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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Logan, Utah » Forage and Range Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #334222
Title: Improving abiotic stress tolerance and forage quality in orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata)

Author
item Bushman, Shaun
item ZHAO, XINXIN - Sichuan Agricultural University
item Robins, Joseph
item Larson, Steven
item ZHANG, XINQUAN - Sichuan Agricultural University

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/10/2016
Publication Date: 8/10/2016
Citation: Bushman, B.S., Zhao, X., Robins, J.G., Larson, S.R., Zhang, X. 2016. Improving abiotic stress tolerance and forage quality in orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata). Meeting Abstract.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Orchardgrass, or cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata), is one of the top three grasses used for grazing and hay production in the northern United States. It has high quality feed, but there is a desire for late flowering orchardgrass that can mix well with legumes to provide higher quality hay and reduce the need for nitrogen fertilizers. Our program has focused on improving abiotic stress tolerance through selection of winter hardiness, late flowering, and biomass production under low rainfall conditions. We have used progeny from a paired-cross between a very late flowering orchardgrass collection and a mid-flowering genotype, and conducted QTL analysis to suggest the number of large loci affecting the trait and the direction of those affects. We further collected a large sampling of cultivated varieties and collections of orchardgrass spanning globe, and determined the background genetic structure and relationships among those samples. We now are sequencing candidate genes for flowering time and WSC, and regressing the polymorphisms of those genes onto the trait values in the association population to find mutations causing late flowering.