ELIMINATING DUPLICATES IN GERMPLASM COLLECTIONS - A WHITE CLOVER EXAMPLE

One area that is often given low priority in the management of many ge rmplasm collections is the elimination of duplicate and genetically re dundant accessions. The purpose of this communication is to (i) descri be a simple and effective procedure used in the National Plant Germpla sm System white clover (Trifolium repens L.) collection for identifyin g and eliminating duplicate cultivar accessions, and (ii) discuss the potential gain in management efficiency that results from eliminating duplicates, The Germplasm Resources Information Network and plant inve ntory books were reviewed to ensure accessions were properly identifie d and to detect suspected duplicates, Additional historical documentat ion (plant introduction station card catalogs, acquisition logs, corre spondence, and reports) were reviewed to characterize suspect duplicat e accessions. Morphological data was obtained to supplement historical information. The white clover collection had 42 cultivars that occurr ed more than once in the collection, involving 133 of 626 accessions, Based on our review, 35 accessions were retained with no change, 39 ac cessions were bulked into 16 new accessions, and 59 accessions were de signated as inactive, resulting in a net reduction of 82 accessions (1 3% of total collection), This results in a savings of $41 000 ($500 ca ge(-1)) in regeneration costs alone, Eliminating duplicates is an effe ctive method of reducing germplasm maintenance costs without losing va luable genetic resources.