Two new grass germplasm lines resist stem rust ten times times more effectively than existing varieties. ARS scientists developed tall fescue line ORTFRR-T94 for use as a turf grass and ORTFRR-F94 as forage. Stem rust became a significant problem for grass seed producers of Oregon's Willamette Valley in 1987. Growers in this valley produce 97 percent of the country's certified tall fescue seed. Now growers spend $27 million annually on fungicide to control the rust. If unchecked, the rust can reduce grass seed yields by 80 percent. In laboratory tests, more than 50 percent of the plants in the new germplasm lines demonstrated resistance to the rust. Only about 5 percent of the plants in existing commercial cultivars showed this resistance. Field tests are underway. Researchers cross-bred 1,400 plants representing 20 tall fescue cultivars over two generations to develop the two germplasm lines. Small quantities of seed are available for researchers and industry to further develop the lines into rust-resistant cultivars.
National Forage Seed Production Research Center, Corvallis, OR
Reed E. Barker, (541) 750-8736

A new corn cultivar with diamond-shaped seeds is ideal for poultry feed. Released by ARS, the new corn--called Chulo--yields about six tons of seed per hectare and resists maize dwarf mosaic virus and most tropical leaf diseases. Chulo blooms in about 55 days and can be grown year-round in the tropics--making it an ideal cultivar in those areas of the world. The new cultivar is well-suited for poultry because its smaller diamond-shaped kernels--half the size of the usual corn kernel--can be fed directly to farm animals. Usually, corn kernels are too big for poultry to eat whole, so the kernels have to be ground into feed--an added expense to farmers. The cultivar was released after six years of selection by ARS researchers in Puerto Rico.
Tropical Agriculture Research Station, Mayaguez, PR
Antonio Sotomayor-Rios, (787) 831-3435, mayas@ars-grin.gov

A new viburnum, Conoy, was recently selected for the 1997 Gold Medal Award from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. The award honors little-known and underused woody plants of exceptional merit. Conoy comes from the same ARS plant breeding program that produced Mohawk, Shasta, and Eskimo--also gold medal winners. Unlike most viburnums that are too large for home landscaping, these superior compact ornamentals, which grow to a height of 5 feet with a 7 foot spread, are ideal for foundation planting, rock gardens, borders and low hedges. They have glossy, dark, semi-evergreen foliage and masses of cream white, snowball-like flowers in spring. The U.S. National Arboretum has one of the world's few viburnum and crape-myrtle breeding programs, and nine of its introductions have been Gold Medal Award winners.
U.S. National Arboretum, Washington, DC
Tom Elias, (202) 245-4539

Alfalfa plant cells can be transformed with new genetic material and nurtured into full-grown plants within eight to 12 weeks with a new laboratory technique. Scientists developed the method to speed up development of different types of alfalfa. Alfalfa leaves are sterilized and cut into squares less than half an inch in diameter. Then they are dipped in a mixture containing cells of Agrobacterium tumefaciens, a soil bacterium used to carry engineered genes into plant cells. The leaf pieces and bacteria are grown together for several days and then the leaf pieces are placed on a culture medium that contains antibiotics to kill the bacteria and any leaf cells that did not take in the new DNA. Leaf cells that received the new DNA proliferate and are moved to another culture medium that induces the formation of plant embryos. The embryos are removed and germinated to form alfalfa plants.
Plant Science Research Unit, St. Paul, MN
Deborah Samac, (612) 625-1243

Winged bean, jack bean, velvet bean, snout bean, ringworm bush, and fish poison bean: These aren't exactly household names even among farmers, but they're all sources of agricultural products that could lead to future drugs. They're also part of a special legume collection maintained by USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS). The collection contains more than 4,000 accessions that scientists describe as an "unopened medicine chest." These legumes are a central source of experimental plant material for public and private researchers worldwide. Winged bean, for example, has high levels of proteins called lectins, which are used as diagnostic tools in medical research because they bind to certain blood cells. Winged beans also contain erucic acid (an antitumor medication) and polyunsaturated fatty acids that can be used to treat acne and eczema. Another legume in the collection, kudzu, is best known as a prolific but unwanted roadside weed. But it's also a source of a number of chemicals including daidzein (an anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial), daidzin (a cancer preventive) and genistein (an antileukemic). Velvet bean is a source of dopa, which the brain converts into the neurotransmitter dopamine. Reductions in dopamine have been associated with Parkinson's disease, which occurs when dopamine-producing brain cells are destroyed. Velvet bean also contains serotonin, another brain neurotransmitter that may be involved in learning, sleep, and control of moods. Along with their pharmaceutical potential, these legumes also "fix" nitrogen--transforming atmospheric nitrogen into a form plants can use for growth--enriching the soil and making them ideal candidate crops for sustainable agriculture. Some legumes can add up to 500 kilograms of nitrogen per hectare to the soil, alleviating the need for fertilizer and lessening the chance of water pollution.
Plant Genetic Conservation Resources, Griffin, GA
Brad Morris, (770) 229-3253, bmorris@ars-grin.gov

Forty new sorghum lines with drought, insect and disease resistance have been released by ARS and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. The releases are the latest in the ongoing Sorghum Conversion Program, in which breeders convert tropical sorghums into varieties that will grow in temperate areas. The key to the program: classical plant breeding that changes the plants' genetic "internal clock." The tropical plants are used to shorter days and warmer climates along the equator. So scientists cross these with plants from temperate areas, creating lines that thrive during the longer days of spring and summer in temperate zones farther from the equator. The converted lines can also be harvested by combines because they are several feet shorter than the tropical sorghums. The latest group of 40 sorghums come from 13 different countries. In many parts of the world, sorghum is grown as a food crop. In the United States, however, the grain is used primarily as livestock feed and vegetative parts are made into hay and silage. In 1995, 8.2 million acres of sorghum were grown in the United States with an estimated farm value of more than $1 billion. Seed from the new lines is available to breeders.
Tropical Agriculture Research Station, Mayaguez, PR
Jeff Dahlberg, (787) 831-3435, jdahlberg@ars-grin.gov

Saturated fat content is only about 7 percent in seeds of two new soybean breeding lines--less than half the typical 16 percent found in soybean oil. The Food and Drug Administration allows a product to be labeled "low in saturated fat" if it contains no more than one gram of saturated fat per serving. To meet that standard, soybeans must contain no more than 7 percent saturated fat. The new lines, dubbed N94-2575, were developed by ARS scientists in North Carolina and Indiana. The new lines were bred to contain less palmitic acid--a saturated fat shown to raise LDL cholesterol levels in the blood--and more oleic acid, which has some health benefits. Soybean oil is found in more than 75 percent of the vegetable oils and fats now on the market. N94-2575 is late-maturing and suited for southeastern breeders, while C1945 matures a little earlier to meet the needs of Midwestern breeders.
Soybean and Nitrogen Fixation Research, Raleigh, NC
Joseph W. Burton,(919) 515-2734
Crop Production and Pest Control Research, West Lafayette, IN
James R. Wilcox, (317) 494-8074

Three new snap bean lines that resist key viral and fungal diseases have been released by ARS and university researchers. The germplasm lines, called Beldade-RGMR -4, -5, and -6, have white seeds and flat pods that are about eight inches long. The high-yielding lines resist 87 known races of the bean rust fungus, Uromyces appendiculatus. The lines also ward off the strain of bean golden mosaic virus that was discovered in Dade County, Florida in 1993 and that now occurs in Puerto Rico. The lines are the first commercial snap or dry beans developed in the United States that are resistant to the golden mosaic virus. Limited amounts of seed are available to breeders. The lines were released jointly by ARS and the Florida and Puerto Rico Agricultural Experiment Stations.
Molecular Plant Pathology Lab, Beltsville, MD
J. Rennie Stavely, (301) 504-6600

Last Updated: January 28, 1997
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