Location: Innovative Fruit Production, Improvement, and Protection
Project Number: 8080-21000-029-011-N
Project Type: Non-Funded Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Nov 1, 2017
End Date: Oct 31, 2022
Objective:
The objective of this project is to develop, through gene transfer technologies, fruit crops with resistance to economically important diseases, rootstocks for fruit trees that will produce dwarf trees, plants with novel architectures for both ornamental and agricultural uses, plants with altered flowering or dormancy characteristics, and/or fruit with improved eating qualities.
Approach:
Genetic engineering will be utilized to improve traits that have been either impossible or too time consuming to address through traditional breeding techniques. These traits include disease and insect resistance, particularly exotic pests and pathogens, flower, fruit and seed development, dormancy, and tree architecture. Through this agreement, we propose to continue to utilize genetic engineering approaches to investigate the fundamental genetic bases of these and other important traits. We propose to apply genetic engineering technologies to develop improved germplasm and fruit varieties that will support food production, sustainability, safety, human health, and the availability of high quality fruit for consumers. We also propose to continue to develop technologies that will improve the efficiency and productivity of conventional breeding techniques.
