Location: Hard Winter Wheat Genetics Research
Project Number: 3020-21000-012-021-A
Project Type: Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2024
End Date: Aug 31, 2026
Objective:
Strengthen the capacity of the Wheat Resilience Initiative, specifically, for pre-breeding and breeding wheat stem sawfly resistance with both solid stem and non-solid stem germplasm.
• Cooperator will implement trial sites for a regional coordinated wheat stem sawfly screening nursery and perform data collection.
• Cooperator will advance pre-breeding efforts incorporating both solid-stem and non-solid stem germplasm.
• Cooperator will contribute parent germplasm to the ARS dominant male sterile-facilitated recurrent selection population and will receive the population for use in breeding improved cultivars.
Approach:
• Cooperator will implement a trial site at Sidney, NE for a regional coordinated wheat stem sawfly screening nursery and perform data collection. Nursery will be in the format of single rows with two replications. Check genotypes will include a Triticale, known solid stem cultivars, Byrd CL, and Wesley. Data collected will include flowering time, stem solidness at the base of the plant at flowering, and cutting score at maturity.
• Cooperator will advance pre-breeding efforts incorporating both solid-stem and non-solid stem germplasm. Cooperator will provide seed to ARS for genotyping with genome-wide markers as well as genetic marker(s) for stem solidness.
• Cooperator will participate in the development of a dominant male sterile-facilitated recurrent selection population for wheat stem sawfly resistance by contributing parent germplasm to the population under development by ARS. Cooperator will receive the population for use in breeding improved cultivars. This recurrent selection population incorporates both solid stem and non-solid stem resistance.
• Cooperator will contract with Montana State University to support a wheat stem sawfly screening nursery at Havre, MT as per the cooperator's nursery in Sidney, NE.
