Tuesday, November 14, 2006 - 8:15 AM
159-1
High-Throughput Phenotyping in a Commercial Maize Breeding Program.
Thomas Hoegemeyer, Syngenta Seeds, Inc. and Hoegemeyer Hybrids, 580 Nighthawk Rd., Lincoln, NE 68521
The assessment of the economic value of maize hybrids and inbred lines has evolved from largely manual processes of seed preparation, packaging, planting, and harvest through several stages of mechanical and computer-driven improvements. At the same time the scale of breeding programs has grown dramatically, increasing the number of genotypes evaluated, the number of traits evaluated, and the number of environments in which evaluations are performed. Many strategies are employed to manage experimental error and increase the precision with which maize breeders measure the value of a genotype. The use and timing of off-season nurseries and isolations, as well as labor sources, have influenced the design and operation of breeding operations. Changes in breeding techniques, seed processing, experimental design, environment selection, mechanical equipment, computers and software all contribute to the efficient measurement of the value of inbred lines and their resulting hybrids. The integration of molecular marker information and accurate phenotype information accelerate the improvement of both marker assisted selection and maize breeding and testing, resulting in faster adoption of improved hybrids.