alfalfa case study

“…• Genotype × environment interaction patterns were repeatable across sets of trials • Selection for specific adaptation was more efficient than wide-adaptation selection • Specific-adaptation selection was essential to outyield best commercial varieties • Genotypic selection produced higher yield gains than phenotypic selection and western Canada , while maize (Zea mays L.) selection in irrigated (Guillen-Portal et al, 2004) or high-input environments (Lorenzana & Bernardo, 2008) proved efficient also for rainfed or low-input environments of the United States. In contrast, breeding for specific adaptation outperformed wide adaptation for sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] across low-productivity and high-productivity environments of the U.S. Great Plains (Bramel-Cox et al, 1991) and bread wheat across two Italian subregions (Annicchiarico et al, 2010); indirect selection under high-input conditions targeted to organically managed and low-input conditions was less efficient than direct selection for bread wheat in France (Brancourt-Hulmel et al, 2005) and the United States (Murphy, Campbell, Lyon, & Jones, 2007); and GEI effects for seed and biomass yield of orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) across the Pacific Northwest (main seed production area) and the eastern region of the United States (main forage production area) were so wide as to require specific selection for each trait in its target region to achieve genetic progress (Casler, Barker, Brummer, Papadopolous, & Hoffman, 2003). A possible limitation of most comparisons of adaptation strategies is their reliance on predicted yield gains, with relatively few studies reporting actual yield gains (e.g., Casler et al, 2003;Ceccarelli et al, 1998;Singh, Gutierrez, Urrea, Molina, & Cajiao, 1992).…”