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Decentralized selection and participatory approaches in plant breeding for low-input systems

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Abstract

Heterogeneous environments make it difficult to apply consistent selection pressure because often it is difficult to identify a single or a few superior genotypes across all sets of conditions. However, when the target system is characterized by heterogeneity of environmental stress, varieties developed in high-yielding conditions may fail to satisfy farmers’ needs. Although this type of system is often found in marginal environments of developing countries, heterogeneous environmental conditions are also a feature of organic and low-external-input systems in developed countries. To meet the needs of these systems, breeding programs must decentralize selection, and although decentralized selection can be done in formal breeding programs, it is more efficient to involve farmers in the selection and testing of early generation materials. Breeding within these target systems is challenging, both genetically and logistically, but can identify varieties that are adapted to farming systems in marginal environments or that use very few external inputs. A great deal has been published in recent years on the need for local adaptation and participatory plant breeding; this article reviews and synthesizes that literature.

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Abbreviations

PPB:

Participatory Plant Breeding

CIMMYT:

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center

G×E:

Genotype by Environment Interactions

ICARDA:

International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank two anonymous reviewers for their comments. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under a Graduate Research Fellowship. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Winter Wheat Breeding and Genetics, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Washington State University, 201 Johnson Hall, Pullman, WA, 99164-6420, USA

    Julie C. Dawson, Kevin M. Murphy & Stephen S. Jones

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  1. Julie C. Dawson
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  2. Kevin M. Murphy
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  3. Stephen S. Jones
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Correspondence to Stephen S. Jones.

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Dawson, J.C., Murphy, K.M. & Jones, S.S. Decentralized selection and participatory approaches in plant breeding for low-input systems. Euphytica 160, 143–154 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10681-007-9533-0

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