There is an urgency to plant breeding and the need for innovation because of increasing population and increasing prosperity will require genetic improvements in our crops at twice the current rate of improvement globally.
Plant breeding has its origins in antiquity, starting off simply as discrimination among plant types to select and retain plants with the most desirable features.
Rapid advancing science is able to make use of genetic and biotechnological innovations to efficiently develop better crop varieties.
The professionals who conduct this task are called plant breeders. A breeder will typically collaborate closely with plant pathologists, entomologists, biochemists, agronomists, seed production professionals, molecular biologists, statisticians, and computer scientists. An efficient and productive breeding program will draw on these disciplines and use the latest proven technology.
Plant breeders specialize in breeding different groups of plants. Some focus on field crops (e.g., soybean, cotton), horticultural crops (e.g., vegetables), ornamentals, fruit trees (e.g., citrus, apple), forage crops (e.g., alfalfa, grasses), or turf species. More importantly, breeders tend to focus on specific species in these groups.
Plant breeding
