ISHS Acta Horticulturae 482: International Symposium on Cut Flowers in the Tropics
GENETICS, BREEDING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY OF CUT FLOWERS |
| Author: | J. de Jong |
| Abstract:
The business of the plant breeder is to create new and better cultivars for ever changing conditions and markets. Crosses between cultivars or species followed by selection and mutation breeding are proven techniques that are very successfully used and still improved upon. Up to now all cultivars that have reached the market are bred in this classical manner. With the advance of DNA technology, new tools have become available to the breeder. The most recent application is the introduction of new genes, even from unrelated species, into plants to introduce new features. The procedure is very precise and predictable because a well defined piece of DNA with a known function is added to a cultivar. Examples are carnations that produce no ethylene, chrysanthemums resistant to Spodoptera exigua, roses, petunia's and carnations with new colors. Cultivars with these new characteristics will enter the market as soon as patent negotiations and regulatory trials are completed. | |
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