First EUCARPIA Workshop on Implementing Plant - Microbe Interaction in Plant Breeding

Abstract

The workshop aims at creating a network among plant breeders and researchers of different disciplines to explore the potential of utilizing plant microbe interaction in plant breeding. In recent years, plant‐associated microbial communities have received considerable attention in research for their ability to improve crop productivity and stability. It is now well recognized that all plants, and nearly all tissues within the plant, are inhabited by a variety of microorganisms. Many of them offer benefits to the host, improving nutrient uptake, preventing pathogen attack, and increasing plant growth under adverse environmental conditions. In return these microorganisms receive shelter from the surrounding environment and access to a carbon‐rich food supply. The interaction between plant and microorganism is quite complex. Best elucidated symbiotic systems are legumes and the nitrogen fixing rhizobium and host plants and mycorrhiza fungi. Influence of crop management, soil parameters and climatic effects are well documented. In addition, the knowledge about plant endophyte, plant‐epiphyte, and plant‐rhizoshere flora is rapidly growing