11/26/13 1 Finding and Keeping the Best Vegetable Varieties Frank Kutka, Theresa Podoll, and Steve Zwinger Farm Breeding Club CoCoordinators With special thanks to Organic Seed Alliance, State Historical Society of North Dakota, Marvin Baker, and Dave Christensen Gardening has a long history here in the Dakotas
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11/26/13
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Finding and Keeping the Best Vegetable Varieties
Frank Kutka, Theresa Podoll, and Steve Zwinger
Farm Breeding Club Co-‐Coordinators
With special thanks to Organic Seed Alliance, State Historical Society of North Dakota, Marvin
Baker, and Dave Christensen
Gardening has a long history here in the Dakotas
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What varieties of vegetables shall we grow?
• Hybrids • Open Pollinated • Heirloom
• Where do we Jind them?
Seeds to Explore!
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But which is the best?
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“Ensuring accessibility and suitability of vegetable varieties: Trialing vegetable varieties for traits and qualities needed by North Dakota market growers” • ND Specialty Crop Block Grant funding • Goal is to increase the accessibility of vegetable varieties well suited to ND
• Partners: • NPSAS/FBC • NDSU Plant Science Department • ND Farmers Market and Growers Ass. • Entrepreneurial Center for Horticulture • FARRMS • OSA • NOVIC
Project objectives: • 1: Evaluate five species using replicated
variety trials • 2: Identify breeding goals for cultivar
improvement • 3: Provide variety trial data to market
farmers
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Planning a Trial
• Prioritize crop species • Prioritize crop types • Identify goals of the trial • ID and source varieties
What varieties go into a trial?
• Popular commercial varieties of the crop type regionally and nationwide
• Older standards • Heirloom and exotic varieties
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What constitutes an effective trial?
• Multiple replications of entries • Consistent Jield conditions • Use border rows • Evaluate trials by “scoring” important traits
Randomization and Replication
B B B B B B B
B 3 2 1 4 5 B
B 1 3 5 2 4 B
B 5 2 3 4 1 B
B B B B B B B
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Soil = Environmental Variation
B B B B B B B
B 3! 2! 1! 4! 5! B
B 1! 3! 5! 2! 4! B
B 5! 2! 3! 4! 1! B
B B B B B B B
B B B B B B B
B 3! 2! 1! 4! 5! B
B 1! 3! 5! 2! 4! B
B 5! 2! 3! 4! 1! B
B B B B B B B
Marking and Mapping the Trial
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Measuring Characteristics
Kale Trial -‐ Seven Seeds Farm, Williams OR, 2009
Variety Source Vigor Uni-‐form? Flavor
Dis-‐ease Pests Overall
Winterbor F1 JSS 9 3 7 7 3 5.8
Red Russian ABBO 9 9 5 5 5 6.6
Red Russian UPR 7 7 5 5 1 5
*Red Russian SSF 9 9 5 5 7 7
Toscano JSS 3 7 7 9 5 6.2
*Lacinato WGS 7 7 7 7 7 7
Starbor F1 JSS 5 5 3 7 5 5
Ripbor F1 JSS 3 9 5 5 3 5
*Blue Vates ABBO 5 9 5 7 5 6.2
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Marvin and Ilene Baker Carrot Screen 2012
Foliar disease Root shape Root tip [ill
Root tip smoothness Root [lavor
Root sweetness Yield
The Flavor Critics: " Educators " Farmers " Extension agents " Spouse " Shareholders " Customers " Neighbors " Youth " Employees " Your Best Friend " Siblings
!!!
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Peanut Arachis hypogaea
How do we save the seeds?
Coriander
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Annual Plants Plants that complete the seed cycle in one season.
• Location: dry, cool, refrigerators and freezers, temperature fluctations
• Envelope test
What about variety improvement?
• Available varieties may not be the most adapted or productive
• Available varieties may not be the most marketable or desirable
• You may want independence and control over your variety and seed source
• You need an enjoyable and outrageously rewarding hobby that could grow into a career!
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“This bulletin is written… to present to the people of North Dakota a picture of the steps necessary in the development of a new
variety… so that they may perhaps be stimulated to undertake practical plant breeding themselves.”
A.F. Yeager, NDAC, Sunshine Sweet Corn, 1927
Step 1: Set Objectives
“One of the principal jobs is to recognize the need for a variety of a particular kind. With the need known we can then proceed to produce a variety to meet it.” A.F. Yeager, 1927
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h=p://www.liseed.org/acorndiv.html
h=p://seedsavers.org/
h=p://www.territorialseed.com
h=p://www.fao.org/nr/cgrfa
Step 2: Find Parents
Step 3: Make Crosses
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Step 4: Select Offspring
Step 5: Evaluate
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The process takes 5-‐10 years
“Dakota Tears” Onion • David Podoll of Fullerton, ND wanted healthy, long storing onions he could grow in North Dakota.
• He kept bulbs from a number of varieties that had performed well and replanted out those that stored well.
• Process repeated for many years (plant seed, select bulbs, store, reselect bulbs, plant selected bulbs, collect seed).
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“Dakota Tears” Onion
• Dakota Tears was released after some years and the seed is sold commercially.
“Dark Star” Zucchini • Bill Reynolds and Donna Ferguson grew “Raven” Zucchini for San Francisco markets where preferred type is dark green, 8” long, and 2” in diameter
• Due to seed shortage, began growing the OP “Black Beauty” instead, but had many off types
• Crossed Black Beauty and Raven, then conducted mass selection for four years followed by selJing and evaluation of the best selfed lines. Best one released as Dark Star.
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www.organicseedalliance.org
Dave Christensen of Big Timber, Montana
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Dave’s Painted Mountain
Resources n Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Society Farm Breeding Club (www.npsas.org)
n Organic Seed Alliance (www.seedalliance.org) n Seed to Seed by Suzanne Ashworth n Buffalo Bird Woman’s Garden by Maxidiwiac and Gilbert Wilson
n Breed Your Own Vegetables by Carol Deppe n Seed Savers Exchange (WWW.SeedSavers.Org)