Progress 09/15/06 to 09/14/11
Outputs
Progress Report Objectives (from AD-416) The objectives are: 1) develop an understanding of the ecology and physiology of promising plant materials for the western U.S., 2) evaluate promising North American and Asian plant materials for their use on public and private lands, and 3) facilitate germplasm exchange with Asian scientists. Approach (from AD-416) Field, laboratory, and greenhouse studies will be conducted to evaluate the ecological and physiological responses of various grass and legume species that hold promise for use in conservation and reclamation, recreation, and forage production. Accessions of promising species will be compared for their ecological, physiological, and morphological responses to drought and other environmental stresses for identifying accessions with desirable characteristics and superior performance. Characteristics such as seedling establishment, plant vigor, forage yield and quality, seed yield, and disease resistance will be examined. Scientific exchanges with Asian scientists will be undertaken to collect and evaluate promising germplasm for use in the western U.S. With increasing demands for limited water resources in the western U.S., a wide range of customers and stakeholders are interested in the development of turf grasses that use less water but have acceptable turf quality. Because the Caucasus Mountains are a center of diversity for important grass species, a germplasm collection trip was undertaken to the northern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains of Russia in 2010. This collection trip was conducted in cooperation with scientists from Utah State University, USDA-ARS, and the N.I. Vavilov Research Institute of Plant Industry in St. Petersburg, Russia. This cooperative effort resulted in the collection of seed of important accessions of Poa, Festuca, Agrostis, Koeleria, and Puccinellia, which have potential for reduced-input turf applications in the western U.S. Other collections of grass and legume species were made that have potential for forage or conservation applications. A total of 291 collections of a wide diversity of grass and legume species were made throughout the steppe and mountain areas of Stavropol, Cabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Chekessia, Krasnodarskya, and Adygea regions of Russia at elevations ranging from 47 to 3,100 m. Promising collections for reduced-input turf applications were established at two sites in northern Utah. Project activities were monitored through email correspondence, telephone conversations, and on- site interactions.
Impacts
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Progress 10/01/09 to 09/30/10
Outputs
Progress Report Objectives (from AD-416) The objectives are: 1) develop an understanding of the ecology and physiology of promising plant materials for the western U.S., 2) evaluate promising North American and Asian plant materials for their use on public and private lands, and 3) facilitate germplasm exchange with Asian scientists. Approach (from AD-416) Field, laboratory, and greenhouse studies will be conducted to evaluate the ecological and physiological responses of various grass and legume species that hold promise for use in conservation and reclamation, recreation, and forage production. Accessions of promising species will be compared for their ecological, physiological, and morphological responses to drought and other environmental stresses for identifying accessions with desirable characteristics and superior performance. Characteristics such as seedling establishment, plant vigor, forage yield and quality, seed yield, and disease resistance will be examined. Scientific exchanges with Asian scientists will be undertaken to collect and evaluate promising germplasm for use in the western U.S. A total of five cooperating scientists from China Agricultural University in Beijing, CAAS Institute of Animal Science in Beijing, and the N.I. Vavilov Research Institute of Plant Industry in St Petersburg, Russia visited various aspects of the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System during 17 June to 5 July 2009. The visiting scientists learned about the procedures used for developing improved plant materials for enhancing natural resource management and rangeland conservation. They learned how the U.S. handles, preserves, and utilizes seed collections of rangeland and forage germplasm. The scientists also were shown procedures and facilities used for documentation, breeding, selection, and seed increase of improved rangeland and forage germplasm. They visited the USDA-ARS Forage and Range Research Lab and Utah State University in Logan, UT; Western Plant Introduction Station in Pullman, WA; USDA-NRCS Plant Materials Center at Aberdeen, ID; and Bureau of Land Management�s Seed Storage Warehouse at Boise, ID; Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station in Boise, ID; habitat restoration at Yellowstone National Park; rangeland revegetation projects conducted by the Bureau of Land Management near Boise, ID; and the Redd Ranch at LaSal, UT. These visits highlighted how U.S. scientists and land managers work with both native and introduced forage germplasm from initial breeding and selection to actual field revegetation and restoration. The visiting scientists saw how the collected seeds were processed after collection, how they are stored in short- and long-term facilities to insure seed preservation and passport documentation, how plant breeders evaluate the germplasm in the laboratory and field, the procedures used for evaluating the various germplasm collections, and the methods for producing seed of the best germplasm accessions. They learned about the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) and how it allows the efficient storage and retrieval of important passport data for each of the collections. They also saw seed production techniques and learned how seed of important plant materials is made commercially available. This exchange visit set the stage for establishing closer working relations between U.S., Chinese, and Russian germplasm specialists. Plans were made to hold the International Symposium on Forage, Turfgrass and Biofuel Germplasm Research at Yangling, China during 9-13 October 2010. Meetings, conference calls, and site visits were used to monitor project performance.
Impacts
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Progress 10/01/08 to 09/30/09
Outputs
Progress Report Objectives (from AD-416) The objectives are: 1) develop an understanding of the ecology and physiology of promising plant materials for the western U.S., 2) evaluate promising North American and Asian plant materials for their use on public and private lands, and 3) facilitate germplasm exchange with Asian scientists. Approach (from AD-416) Field, laboratory, and greenhouse studies will be conducted to evaluate the ecological and physiological responses of various grass and legume species that hold promise for use in conservation and reclamation, recreation, and forage production. Accessions of promising species will be compared for their ecological, physiological, and morphological responses to drought and other environmental stresses for identifying accessions with desirable characteristics and superior performance. Characteristics such as seedling establishment, plant vigor, forage yield and quality, seed yield, and disease resistance will be examined. Scientific exchanges with Asian scientists will be undertaken to collect and evaluate promising germplasm for use in the western U.S. Significant Activities that Support Special Target Populations Bottlebrush squirreltail (Elymus elymoides) is a grass that is widespread throughout the Intermountain Region of the western U.S. A total of 32 bottlebrush squirreltail accessions of a newly identified subspecies centered in the northern Intermountain Region were evaluated. This research served as the basis for the proposed release of two new pre- variety germplasms for rangeland revegetation. The first proposed release is Antelope Creek germplasm, which has superior seed yield compared to other collections from similar precipitation zones from the western Blue Mountains and Eastern Cascades and Foothills Ecoregions. The second release is Pleasant Valley germplasm, which has superior seed yield compared to other accessions from the eastern Blue Mountains in Oregon. Laboratory and greenhouse studies evaluated germination, seedling growth rates, and various functional traits in nine bluebunch wheatgrass (Psuedoroegneria spicata) populations, 'Secar' Snake River wheatgrass (Elymus wawawaiensis), and cheatgrass under cold (5/10 degrees C) and more favorable (15/20 degrees C) temperatures. Cheatgrass and bluebunch wheatgrass germinated and initiated shoots faster than the native perennial grasses under both temperature regimes. Of the three grass species, bluebunch wheatgrass exhibited highest shoot biomass, root biomass, and shoot length, while Snake River wheatgrass had high specific leaf area and specific root length under both temperature regimes. However, surprisingly, across temperatures cheatgrass exhibited low specific leaf area and relative growth rate at the early seedling stage, despite its high root length at both temperatures and high specific root length at high temperature. The most dramatic feature of cheatgrass was its high root: shoot length ratio, which was nearly double that of the native perennials. Among nine bluebunch wheatgrass populations that exhibitied a range for seed mass, this trait was not correlated with relative growth rate, but it was positively correlated with shoot biomass, root biomass, shoot length, and absolute growth rate and negatively correlated with specific leaf area and specific root length. Results suggest that an interrelated suite of traits of adaptive significance are associated with seed mass in P. spicata. The ADODR monitored the progress on this project through various methods including telephone conference calls, site visits, and meetings to discuss project plans and accomplishments, validate project expenditures, and provide technical advice.
Impacts
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Progress 10/01/07 to 09/30/08
Outputs
Progress Report Objectives (from AD-416) The objectives are: 1) develop an understanding of the ecology and physiology of promising plant materials for the western U.S., 2) evaluate promising North American and Asian plant materials for their use on public and private lands, and 3) facilitate germplasm exchange with Asian scientists. Approach (from AD-416) Field, laboratory, and greenhouse studies will be conducted to evaluate the ecological and physiological responses of various grass and legume species that hold promise for use in conservation and reclamation, recreation, and forage production. Accessions of promising species will be compared for their ecological, physiological, and morphological responses to drought and other environmental stresses for identifying accessions with desirable characteristics and superior performance. Characteristics such as seedling establishment, plant vigor, forage yield and quality, seed yield, and disease resistance will be examined. Scientific exchanges with Asian scientists will be undertaken to collect and evaluate promising germplasm for use in the western U.S. Significant Activities that Support Special Target Populations Several visits were made by visiting Scientists from different institutes in the Peoples Republic of China. During these visits, scientists observed how U.S. scientists and land managers work with both native and introduced forage germplasm from initial breeding and selection to actual field revegetation and restoration. The visiting scientists saw how the collected seeds were processed after collection, how they are stored in short- and long-term facilities to insure seed preservation and passport documentation, how plant breeders evaluate the germplasm in the laboratory and field, the procedures used for evaluating the various germplasm collections, and the methods for producing seed of the best germplasm accessions. They learned about the Germplasm Resources Information Network and how it allows the efficient storage and retrieval of important passport data for each of the collections. They also saw seed production techniques and learned how seed of important plant materials is made commercially available. This exchange visit has set the stage for establishing closer working relations between U.S. and Chinese germplasm specialists, which will hopefully lead to a more open and free exchange of plant germplasm between the U.S. and China. Monitoring methods used include emials, conference calls and written reports.
Impacts
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Progress 10/01/06 to 09/30/07
Outputs
Progress Report Objectives (from AD-416) The objectives are: 1) develop an understanding of the ecology and physiology of promising plant materials for the western U.S., 2) evaluate promising North American and Asian plant materials for their use on public and private lands, and 3) facilitate germplasm exchange with Asian scientists. Approach (from AD-416) Field, laboratory, and greenhouse studies will be conducted to evaluate the ecological and physiological responses of various grass and legume species that hold promise for use in conservation and reclamation, recreation, and forage production. Accessions of promising species will be compared for their ecological, physiological, and morphological responses to drought and other environmental stresses for identifying accessions with desirable characteristics and superior performance. Characteristics such as seedling establishment, plant vigor, forage yield and quality, seed yield, and disease resistance will be examined. Scientific exchanges with Asian scientists will be undertaken to collect and evaluate promising germplasm for use in the western U.S. Significant Activities that Support Special Target Populations This report serves to document research conducted under a Specific Cooperative Agreement between ARS and Utah State University. Additional details of research can be found in the report for the parent project 5428-21000-006-00D 'Improved plant genetic resources for pastures and rangelands in the temperate semiarid regions of the western U.S.' Four cooperating scientists from the Germplasm Research Institute in Huhhot, Inner Mongolia, China visited various aspects of the U.S. National Plant Germplasm System during 17-27 June 2007. They learned about the procedures used for developing improved plant materials for enhancing natural resource management and rangeland conservation. Visitors learned how the U.S. handles, preserves, and utilizes seed collections of rangeland and forage germplasm. They also learned about procedures and facilities used for germplasm documentation, breeding, selection, and seed increase of improved rangeland and forage germplasm. They visited the USDA-ARS National Plant Germplasm Resources Laboratory in Beltsville, MD; USDA-ARS Forage and Range Research Lab and Utah State University in Logan, UT; USDA-NRCS Plant Materials Centers at Bridger, MT and Aberdeen, ID; USDA-FS Rocky Mountain Research Station in Boise, ID; habitat restoration work at Yellowstone National Park; and rangeland revegetation projects conducted by the Bureau of Land Management near Boise, ID. Visits to these key locations allowed the visiting scientists to observe how U.S. scientists and land managers work with both native and introduced forage germplasm from initial breeding and selection to actual field revegetation and restoration. The visiting scientists saw how the collected seeds were processed after collection, how they are stored in short- and long-term facilities to insure seed preservation and passport documentation, how plant breeders evaluate the germplasm in the laboratory and field, the procedures used for evaluating the various germplasm collections, and the methods for producing seed of the best germplasm accessions. They learned about the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN)and how it allows the efficient storage and retrieval of important passport data for each of the collections. They also saw seed production techniques and learned how seed of important plant materials is made commercially available. This exchange visit has set the stage for establishing closer working relations between U.S. and Chinese germplasm specialists, which will hopefully lead to a more open and free exchange of plant germplasm between the U.S. and China. ADODR monitoring activities to evaluate research progress included conference calls and meetings with the cooperator's personnel.
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