"Plant breeding is the science of changing the traits of plants in order to produce desired characteristics."
The methods and principles used to propagate and breed plants, including sexual and asexual reproduction, hybridization, and genetic engineering.
Plant anatomy and physiology: Understanding the structure and function of plants, including roots, leaves, stems, flowers, seeds, and fruits.
Plant genetics and breeding: The study of genes and their role in determining plant characteristics, as well as the techniques used to develop and improve new plant varieties.
Seed propagation: The process of growing new plants from seeds, including techniques such as germination, scarification, and stratification.
Vegetative propagation: The process of growing new plants from vegetative parts (e.g. stems, leaves, roots), including techniques such as cuttings, layering, and grafting.
Tissue culture: A laboratory technique for growing plants from small pieces of plant tissue under sterile conditions, commonly used to produce large numbers of genetically identical plants.
Plant hormones: Chemicals produced by plants that play a key role in regulating growth and development, including techniques such as plant hormone application and manipulation.
Plant nutrition and fertilization: The role of essential nutrients in plant growth and how to provide them, including techniques such as soil testing and fertilization.
Plant propagation equipment: Tools and equipment used for plant propagation, including propagation trays, heat mats, and misting systems.
Disease and pest management: How to prevent and control plant diseases and pests, including techniques such as Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and biological control.
Environmental factors: The impact of environmental factors such as light, temperature, and water on plant growth and propagation, including techniques such as greenhouse management and lighting control.
Sexual Propagation: This is a natural process of plant reproduction that involves the combination of male and female gametes to form a seed.
Asexual Propagation: This method of plant propagation involves reproducing new plants from existing plants without the need for seeds. Examples include rooting, layering, and grafting.
Cutting Propagation: This is the process of rooting a cutting from a selected parent plant to create a new plant.
Seed Propagation: A method of plant reproduction that involves planting seeds in soil or other propagation media to grow new plants.
Grafting: This method involves combining two different plants by connecting a branch or stem from one plant to the root system of another to create a new, hybrid plant.
Layering: This method involves propagating a new plant from an existing one by encouraging the growth of new roots at the plant's stem or branch while it is still attached to the parent plant.
Division: This method involves dividing an existing plant into multiple sections and replanting each section to create new, independent plants.
Tissue Culture: This complex and advanced method of plant propagation involves stimulating the growth of new plant cells and tissues in a laboratory setting to create new plants.
Micropropagation: This is another name for tissue culture, which involves propagating plants from small pieces of tissue.
Hybridization: This process involves crossing two different plant varieties to create a new plant with desired traits from each parent.
Cloning: This involves producing genetically identical plants from a single parent plant through tissue culture.
Bulb Propagation: This method involves planting bulbs to grow new plants. Examples include garlic, onions, and tulips.
Rhizome Propagation: This method involves planting rhizomes (underground stems) to grow new plants. Examples include ginger and irises.
Stolon Propagation: A method of plant propagation where a new plant is encouraged to grow from the parts of the parent plant that grow horizontally along the ground, called stolons.
Runner Propagation: This method involves planting new runners (long, stem-like extensions) that have grown from the parent plant to create new plants. Examples include strawberries and mint.
Sucker Propagation: This involves planting new plants that grow at the base of the parent plant. Examples include trees and shrubs.
Corm Propagation: This method involves planting corms (bulb-like structures) to create new plants. Examples include crocuses and gladioli.
Tuber Propagation: This method involves planting tubers (swollen underground stems) to create new plants. Examples include potatoes and yams.
Offset Propagation: This involves planting new offsets (baby plants that grow at the base of the parent plant) to create new plants. Examples include spider plants and aloe vera.
Adventitious Plantlet Propagation: This method involves planting tiny plantlets that grow on the margins of leaves or other plant parts. Examples include African violets and spider plant babies.
"The goals of plant breeding are to produce crop varieties that boast unique and superior traits for a variety of applications."
"The most frequently addressed agricultural traits are those related to biotic and abiotic stress tolerance, grain or biomass yield, end-use quality characteristics such as taste or the concentrations of specific biological molecules (proteins, sugars, lipids, vitamins, fibers) and ease of processing."
"Plant breeding can be performed through many different techniques ranging from simply selecting plants with desirable characteristics for propagation, to methods that make use of knowledge of genetics and chromosomes, to more complex molecular techniques."
"Genes in a plant are what determine what type of qualitative or quantitative traits it will have."
"It is practiced worldwide by individuals such as gardeners and farmers, and by professional plant breeders employed by organizations such as government institutions, universities, crop-specific industry associations, or research centers."
"International development agencies believe that breeding new crops is important for ensuring food security by developing new varieties that are higher yielding, disease resistant, drought tolerant or regionally adapted to different environments and growing conditions."
"Without plant breeding, Europe would have produced 20% fewer arable crops over the last 20 years, consuming an additional 21.6 million hectares (53 million acres) of land and emitting 4 billion tonnes (3.9×109 long tons; 4.4×109 short tons) of carbon."
"Wheat species created for Morocco are currently being crossed with plants to create new varieties for northern France."
"Soy beans, which were previously grown predominantly in the south of France, are now grown in southern Germany."
"It has been used to improve the quality of nutrition in products for humans and animals."
"Plant breeders strive to create a specific outcome of plants and potentially new plant varieties."
"Methods [of plant breeding] make use of knowledge of genetics and chromosomes."
"End-use quality characteristics such as taste or the concentrations of specific biological molecules (proteins, sugars, lipids, vitamins, fibers)."
"Those related to biotic and abiotic stress tolerance, grain or biomass yield, and ease of processing."
"Individuals such as gardeners and farmers, and professional plant breeders employed by organizations such as government institutions, universities, crop-specific industry associations or research centers."
"Breeding new crops is important for ensuring food security by developing new varieties that are higher yielding, disease resistant, drought tolerant, or regionally adapted to different environments and growing conditions."
"Without plant breeding, Europe would have consumed an additional 21.6 million hectares (53 million acres) of land and emitted 4 billion tonnes (3.9×109 long tons; 4.4×109 short tons) of carbon."
"Wheat species created for Morocco are currently being crossed with plants to create new varieties for northern France."
"Soy beans, which were previously grown predominantly in the south of France, are now grown in southern Germany."