Agro-Morphological and Forage Quality Traits of Selected Alfalfa Populations and Their Application in Breeding

Abstract

The objectives of this research were to evaluate agro-morphological and forage quality performances of selected alfalfa populations and to predict the genetic potential of this populations as a source of the material for breeding programs and/or commercial use. Twenty selected alfalfa populations and two control cultivars were tested over three consecutive years (

Direct, indirect and simultaneous selection as strategies for alfalfa breeding on forage yield and nutritive value

“…These * L: lignin; CP: crude protein; IVDMD: in vitro dry matter digestibility; NDF: neutral detergent fiber; ADF: acid detergent fiber; SLR: stem/leaf ratio; CVe (%): coefficient of experimental variation; CVg (%): coefficient of genetic variation. values were higher than those found by Costa et al (2006) and Vasconcelos et al (2010), and represent optimum values. Except for the first cut, heritability estimates for this trait were high, indicating a high relation between phenotypic and genotypic values.…”

“…Since most alfalfa traits exhibit a complex genetic control (Milic et al 2014, Li et al 2015, simultaneous selection has been used, since it maximizes the chances of success in the breeding process by providing balanced gains to all traits, making it possible to obtain gains even for unfavorably correlated traits (Cruz et al 2014). Vasconcelos et al (2010) found higher gains for alfalfa traits selection, when applying direct selection. However, this selection led to an increase in the susceptibility of the cultivars, in relation to diseases incidence.…”

“…The traits were divided into two groups: forage yield and nutritive value. Yield traits included plant height, measured from the ground to the top of the inflorescence; dry matter yield (kg ha -1 ), obtained by manually cutting the plants at 8-10 cm above the ground, when each cultivar reached 10 % of flowering, or when the basal shoots reached an average height of 3-5 cm; and susceptibility to diseases, determined according to the percentage of leaf area attacked in each plot (Vasconcelos et al 2010). The nutritive value traits included crude protein, in vitro dry matter digestibility, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, lignin and stem/leaf ratio.…”

“…However, even though it presents a potential in different soil and climatic conditions (Viana et al 2004), 90 % of the alfalfa production has been concentrated in the Brazilian states of Paraná and Rio Grande do Sul (Ferreira & Vilela 2015). The main targets of alfalfa breeding are the productive potential and nutritional value (Tucak et al 2014), which are determined by a number of traits, such as crude protein and dry matter yield 1. Manuscript received in Mar./2018 and accepted for publication in Jun./2018 (http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1983-40632018v4851950).…”

Evaluation of agro-biological traits of Medicago sativa and M. varia in a Cambisol and Retisol

“…Avci et al (2010) recorded significant differences among alfalfa lines and cultivars in dry matter yield and quality traits. Agro-morphological traits have been used to classify and study the genetic diversity in alfalfa germplasm collections (Tucak et al, 2014).…”