The Need Of The Hour To Sustain Agriculture; Plant Breeding

By Author: Paul Gooderham
Total Articles: 10
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If you have come across a flower in your garden that is a different colour or looks completely different from what you may have seen before, then you can be sure that you have a different variety that has sprung inside your garden. Breeding plants to create unheard of varieties is usually done by people who aspire to be a professional plant breeder. An amateur plant enthusiasts might want to try his or her hands at plant breeding and why not…you can do simple and basic breeding right in your own homes by following simple steps. These simple methods would often result in a change of the flower colours or the shape of a fruit. However, even though your project maybe simple, you can still achieve beautiful results.

But, if you do want to go one step ahead then there are professional plant breeders in the UK who can help you develop your passion for plant breeding. The reason to approach a professional is that you first have to understand the principles and rules of plant breeding and then they guide you towards a step wise process of plant breeding. Here’s a basic guide to what the process involves:

1. Select ...
... your plant

It’s said that if you grow more plants of the same type, there’s more chance that you will spot something unusual immediately. Walk around your garden, observe your plants and look for something unusual like different colours, more number of petals, and difference in flower size or plant size. When you immediately spot any visible difference, make sure you tag or label the plant for further reference.

2. The Isolation

Step two would be to isolate your plant from its neighbor. This will save your plant from the process of pollination. The ideal method would be to enclose a chosen number of flowers with an insect proof bag or a plastic bag with small slits for ventilation. Be sure that there is no opening left at the enclosure so insects don’t enter. You can ties the bag with soft and supple string so as to not damage the stem.

3. Producing Seeds

This process requires your chosen plant to still be pollinated. You can do this by taking a flower of the same plant to pollinate with another flower in the same plant. Most plants can self-pollinate.In the case that it cannot self-pollinate, you can take a flower from a similar plant and cross them both together.

These are basic steps through which you can identify and select your plant. A professional plant breeder will take you through the entire process with thorough professionalism to ensure that you achieve what you have set out to get. Touch base with a professional plant breeder today. And once you are satisfied with the outcome of your new breed, you can send in samples for a test to acquire a plant patent.