Forage diversity – an essen0al resource to support forage development Jean Hanson Poorquality feed, fluctua3ng feed supplies and seasonal feed shortages are the major constraints to increasing livestock produc3vity in many tropical countries. Forage diversity is an essen3al resource for selec3on and breeding of superior forages for use in smallholder farming to alleviate these constraints. Forages have a key role in natural resource management through posi3ve effects on soil fer3lity and carbon sequestra3on for improving system resilience and sustainable land management in croplivestock systems. The collec3on maintained at the Interna3onal Livestock Research Ins3tute (ILRI) includes about 19,000 accessions of forages from over 1400 species of forage grasses, legumes, fodder trees and shrubs as a global public good, held in trust under the Interna3onal Treaty on Plant Gene3c Resources for Food and Agriculture. This is one of the most diverse global collec3ons of forages and includes the world’s major collec3on of African grasses and tropical highland forages. In order to promote use and adop3on of forages, ILRI is a partner in the development of online knowledge tools and informa3on sheets and is suppor3ng capacity development efforts in forage diversity. Jene Hanson [email protected] ● P.O. Box 5689 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ● Tel +251 116 172351 ● www.ilri.org Acknowledgements: The CGIAR Research Program on Genebanks and the Interna3onal Livestock Research Ins3tute (ILRI) Funding: CGIAR Consor3um, Global Crop Diversity Trust, GIZ This document is licensed for use under a Crea3ve Commons Abribu3on –Non commercialShare Alike 3.0 Unported License September 2014 Introduc3on Ac3vi3es Research into use Save Study Germplasm conserva0on • Medium term orthodox seed storage at 8°C • Most original collec3on and long term orthodox seed storage at 20 °C • Field genebank for grasses with shortlived seeds or low seed produc3on • Safety backup of original collec3ons Regenera0on • Seeds regenerated when viability or stocks are low Monitoring seed viability during storage • Legume seeds monitored aier 10 years • Grass seeds monitored aier 5 years • Accessions with low viability targeted for regenera3on • Germina3on regimes iden3fied for breaking dormancy Monitoring germplasm health • Legume seedlings tested for virus • Napier grass tested for Napier stunt disease • Infected plants removed from field • Virus elimina3on by thermotherapy and meristem culture • Disease screening for anthracnose for Stylosanthes Phenotypic characteriza0on • Morphological characteriza3on using standard descriptors Diversity assessment • Approaches and molecular methodologies for quan3fying varia3on and gene3c rela3onships • Developing core collec3ons, iden3fying duplicates and confirming taxonomic iden3ty Agronomic evalua0on • Diversity in yield, plant components and adapta3on • Disease tolerance and drought traits in Napier Nutri0onal evalua0on • Studies in varia3on in nutri3onal parameters September 2014 Forage Number of accessions Grasses 4564 Herbaceous legumes 10859 Fodder trees 3517 Other forages 270 Total 19210 Produc3ve and adapted forages for smallholder farmers Environmental adapta3on Seed produc3on capacity Best bet forages Diversity assessment Nutri3onal evalua3on Agronomic evalua3on Phenotypic characteriza3on In trust forage collec3on

Forage diversity – an essential resource to support forage development

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Page 1: Forage diversity – an essential resource to support forage development

Forage diversity – an essen0al resource to support forage development Jean Hanson

Poor-‐quality feed, fluctua3ng feed supplies and seasonal feed shortages are the major constraints to increasing livestock produc3vity in many tropical countries. Forage diversity is an essen3al resource for selec3on and breeding of superior forages for use in smallholder farming to alleviate these constraints. Forages have a key role in natural resource management through posi3ve effects on soil fer3lity and carbon sequestra3on for improving system resilience and sustainable land management in crop-‐livestock systems. The collec3on maintained at the Interna3onal Livestock Research Ins3tute (ILRI) includes about 19,000 accessions of forages from over 1400 species of forage grasses, legumes, fodder trees and shrubs as a global public good, held in trust under the Interna3onal Treaty on Plant Gene3c Resources for Food and Agriculture. This is one of the most diverse global collec3ons of forages and includes the world’s major collec3on of African grasses and tropical highland forages.

In order to promote use and adop3on of forages, ILRI is a partner in the development of online knowledge tools and informa3on sheets and is suppor3ng capacity development efforts in forage diversity.

Jene Hanson [email protected] ● P.O. Box 5689 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ● Tel +251 116 172351 ● www.ilri.org Acknowledgements: The CGIAR Research Program on Genebanks and the Interna3onal Livestock Research Ins3tute (ILRI) Funding: CGIAR Consor3um, Global Crop Diversity Trust, GIZ

This document is licensed for use under a Crea3ve Commons Abribu3on –Non commercial-‐Share Alike 3.0 Unported License September 2014

Introduc3on

Ac3vi3es

Research into use

Save Study

Germplasm conserva0on •  Medium term orthodox seed storage at 8°C •  Most original collec3on and long term

orthodox seed storage at -‐20 °C •  Field genebank for grasses with short-‐lived

seeds or low seed produc3on •  Safety backup of original collec3ons

Regenera0on •  Seeds regenerated when viability or stocks

are low

Monitoring seed viability during storage •  Legume seeds monitored aier 10 years •  Grass seeds monitored aier 5 years •  Accessions with low viability targeted for

regenera3on •  Germina3on regimes iden3fied for breaking

dormancy

Monitoring germplasm health •  Legume seedlings tested for virus •  Napier grass tested for Napier stunt disease •  Infected plants removed from field •  Virus elimina3on by thermotherapy and

meristem culture •  Disease screening for anthracnose for

Stylosanthes

Phenotypic characteriza0on •  Morphological characteriza3on using standard

descriptors

Diversity assessment •  Approaches and molecular methodologies for

quan3fying varia3on and gene3c rela3onships •  Developing core collec3ons, iden3fying

duplicates and confirming taxonomic iden3ty

Agronomic evalua0on •  Diversity in yield, plant components and

adapta3on •  Disease tolerance and drought traits in Napier

Nutri0onal evalua0on •  Studies in varia3on in nutri3onal parameters

September 2014

Forage Number of accessions