Project Number: 5440-21220-024-08
Project Type: Specific C/A

Start Date: Sep 01, 2002
End Date: Aug 31, 2007

Objective:
Drought conditions can have devastating effects on plant germplasm development and breeding programs and can lead to the loss of costly genetic experiments and to the loss of valuable plant germplasm. Drought conditions can delay the release of improved germplasm and cultivars by several years. Drought conditions can affect grain and biomass quality for use as food, feed, and bioenergy. The objective of this agreement is to ensure against the loss of valuable plant germplasm and research information to droughts by the cooperative installation, deployment, and use of precision irrigation systems and to determine genetic and genotype x environmental effects of soil moisture difference on grain food and feed quality and the utilization of grain and biomass for energy. Additional funding will be used to conduct cooperative research to evaluate grain and biomass food, feed, and bioenergy quality traits in environments differing in available soil moisture and on research to evaluate the effect of specific food, feed, and bioenergy quality traits on system profitability and sustainability.

Approach:
The Wheat, Sorghum, and Forage Unit, USDA-ARS and the Agronomy and Horticulture Department, University of Nebraska will cooperatively install and utilize lateral-move irrigation systems to jointly develop sorghum,wheat, and forage germplasm and cultivars with improved grain and biomass food, feed, and bioenergy quality traits and determine the stability of grain and biomass quality traits over environments differing in available soil moisture. The irrigation system also will be used to ensure against losses of germplasm and experimental data. ARS will conduct the genetic and breeding components of the research and the University of Nebraska will conduct the irrigation and soil management components of the research and specific aspects of the grain and biomass quality assessments for use as foods, feed, and bioenergy.

Project Team

Vogel, Kenneth - Ken Graybosch, Robert - Bob Pedersen, Jeffrey - Jeff Kenneth Cassman - Head, Department Of Agronomy And Horticulture 402-472-1564

Project Annual Reports

FY 2003

Related National Programs

Plant, Microbial & Insect Genetic Res., Genomics, & Genetic Improv. I (301)   Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products (306)