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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Florence, South Carolina » Coastal Plain Soil, Water and Plant Conservation Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #62055
Title: GENETIC DIVERSITY OF U.S. UPLAND COTTON CULTIVARS RELEASED BETWEEN 1980 AND 1990

Author
item May Iii, Oscar
item BOWMAN, D - NC STATE UNIV
item CALHOUN, D - MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIV

Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/15/1995
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: We assessed diversity among 126 Upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars released between 1980 and 1990 by use of coefficient of parentage (CP). In computing CP, we utilized assumptions appropriate for a self-pollinated crop. Mean CP among the 126 cultivars was 0.07, implying a genetically diverse group. However, cluster analysis revealed 12 distinct gene pools, with mean within-cluster CP=0.25 and between cluster CP=0.04. The CP analysis indicates that Acala-type cultivars are more diverse than those bred in the Mississippi Delta or southeastern USA. Cultivar development efforts in the late 1980s emphasized the repeated mating of genetically related material, or reselection within germplasm. To ensure continued progress in cotton improvement and forestall the decline in the genetic base, we suggest that cotton breeders consider the pedigree of parents prior to population synthesis.