Using Wild Australian Gossypium Germplasm in Cotton Breeding
Abstract
Historically, the wild Australian Gossypium species have played a minor role in cotton breeding. Before 1980, this was mostly due to the rarity of material in germplasm collections, which contained only the commonest species (e.g., G. australe & G. sturtianum). A series of collecting expeditions in the 1980s addressed this situation, and the CSIRO Gossypium germplasm collection now contains accessions of every known species. This presents the opportunity to use all the Gossypium species that evolved in Australia to develop better Australian cotton cultivars. This article summarises ongoing work to develop strategies to overcome the extensive crossing barriers that preclude exchange of genetic material between the wild Australian Gossypium species and the cultivated cottons in nature.
Files in this item
This item appears in the following categories
- 1996 Australian Cotton Conference
Proceedings from the 1996 Australian Cotton Conference