The USDA-ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository for tree fruit, nut crops, and grapes, Davis, CA

Authors: Preece, John

Submitted to: Journal of the American Pomological Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/6/2019
Publication Date: 8/10/2020
Citation: Preece, J.E. 2020. The USDA-ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository for tree fruit, nut crops, and grapes, Davis, CA. Journal of American Pomological Society. 74(2): 111-116.

Interpretive Summary: The National Clonal Germplasm Repository Davis, CA (NCGR) curates the national collections of the following 14 Mediterranean fruit and nut crops: almond, apricot, cherry, fig, grape, kiwifruit, mulberry, olive, peach, persimmon, pistachio, plum, pomegranate, and walnut. The overarching goal is to preserve these genetics for current and future generations. The challenge is that these crops do not breed true and must therefore be maintained as plants in the field, making preservation of clonal crops considerably more expensive than annual crops that can be stored as seeds. The mission of the Repository is to acquire additional genetics to fill gaps in the collections, maintain the plants in the collections, freely distribute the genetics (typically as dormant scionwood) to scientists worldwide, and to evaluate the collections and make those data available online on the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN-Global, https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/search.aspx). Because of free distribution of the germplasm, there is nothing modern and under patent or proprietary protection in the collections. Rather, they consist of older cultivars; breeder lines; and the genetically richest portion of the collections, the crop wild relatives. All are available for scientific study. Challenges with managing an expanding collection are discussed.

Technical Abstract: The National Clonal Germplasm Repository Davis, CA (NCGR) curates the national collections of the following 14 Mediterranean fruit and nut crops: almond, apricot, cherry, fig, grape, kiwifruit, mulberry, olive, peach, persimmon, pistachio, plum, pomegranate, and walnut. The overarching goal is to preserve these genetics for current and future generations. The challenge is that these crops do not breed true and must therefore be maintained as plants in the field, making preservation of clonal crops considerably more expensive than annual crops that can be stored as seeds. The mission of the Repository is to acquire additional genetics to fill gaps in the collections, maintain the plants in the collections, freely distribute the genetics (typically as dormant scionwood) to scientists worldwide, and to evaluate the collections and make those data available online on the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN-Global, https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/search.aspx). Because of free distribution of the germplasm, there is nothing modern and under patent or proprietary protection in the collections. Rather, they consist of older cultivars; breeder lines; and the genetically richest portion of the collections, the crop wild relatives. All are available for scientific study. Challenges with managing an expanding collection are discussed.