Has Selection for Improved Agronomic Traits Made Reed Canarygrass Invasive?

Plant breeders have played an essential role in improving agricultural crops, and their efforts will be critical to meet the increasing demand for cellulosic bioenergy feedstocks. However, a major concern is the potential development of novel invasive species that result from breeders' efforts to improve agronomic traits in a crop. We use reed canarygrass as a case study to evaluate the potential of plant breeding to give rise to invasive species. Reed canarygrass has been improved by breeders for use as a forage crop, but it is unclear whether breeding efforts have given rise to more vigorous populations of the species. We evaluated cultivars, European wild, and North American invader populations in upland and wetland environments to identify differences in vigor between the groups of populations. While cultivars were among the most vigorous populations in an agricultural environment (upland soils with nitrogen addition), there were no differences in above- or below-ground production between any populations in wetland environments. These results suggest that breeding has only marginally increased vigor in upland environments and that these gains are not maintained in wetland environments. Breeding focuses on selection for improvements of a specific target population of environments, and stability across a wide range of environments has proved elusive for even the most intensively bred crops. We conclude that breeding efforts are not responsible for wetland invasion by reed canarygrass and offer guidelines that will help reduce the possibility of breeding programs releasing cultivars that will become invasive

Evaluation of reed canary grass for different end-uses and in breeding

Traditionally reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) has been cultivated for forage, but currently is a new non-food crop in northern Europe. The aim of this study was to evaluate reed canary grass germplasm, elite and wild populations, for non-food, forage and seed production. An index composed of different agronomic traits was used to establish the best populations for each end-use. Populations were also ranked according to biomass or seed yield only. Non-food cultivars have not yet been developed, but results from this study suggest that some high biomass forage cultivars could be used in non-food production. However, local populations possessed a desirable combination of traits, including higher proportion of straw associated with high biomass yield. This study indicated that local populations could be used in non-food crop breeding together with elite material. Some evidence for the potential of populations for forage production was also noted, mainly through leaf area and leaf proportion measurements. High non-food or forage indices were associated with good seed production in some populations. Results help in selecting appropriate cultivars for non-food use, which is currently important as the cultivated area of reed canary grass for biofuel in Finland is anticipated to be 75 000 hectares by 2010.;Ruokohelpeä (Phalaris arundinacea L.) viljelläänyleisimmin eläinten rehuksi, mutta viime vuosina sen käyttö bioenergian raaka-aineena on yleistynyt etenkin Pohjois-Euroopassa. Suomessa on tavoitteena tuottaa 2 TWh bioenergiaa ruokohelvestä vuoteen 2010 mennessä, mikä vastaa noin 75 000 ha tuotantoalaa. Tässä tutkimuksessa arvioitiin ruokohelven (villi ja jalostettu materiaali) soveltuvuutta eri käyttötarkoituksiin: non-food -tuotantoon bioenergiaksi ja paperiksi, rehuntuotantoon ja siementuotantoon. Parhaiden populaatioiden identifioinnissa käytettiin apuna agronomisista ominaisuuksista muodostettua indeksiä sekä pelkästään biomassa- tai siemensatoa. Non-food -tuotantoon jalostettuja ruokohelpilajikkeita ei vielä ole markkinoilla, joten rehulajikkeita viljellään yleisesti. Satoisat rehulajikkeet osoittautuivat melko hyviksi myös non-food -tuotannossa. Suomesta kerätty villi ruokohelpiaineisto sen sijaan oli yleisesti ottaen kortisempaa kuin jalostettu aineisto, mikä on non-food #NIMI? luonnonpopulaatioilla kortisuus yhdistyi korkeaan biomassasatoon, ja lupaavimmat luonnonkannat voitaisiinkin kehittää lajikkeiksi tai hyödyntää kasvinjalostuksen lähtömateriaalina. Joissakin tapauksissa korkea non-food- tai rehu-indeksi yhdistyi myös hyvään siementuotantoon. Tutkimustulokset auttavat valitsemaan nykyisistä lajikkeista soveltuvimmat non-food -tuotantoon ja materiaalia kasvinjalostukseen

Seed production characters and germination performance of reed canary grass in Finland

Production of reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) seed in Finland may be of interest in the near future. Seed production characters of cultivars Palaton and Venture were studied between 1995 and 1998 at Jokioinen. Effects of harvest time on seed yield, thousand seed weight and seed germination were evaluated for 'Palaton'. Seed yield varied from 2 to 432 kg ha-1, being only 100 kg ha-1 on average. In the years of highest seed yields the optimum harvest time was 15 days after complete anthesis. At that time high seed yield was associated with a low proportion of shattered seeds and high thousand seed weight and good seed germination. In an additional experiment, the effect of storage temperature and storage time on seed germination were investigated for 'Venture'. Storage temperature had no significant influence on final germination, but warmer storage significantly speeded up germination rate as recorded after 7 days of germination. After 7 days the percentage of germinated seeds was also significantly higher for seeds stored for >10 months than with seeds stored forRuokohelpi (Phalaris arundinacea L.) on osoittautunut potentiaaliseksi uudeksi viljelykasviksi kuidun, energian ja rehuntuotannossa. Suomessa ei ole kotimaisia ruokohelpilajikkeita, mutta siementuotanto ulkomaisista rehulajikkeista saattaa tulla ajankohtaiseksi ruokohelvenviljelyn yleistyessä. Amerikkalaisten Palaton ja Venture -rehulajikkeiden siementuotanto-ominaisuuksia tutkittiin Maatalouden tutkimuskeskuksessa Jokioisilla kahdessa kokeessa vuosina 1995-1998. Siementuotantokokeessa tutkittiin korjuuajankohdan vaikutusta Palaton-lajikkeen siemensatoon, tuhannen siemenen painoon ja itävyyteen. Palatonin keskimääräinen siemensato oli ainoastaan 100 kg ha-1 ja siementuotanto-ominaisuudet vaihtelivat paljon. Siemensato vaihteli välillä 2-432 kg ha-1, tuhannen siemenen paino 0,38-1,06 ja itävyys 12-98 % vuoden ja korjuuajan mukaan. Ensimmäisen ja toisen vuoden kasvustot tuottivat parhaan siemensadon (100-369 kg ha-1), ja tuolloin myös tuhannen siemenen paino ja itävyys olivat korkeat. Parhaina satovuosina Palatonin optimaalinen korjuuajankohta oli 15 päivää kukinnan päättymisestä. Kolmannen ja neljännen vuoden kasvustoissa siemensato putosi muutamaan kymmeneen kiloon. Varastointikokeessa selvitettiin varastointilämpötilan (+ 20°C ja + 6°C) ja ajan (1-19 kk) vaikutusta Venture-lajikkeen siementen itävyyteen. Itäneiden siementen määrä laskettiin 7 päivän välein ja 35 päivän kuluessa itäneiden siementen määrän katsottiin olevan maksimaalinen. Varastointilämpötila ja -aika oli vaikuttivat itäneiden siementen määrään ainoastaan 7 päivää itämistestin aloittamisesta. Lämpimässä varastoitujen siementen itävyys oli korkeampi kuin viileässä varastoitujen, ja yli 10 kuukautta varastoitujen siementen itävyys oli korkeampi kuin alle 10 kuukautta varastoitujen. Tutkimuksen perusteella ruokohelven siementuotanto on Suomessa mahdollista, mutta siementuotannon tekniikasta tarvitaan lisää tietoa

Evaluation of reed canary grass for different end-uses and in breeding

Traditionally reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) has been cultivated for forage, but currently is a new non-food crop in northern Europe. The aim of this study was to evaluate reed canary grass germplasm, elite and wild populations, for non-food, forage and seed production. An index composed of different agronomic traits was used to establish the best populations for each end-use. Populations were also ranked according to biomass or seed yield only. Non-food cultivars have not yet been developed, but results from this study suggest that some high biomass forage cultivars could be used in non-food production. However, local populations possessed a desirable combination of traits, including higher proportion of straw associated with high biomass yield. This study indicated that local populations could be used in non-food crop breeding together with elite material. Some evidence for the potential of populations for forage production was also noted, mainly through leaf area and leaf proportion measurements. High non-food or forage indices were associated with good seed production in some populations. Results help in selecting appropriate cultivars for non-food use, which is currently important as the cultivated area of reed canary grass for biofuel in Finland is anticipated to be 75 000 hectares by 2010.

Variation in biomass related variables of reed canary grass

Reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea L., is a relatively new biomass crop in northern Europe, which produces raw material for bioenergy and paper pulp. Breeding reed canary grass for industrial purposes is under way in the absence of domestic cultivars being available. Knowledge of the extent of variation in biomass related traits is a basic requirement of the breeding programme. The aim of this study was to describe variation in biomass related traits and evaluate the relationships among the variables. Field experiment was carried out between 1994 and 1998 in Finland. Research material included wild and elite populations, which were divided into ten groups according to their origin. Biomass yield, plant fractions, shoot number, node number, leaf area and overwintering ability were measured. Panicle number, plant height and seed ripening were included to the analyses of the relationships. Results indicated the high biomass yield potential of reed canary grass, reaching over 13 t DM ha-1 in the fourth year after establishment. Elite material and a local group from southern Finland had the highest biomass yield, whereas the northernmost local group had the lowest. Three factors established accounted for 45% of the variance and they were defined as high biomass yield, leaf-shoot relationship and fast development. The first factor indicated positive connections among biomass yield, panicle number, plant height, straw fraction and node fraction. This study indicated variation in agronomic traits of reed canary grass, which enables breeding of new cultivars with desired trait combinations.;Monivuotinen ruokohelpi (Phalaris arundinacea L.)on melko uusi bioenergian ja paperin raaka-aineeksi soveltuva heinäkasvi Pohjois-Euroopassa. Ruokohelven lajikejalostus aloitettiin Suomessa, koska kotimaisia lajikkeita ei ole jalostettu. Agronomisesti tärkeiden ominaisuuksien riittävä geneettinen muuntelu on uusien lajikkeiden tuottamisen perusta. Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli selvittää biomassan tuotantoon liittyvien ominaisuuksien vaihtelua ja niiden välisiä riippuvuuksia. Tutkimusaineisto kerättiin suomalaisesta kenttäkokeesta vuosina 19941998. Aineisto koostui villeistä ja jalostetuista ruokohelvistä, jotka jaettiin kymmeneen ryhmään alkuperän perusteella. Kokeesta määritettiin biomassasato, eri kasvinosien osuudet, korren solmuista lähtevien versojen lukumäärä, solmujen lukumäärä, lehtiala ja talvehtiminen. Riippuvuuksien tarkasteluun otettiin mukaan myös röyhyjen lukumäärä, kasvin pituus ja tuleentuminen. Tulokset osoittivat, että ruokohelvellä on suuri satopotentiaali. Biomassasato oli neljäntenä korjuuvuonna yli 13 t ka ha-1. Jalostetulla aineistolla ja eteläsuomalaisella villeistä populaatioista koostuvalla ryhmällä oli suurin biomassasato, kun taas kaikkein pohjoisimmalla ryhmällä sato oli heikoin. Tutkimuksessa selvitettiin kaikkien ominaisuuksien välisiä yhteyksiä. Ominaisuuksista muodostettiin kolme erillistä kokonaisuutta, faktoria, jotka olivat korkea biomassasato, lehti-verso sekä nopean kehittymisen faktori. Muodostuneet faktorit selittivät 45 % aineistossa esiintyvästä kokonaisvaihtelusta. Biomassasato suureni, kun röyhyjen lukumäärä neliömetrillä lisääntyi, kasvusto piteni, korren osuus kasvista suureni tai solmujen osuus korressa lisääntyi. Kaikkien mitattujen ominaisuuksien suhteen aineistossa esiintyi runsaasti vaihtelua, mikä mahdollistaa uusien lajikkeiden jalostamisen

Seed production characters and germination performance of reed canary grass in Finland

Production of reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) seed in Finland may be of interest in the near future. Seed production characters of cultivars Palaton and Venture were studied between 1995 and 1998 at Jokioinen. Effects of harvest time on seed yield, thousand seed weight and seed germination were evaluated for 'Palaton'. Seed yield varied from 2 to 432 kg ha-1, being only 100 kg ha-1 on average. In the years of highest seed yields the optimum harvest time was 15 days after complete anthesis. At that time high seed yield was associated with a low proportion of shattered seeds and high thousand seed weight and good seed germination. In an additional experiment, the effect of storage temperature and storage time on seed germination were investigated for 'Venture'. Storage temperature had no significant influence on final germination, but warmer storage significantly speeded up germination rate as recorded after 7 days of germination. After 7 days the percentage of germinated seeds was also significantly higher for seeds stored for >10 months than with seeds stored fo

Variation in biomass related variables of reed canary grass

Reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea L., is a relatively new biomass crop in northern Europe, which produces raw material for bioenergy and paper pulp. Breeding reed canary grass for industrial purposes is under way in the absence of domestic cultivars being available. Knowledge of the extent of variation in biomass related traits is a basic requirement of the breeding programme. The aim of this study was to describe variation in biomass related traits and evaluate the relationships among the variables. Field experiment was carried out between 1994 and 1998 in Finland. Research material included wild and elite populations, which were divided into ten groups according to their origin. Biomass yield, plant fractions, shoot number, node number, leaf area and overwintering ability were measured. Panicle number, plant height and seed ripening were included to the analyses of the relationships. Results indicated the high biomass yield potential of reed canary grass, reaching over 13 t DM ha-1 in the fourth year after establishment. Elite material and a local group from southern Finland had the highest biomass yield, whereas the northernmost local group had the lowest. Three factors established accounted for 45% of the variance and they were defined as high biomass yield, leaf-shoot relationship and fast development. The first factor indicated positive connections among biomass yield, panicle number, plant height, straw fraction and node fraction. This study indicated variation in agronomic traits of reed canary grass, which enables breeding of new cultivars with desired trait combinations.