The Science of Hybrid Crops
Corn was the first hybrid seed crop to be widely marketed. Charles Darwin started the hybrid revolution by proposing that species of plants and animals change over time. Gregor Mendel discovered he could cross breed different strains of pea plants and predict the traits of the offspring.
When was plant hybridization invented?
Cotton Mather described hybrid corn/maize (Zea mays) and squash (Cucurbita spp.) plants as hybrid origin plants in 1716 (Zirkle, 1934).
What was the first hybridized crop?
Corn was the first hybrid seed crop to be widely marketed, and it is still the most important economic crop grown in the United States, so studying corn breeding can teach us a lot about hybridization.
Who invented plant hybridization?
Around 1716, Thomas Fairchild is widely credited with creating the first artificial plant hybrid.
When did grain farming start?
Wild grains have been collected and eaten since at least 105,000 years ago, but domestication did not occur until much later. The eight Neolithic founder crops u2013 emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, hulled barley, peas, lentils, bitter vetch, chickpeas, and flax u2013 were cultivated in the Levant beginning around 9500 BC.
Why is hybridization more common in plants than animals?
Plant forms are less stringently controlled than animal forms, so the intermediate form of a plant hybrid is more likely to be physiologically successful. Finally, chromosomal doubling (polyploidy) occurs more frequently in plants, which facilitates the fertility of the hybrid offspring.
When did humans start selectively breeding crops?
After the last Ice Age ended about 10,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers began to keep flocks and herds, as well as cultivate cereals and other plants.
Why are hybrid seeds bad?
The issue with hybrid seeds is that they cannot be used for reproduction; if you take seed from a hybrid plant, it is likely that the seed will be sterile, and if you are lucky enough to get one to grow, it will not produce the same hybrid as the parent plant.
Why hybrid seeds dont reproduce?
Farmers don’t save hybrid seeds for planting next year because they won’t “breed true.” Hybrids are created by crossing two highly inbred parent plants (more details coming soon), and if a farmer saved these seeds for planting next year, the crop would be inconsistent.
What are the types of hybridization?
What are the various hybridization types?
- Sp (beryllium chloride, acetylene)
- sp2 (boron trichloride, ethylene)
- sp3 (methane, ethane)
- sp3d (phosphorus pentachloride)
- sp3d2 (sulphur hexafluoride)
- sp3d3 (iodine heptafluoride)
Who is known as the father of genetics?
The Father of Genetics, Gregor Mendel’s work in peas led to our understanding of the foundational principles of inheritance. Gregor Mendel’s work, like that of many great artists, was not appreciated until after his death.
Can you patent a hybrid plant?
A plant patent covers newly discovered strains of asexually reproduced plants, such as cultigens, mutant species, hybrid species, and newly discovered seedlings that are not derived from a tuber-produced plant or a plant found in the wild. Plants cultivated with tubers, as well as wild or uncultivated plants, are not patentable.
Where did humans first start farming?
The Fertile Crescent, a Middle Eastern region that includes modern-day Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Israel, Palestine, southeastern Turkey, and western Iran, was home to the first farmers.
Who is first farmer?
The new findings all point to the same overall conclusion: the first farmers in each region were the descendants of the earlier hunter-gatherers. Reich’s group discovered even older genetic material from hunter-gatherers in the region, dating back as far as 14,000 years ago.