M. Vetelainen, WIDENING OF GENETIC-VARIATION IN BARLEY BREEDING PROGRAMS - EXPERIENCES FROM COMPOSITE CROSSES TO NORDIC BARLEY BREEDING POPULATIONS, Acta agriculturae Scandinavica. Section B, Soil and plant science, 44(3), 1994, pp. 129-135
The establishment, breeding and;selection procedures of long-term popu
lation breeding methods used in barley breeding are briefly outlined.
Composite crosses (CC) are described as an example of long-term barley
bulk populations. Experimental studies on compositional changes withi
n CCs are discussed to show how plant breeders can utilize the effects
of natural selection. Genetic variability and changes in adaptedness
of CCs are surveyed, and thus their significance to breeding populatio
ns and genetic conservation. Finally, an ongoing barley population bre
eding project is presented. The aim of the Nordic project is to form g
ene pools with a high level of resistance to various barley diseases.
During the establishment phase the effects of exotic germplasm on the
expression of agricultural traits in adapted barleys is studied.