Genes found in million-year-old grass species are helping scientists multiply the genetic diversity of wheat and generate varieties that yield more than eight tons of grain per hectare in southwestern China, where rain-fed wheat grows in low temperatures after sowing and winter droughts can hold back productivity.
Many wheat x grass crosses – known as “synthetic” wheats – were developed 25 years ago by a CIMMYT research team, and have since been used in breeding programs worldwide. The first synthetic variety to reach Chinese farms, Chuanmai 42, arrived in the Sichuan Basin in 2003, and allowed wheat farmers there to boost yields by as much as 20 percent – the most significant increase in the region for decades.
“Despite major research and breeding efforts, on-farm wheat yields in southwestern China had stagnated below eight tons per hectare,” said Dr. Zhonghu He, CIMMYT distinguished scientist and wheat breeder. “Chuanmai 42 and more recent synthetic-derived varieties changed that. It has been the leading variety in the Sichuan Basin for a decade.” Chuanmai 42 was developed by Professor Wuyun Yang, senior wheat breeder at the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Science (SAAS) and a CIMMYT wheat training graduate. “In 2011, the China State Council gave SAAS the scientific progress award for the creation of Chuanmai 42 and the exploration of genetic diversity from synthetic wheat,” He said...
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