Breeding and genetic enhancement of dryland crops

Abstract

Dryland agriculture is practiced in almost all hydro-climatic zones, and can be highly productive. A substantial increase in yields of various crops has been achieved during last few decades as a result of release of many input responsive varieties. Several crops have reached maximum potential, however, most of this work has been done for irrigated areas and relatively less work has been done for agriculture in drylands. The situation in drylands with heat has made the task even more difficult. Crop modeling shows that climate change will likely reduce the crop production, thus reducing food availability and affecting food security. With the increasing temperature and precipitation fluctuations, water availability and crop production are likely to decrease in the future. The performance of genotypes in different environments is challenging and complicates the selection of superior genotypes, thereby reducing the genetic progress. Improved varieties and efficient crop husbandry practices in dryland agriculture can result in better productivity of cereals, grain legumes and fodder crops. Recently, a number of breeding programs have been initiated both in the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centers and national programs targeting drylands. To increase the genetic diversity of crop plants, the one way is to take advantage of available genetic resources present in nature, the easiest to exploit are their landraces comparatively and the wild relatives of different crops. Emphasis should be given to water use efficiency; water saved by one crop can be used for another. Advantage of new technologies including high- throughput genotyping and phenotyping needs to be taken to enhance the progress in dryland crops. For the global food security in the near future, dryland agriculture is going to play a major role.