Assessing inbreeding in perennial ryegrass (<scp><i>Lolium perenne</i></scp>) as a step towards F1 hybrid breeding

Genetic Gain and Inbreeding from Genomic Selection in a Simulated Commercial Breeding Program for Perennial Ryegrass.

Genomic selection (GS) provides an attractive option for accelerating genetic gain in perennial ryegrass () improvement given the long cycle times of most current breeding programs. The present study used simulation to investigate the level of genetic gain and inbreeding obtained from GS breeding strategies compared with traditional breeding strategies for key traits (persistency, yield, and fl...

Simulating perennial ryegrass cutting

Perennial ryegrass is one of the most commonly cultivated forage species in Europe, where grazing and mowing (cutting) are used to manage this resource. Cutting can be characterized by its intensity (height) and its frequency. Combinations of these two factors affect mono-species grasslands productivity and could also modify the genotypic composition of heterogeneous populations. Indeed, the hi...

Accuracy of Genomic Prediction in a Commercial Perennial Ryegrass Breeding Program.

The implementation of genomic selection (GS) in plant breeding, so far, has been mainly evaluated in crops farmed as homogeneous varieties, and the results have been generally positive. Fewer results are available for species, such as forage grasses, that are grown as heterogenous families (developed from multiparent crosses) in which the control of the genetic variation is far more complex. He...

A Genetic Roadmap for Breeding Perennial Ryegrass Resistant to Gray Leaf Spot

Growth Characteristics of Perennial Ryegrass

Mature perennial ryegrass plants in pastures persist through the asexual reproduction of the tiller. Leaves are initiated from the flanks of the tiller stem apex. Generally, two leaves arc growing on a tiller at any one time. New tiller buds may arise from the axils of mature leaves depending on environmental conditions. Flowering results from a physiological change at the stem apex, which then...