Contents

Contributors ix

Foreword xiii

Jack Hawkes: Plant Collector, Researcher, Educator and Visionary xvM.T. Jackson

The Evolution of Plant Genetic Resources and the Work of O.H. Frankel xviiJ.G. Hawkes

1 The History of ex situ Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 1G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza and P. Perrino

2 The Past, Present and Future Contributions of Farmers to the Conservation and Development of Genetic Diversity 23

M.S. Swaminathan

3 The Impact of Gene Technologies on the Use of Genetic Resources 33J. Peacock and A. Chaudhury

Theme 1: The Applications of Genomic Sciences for a Better Understanding of Genepools

4 The New Genetic Era: Will it Help us in Managing Genetic Diversity? 43A. Karp

5 DNA Polymorphisms in Accessions of Nephelium lappaceum L. 57P.C. Chew, M.M. Clyde, M.N. Normah and I. Salma

6 Molecular Analysis of Phylogenetic Relationships among Coconut Accessions 61A. Upadhyay, J. Jose, R. Manimekalai and V.A. Parthasarathy

7 Molecular Characterization of Gossypium Germplasm for Cotton Improvement 67R.J. Kohel and J. Yu

8 Molecular Analysis of the Origin and Domestication of Theobroma cacao L. 77J.C. Motamayor and C. Lanaud

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Theme 2: Technologies and Strategies for ex situ Conservation

9 Technologies and Strategies for ex situ Conservation 89F. Engelmann and J.M.M. Engels

10 The Establishment of a Regional Germplasm Centre in the Pacific Island Region 105M. Taylor

11 Accession Management Strategies: Splitting and Lumping 113Th.J.L. van Hintum, N.R. Sackville Hamilton, J.M.M. Engels and R. van Treuren

Theme 3: The Deployment and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems

12 The Deployment and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems 121S.D. Sastrapradja and P. Balakhrishna

13 Combining Static and Dynamic Management of PGR: a Case Study of BetaGenetic Resources 133

L. Frese

14 Rice, Farmers and Genebanks: a Case Study in the Cagayan Valley, Philippines 149J.-L. Pham, S.R. Morin, L.S. Sebastian, G.A. Abrigo, M.A. Calibo, S.M. Quilloy, L. Hipolito and M.T. Jackson

15 A Study on the On-farm Maintenance of Farmers’ Varieties of Sorghum in Malawi 161E.A. Chiwona

Theme 4: The Role of Bioinformatics in Conservation and Use

16 The Role of Bioinformatics in Germplasm Conservation and Use 171B.W.S. Sobral

17 Distributed Databases Retrieval Systems in Germany as a National Approach in an International Context 179

S. Harrer, F. Begemann, J.D. Jiménez Krause and S. Roscher

18 The Potential Role of Passport Data in the Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 185Th. Hazekamp

Theme 5: In situ Conservation of Wild Species

19 In situ Conservation of Wild Species Related to Crop Plants: the Case of Turkey 195A. Tan and A.S. Tan

20 Metapopulation Dynamics of Lima Bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.) in the Central Valley of Costa Rica 205

O.J. Rocha, J. Degreef, D. Barrantes, E. Castro, G. Macaya and L. Guarino

21 Inventories for in situ Conservation of Broadleaved Forest Genetic Resources in South-eastern Europe 217

I. Blada, A.H. Alexandrov, G. Postolache, J. Turok and N. Donita

22 Forest Genebanks: a New Approach to Conserving Forest Tree Genetic Resources 229R.Uma Shaanker, K.N. Ganeshaiah, M. Nageswara Rao and G. Ravikanth

23 Human Impacts on the Coffea arabica Genepool in Ethiopia and the Need for its in situ Conservation 237

Tadesse Woldermariam Gole, M. Denich, Demel Teketay and P.L.G. Vlek

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Theme 6: Indicators for Sustainable Management of Genetic Resources

24 Indicators for Sustainable Management of Plant Genetic Resources: How Well are we Doing? 249

A.H.D. Brown and C.L. Brubaker

25 Decision-making Strategies for Conservation and Use of Forest Genetic Resources 263M.P. Koshy, G. Namkoong, P. Kageyama, A. Stella, F. Gandara and W.A. Neves do Amaral

Theme 7: Germplasm Enhancement and Pre-breeding

26 Germplasm Enhancement to Sustain Genetic Gains in Crop Improvement 275R. Ortiz

27 Genetic Base Broadening in Autogamous Crops: Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. as a Model 291G. Saavedra and W. Spoor

28 An Enhancement Strategy for Rice Germplasm: DNA Marker-assisted Identification of BeneficialQTL for Resistance to Rice Blast 301

K. Okuno and S. Fukuoka

29 Prebreeding in Sugarcane with an Emphasis on the Programme of the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute 307

K. Ramdoyal and G.H. Badaloo

Theme 8: Exploring Underused Species: Diverse Options

30 Underutilized Crops: Trends, Challenges and Opportunities in the 21st Century 323S. Padulosi, T. Hodgkin, J.T. Williams and N. Haq

31 An Initiative in Exploration and Management of Plant Genetic Diversity in Saudi Arabia 339T.A. Al-Turki

32 Mushroom Breeding and Cultivation Enhances ex situ Conservation of Mediterranean Pleurotus Taxa 351

G. Zervakis and G. Venturella

33 Conservation and Use of Underutilized Crops: an Indian Perspective 359V. Joshi, P.L. Gautam, Bhag Mal, G.D. Sharma and S. Kochhar

34 Underutilized Edible Plants from South Africa: a Perspective 371T.V. Jacobs

Theme 9: Implications of Gene Transformation Techniques for ex situ Conservation Choices

35 ‘Mining the Gold’: Finding Allelic Variants for Improved Crop Conservation and Use 379S. Kresovich, A.J. Luongo and S.J. Schloss

Theme 10: GIS Applications for Genetic Resources Management

36 Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 387

L. Guarino, A. Jarvis, R.J. Hijmans and N. Maxted

37 Predicting Germplasm Differentiation Using GIS-derived Information 405S.L. Greene, M. Gritsenko, G. Vandemark and R.C. Johnson

38 In situ Conservation of Forest Genetic Resources at Regional Level: Two ComplementaryProgrammes Using GIS Approach 413

K.N. Ganeshaiah, R. Uma Shaanker, N. Barve, M.C. Kiran, K.S. Bawa and V. Ramanatha Rao

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Theme 11: The Economics of Managing Genetic Resources and the Role of Private and Public Sectors

39 Managing Plant Genetic Resources and the Role of Private and Public Sectors: Oil Palm as a Model 425

N. Rajanaidu and V. Ramanatha Rao

40 The Community-based Conservation and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems: the Role and Function of Law 437

S. Biber-Klemm

41 Evaluating the Benefits of Conserved Crop Germplasm in PNG 455M. Milne, D. Godden, J. Kennedy and R. Kambuou

Summary

42 People, Plants and DNA: Perspectives on the Scientific and Technical Aspects of Conserving and Using Plant Genetic Resources 469

T. Hodgkin and V. Ramanatha Rao

Index 481

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G.A. Abrigo, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119Philippines

A.H. Alexandrov, Forest Research Institute, Sofia, Bulgaria T.A. Al-Turki, KACST Herbarium, Natural Resources and Environmental Research Institute, King

Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, PO Box 6086, Riyadh-11442, Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaG.H. Badaloo, Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, Reduit, Republic of MauritiusP. Balakhrishna, Regional Biodiversity Programme, Asia, IUCN-World Conservation Union, 48 Vajira

Road, Colombo 5, Sri Lanka D. Barrantes, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica N. Barve, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Hebbal, Bangalore

560 024, IndiaK.S. Bawa, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore 560

065, IndiaF. Begemann, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany S. Biber-Klemm, Faculty of Law, University of Basel, Maiengasse 51, CH-4056 Basel, SwitzerlandI. Blada, Forest Research and Management Institute, Bucharest, Romania A.H.D. Brown, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra

ACT, Australia C.L. Brubaker, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra

ACT, Australia M.A. Calibo, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines E. Castro, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica A. Chaudhury, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia P.C. Chew, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan

Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, MalaysiaE.A. Chiwona, Malawi Plant Genetic Resources Centre, Chitedze Agricultural Research Station, Lilongwe,

Malawi M.M. Clyde, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan

Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

Contributors

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J. Degreef, National Botanic Garden of Belgium, Domaine de Bouchout, 1860 Meise, Belgium M. Denich, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany N. Donita, Forest Research and Management Institute, Bucharest, Romania.F. Engelmann, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy J.M.M. Engels, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via delle Sette Chiese 142, Rome, Italy L. Frese, Federal Centre for Breeding Research on Cultivated Plants (BAZ), Gene Bank, Bundesallee 50,

38116 Braunschweig, Germany S. Fukuoka, National Institute of Agrobiological Resources (NIAR), Tsukuba 305–8602, Japan F. Gandara, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil K.N. Ganeshaiah, Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, University of Agricultural Sciences,

GKVK, Bangalore 560 065, India P.L. Gautam, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India D. Godden, Department of Agricultural Economics, A04, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Tadesse Woldermariam Gole, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn,

Germany S.L. Greene, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350, USAM. Gritsenko, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350, USAL. Guarino, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for the Americas,

c/o CIAT, AA 6713, Cali, ColombiaN. Haq, International Centre for Underutilized Crops (ICUC), Southampton, UK S. Harrer, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany J.G. Hawkes, School of Continuing Studies, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UKTh. Hazekamp, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy R.J. Hijmans, International Potato Center (CIP), Lima, Peru L. Hipolito, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119

Philippines T. Hodgkin, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy M.T. Jackson, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, PhilippinesT.V. Jacobs, Department of Botany, University of Transkei, Private Bag XI, UNITRA, Umtata 5117, South

Africa A. Jarvis, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for the Americas, c/o

CIAT, AA 6713, Cali, Colombia J.D. Jiménez Krause, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI),

Information Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany R.C. Johnson, USDA ARS WRPIS, 59 Johnson Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164,

USA J. Jose, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India V. Joshi, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India P. Kageyama, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil R. Kambuou, National Agricultural Research Institute, Port Moresby NCD, Papua New Guinea A. Karp, IACR-Long Ashton Research Station, University of Bristol, Long Ashton, Bristol BS41 9AF, UK J. Kennedy, School of Business, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3083, Australia M.C. Kiran, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Hebbal, Bangalore

560 024, India S. Kochhar, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India R.J. Kohel, Crop Germplasm Research Unit, 2765 F&B Road, College Station, TX 77845, USA M.P. Koshy, Department of Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada

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S. Kresovich, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA

C. Lanaud, CIRAD, TA 40/03, Av. Agropolis, 34398 Montpellier Cédex 5, France A.J. Luongo, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,

Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA G. Macaya, Centro de Investigación en Biologia Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad

Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica Bhag Mal, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), New Delhi 110 012, India R. Manimekalai, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India N. Maxted, School of Biological Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK M. Milne, Department of Agricultural Economics, A04, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia S.R. Morin, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines J.C. Motamayor, FUNDACITE, Av. Las Delicias, Maracay, Edo. Aragua, Venezuela M. Nageswara Rao, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK,

Bangalore 560 065, India G. Namkoong, Department of Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4,

Canada W.A. Neves do Amaral, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a,

00057 Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy M.N. Normah, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti

Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia K. Okuno, Hokkaido National Agricultural Experiment Station, Sapporo, 062-8555, Japan R. Ortiz, Crop Improvement Division, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), c/o L.W.

Lambourn & Co., Carolyn House, 26 Dingwall Road, Croydon CR9 3EE, UKS. Padulosi, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for Central and

West Asia and North Africa, c/o ICARDA, PO Box 5466, Aleppo, SyriaV.A. Parthasarathy, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India J. Peacock, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia P. Perrino, National Research Council, Germplasm Institute, Bari, Italy J.-L. Pham, Centre IRD, BP 5045, 34032 Montpellier Cédex, FranceG. Postolache, Institute of Botany, Chisinãu, Moldova S.M. Quilloy, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines N. Rajanaidu, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, No. 6 Persiaran Institusi, Bandar Baru Bangi, 43400 Kajang,

Selangor, Malaysia V. Ramanatha Rao, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for Asia, the

Pacific and Oceania, Serdang, 43400 Selangor, Darul Ehsan, Malaysia K. Ramdoyal, Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, Reduit, Republic of Mauritius G. Ravikanth, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore

560 065, India O.J. Rocha, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica S. Roscher, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany G. Saavedra, Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias, CRI La Platina, PO Box 439, Santiago, Chile N.R. Sackville Hamilton, Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (IGER), Aberystwyth,

UK I. Salma, Strategic, Environment and Natural Resources Research Center, MARDI, PO Box 12301, GPO

50774, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaI. Santini de Siegel, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI),

Information Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany

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S.D. Sastrapradja, Indonesian Institute for Sciences, Center for Research in Biotechnology, Raya Bogor,Km 46, Cibinong, Bogor, Indonesia

G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza, National Academy of Sciences, Rome, Italy S.J. Schloss, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,

Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA L.S. Sebastian, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119

Philippines R. Uma Shaanker, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore

560 065, India G.D. Sharma, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India B.W.S. Sobral, Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, Virginia Tech (0477), 1750 Kraft Drive, Suite 1400,

Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA W. Spoor, Scottish Agricultural College, The King’s Buildings, Agriculture Building, West Mains Road,

Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK A. Stella, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil M.S. Swaminathan, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, 3 Cross Street, 600113 Chennai (Madras),

India A. Tan, Aegean Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 9, Menemen, Izmir, Turkey A.S. Tan, Aegean Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 9, Menemen, Izmir, Turkey M. Taylor, TaroGen, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Suva, Fiji D. Teketay, Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization, Addis Ababa, EthiopiaJ. Turok, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy A. Upadhyay, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India Th.J.L. van Hintum, Centre for Genetic Resources, The Netherlands (CGN), Plant Research

International, Wageningen, The Netherlands R. van Treuren, Centre for Genetic Resources, The Netherlands (CGN), Plant Research International,

Wageningen, The Netherlands G. Vandemark, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350,

USA G. Venturella, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Dipartimento di Scienze Botaniche, Via Archirafi 38, I-

90123 Palermo, Italy P.L.G. Vlek, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany J.T. Williams, International Centre for Underutilized Crops (ICUC), Southampton, UK J. Yu, Crop Germplasm Research Unit, 2765 F&B Road, College Station, TX 77845, USA G. Zervakis, National Agricultural Research Foundation, Institute of Kalamata, Lakonikis 85, 24100

Kalamata, Greece

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Foreword

It has been many years since leading members of the plant genetic resources community got together tocritically review the latest scientific and technological developments and collectively map out action for thefuture. Thus, after wide consultation with many of our partners, in June 2000 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,IPGRI, together with the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), convened the International Conference onScience and Technology for Managing Plant Genetic Diversity in the 21st century (SAT21).

The conference brought together more than 230 participants from over 60 countries. Most of thepapers presented at the conference are included in these proceedings. The final chapter provides a synthesisof the major outcomes and recommendations of the conference and their implications for future research. Ibelieve that the value of SAT21 was enormous, extending well beyond the conference’s assessment of thestate of knowledge and exploration of priorities for the future. As always at such events, a major benefit wasundoubtedly the informal sharing of information among participants, and the forging of friendships andnetworks with the potential to lead to new, productive research partnerships. An international steeringcommittee was established in Kuala Lumpur to explore various options for maintaining the momentumachieved at the conference. One such option is the creation of an international genetic resources societywhich would organize future conferences at regular intervals. For IPGRI, SAT21 has provided new under-standings and helped us forge new partnerships that will be invaluable in our efforts to achieve our vision,as described in our strategy, Diversity for Development. This vision foresees collective, concerted action byfarmers, forest dwellers, pastoralists, scientists, development workers and political leaders in harnessing thefull potential of the earth’s plant genetic diversity to eradicate poverty, to achieve food security and to pro-tect the environment. The conference addressed the key scientific and technical aspects of this vision: thewise management of plant genetic resources, which is the material to which farmers and scientists applytheir skills in the service of development.

I would like to thank here all the individuals and institutions involved in organizing the conference, inparticular our co-organizers, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), and co-sponsors: the Ministry ofScience, Technology and Environment, Government of Malaysia (MOSTE), the Food and AgricultureOrganization of the United Nations (FAO), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), theGerman Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Forest ResearchInstitute of Malaysia (FRIM), the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI),the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), theUS Agency for International Development (USAID), the Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation ofIndia (ICICI) and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA).

I would also like to thank all the members of the International Programme Committee for their

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valuable input to the programme, the IPGRI Task Force and the Local Organizing Committee for all theirhard work and dedication in handling the logistics, and a special word of thanks must go to Ms Patti Sandswho worked so tirelessly to help make the conference a success. Finally, I would like to express my thanksto the editors of this volume who have put together what I believe will be, for many years to come, aninvaluable reference text on the science and technology of managing plant genetic resources.

Geoffrey HawtinDirector General, IPGRI

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In 1938, Jack Hawkes persuaded his superiors atthe Empire Potato Breeding Station in Cambridge,UK, to sanction a visit to Leningrad to meet withRussian scientists working on potatoes and theirtaxonomy. Jack was scheduled to join an expedi-tion late that same year to collect potatoes in theAmericas. While in Leningrad, he met N.I. Vavilovand I suppose that was the start of a life-longinterest in genetic resources and their use.

Jack graduated with first class honours from theUniversity of Cambridge in 1937, and received hisPhD in 1942 from the same university. His thesiswas one of the first studies on the diversity andtaxonomy of potatoes, based on the materials hehad collected during 1938 and 1939. He contin-ued to work in Cambridge until 1948 when hemoved with his wife Barbara and two daughters toColombia, where his twin sons were born. InColombia, he helped establish a national potatoprogramme and, with his younger colleagueNelson Estrada, he developed a breeding strategyinvolving crosses between tetraploid and diploidpotatoes that remains until today an importantmethod to broaden diversity in potato breeding. In1952, he accepted a Lectureship in theDepartment of Botany at the University ofBirmingham. In the 1960s he was first given aPersonal Chair, and then appointed MasonProfessor of Botany and Head of Department. Jackremained in the department (although it changedits name) until his retirement in 1982.

Jack’s contribution to the taxonomy and biosys-tematics of potatoes has been enormous. Over sev-eral decades he returned to Central and SouthAmerica several times to collect wild potatoes. Withhis Danish colleague, J.P. Hjerting, he publishedimportant monographs on the potatoes ofArgentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay (in 1969)and Bolivia (in 1989). He established crop plantevolution and taxonomy studies as important disci-plines at Birmingham. He led a major project thatculminated in the publication of a computer-mapped flora of Warwickshire, the very first ven-ture of this type. With colleagues in the university’sMedical School, he applied serology to understandspecies relationships among potato species, anotherpioneering approach.

I first met Jack in early 1970 when, as anundergraduate student, I applied for a place on theMaster’s course on genetic resources conservationand use that he had just initiated. Like many of hisstudents, I was infected by Jack’s enthusiasm forthe study of crop plants and their evolution, inwhich he brought together so many of his inter-ests, particularly archaeology. The early 1970s wereheady days; we were pioneers in the emerging discipline of genetic resources conservation. Jackinvited many of the leading lights of the geneticresources conservation movement, among themErna Bennett and Jack Harlan, to Birmingham, tointeract with his students. Through Jack I later metSir Otto Frankel.

Jack Hawkes: Plant Collector, Researcher,Educator and Visionary

M.T. JacksonGenetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),

Makati City, Philippines

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I interacted with Jack professionally on ourwork and interests in potatoes over 20 years beforemoving on to rice. I made only one small collectingtrip with him, in the Andes of central Peru in 1975.It was an eye-opening experience to collect withsomeone so knowledgeable about potatoes, theirtaxonomy and ecology. It seemed as though Jackcould almost smell the potatoes without seeingthem. We always found small populations in justthe places he expected.

Jack’s contribution to genetic resources conservation and use has been outstanding. His

leading contribution as an educator and visionaryhas been the training he provided to students,most coming from developing countries. Today,many of these former students occupy importantpositions in national and international pro-grammes, as both administrators and researchers.There now exists a cadre of trained scientists whounderstand the technical issues and challenges ofgenetic conservation.

It has been my pleasure and privilege to workwith him; I am proud to have him as my mentorand friend.

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It is a curious aspect of human thought processesthat until we find the right words to encapsulatethem, we do not seem to make progress with them.Let me try to explain this.

If we consider the collection of plant diversitywe automatically cast our minds back to the geniusof the Russian scientist, N.I. Vavilov. Before histime plant breeders made selections and hybridsfrom the old landraces of their own countries.Now, of course, we realize that a wider range ofgenetic diversity might well be much more usefulin providing genes for disease and pest resistance.Until Vavilov this concept was hardly considered.We have not only come to recognize the need forconserving the genetic diversity of our ancient cropplants, we have also recognized the value of thegenetic diversity of related wild species. Somecrops, such as wheat and barley, do not have manywild ancestral species related to them. Others, likepotatoes, have almost too many related wildspecies. The cultivated potato, Solanum tuberosum,is ‘backed up’ by some 200 wild species, many ofthem carrying genes for adaptation and diseaseresistance that are not known in the cultivatedspecies. This is just one example of the value of wild species related to crops and bearingextremely valuable resistance genes unknown inthe crop itself.

By the 1950s breeders were providing farmerswith high-yielding and more pest- and disease-resistant varieties. This was of course excellent, butthe breeders did not at first realize that these new

varieties were replacing the very genetic diversitythat they would need as a basis for furtheradvances in the future. Indeed, it was not until thelate 1960s and the early 1970s that this paradoxbecame evident and the importance of conservingwhat were then called ‘plant genetic resources’ or‘crop plant genetic resources’ was recognized.

The leader of this movement, to which I hadthe honour to belong at its early stages, wasundoubtedly O.H. Frankel. I had the greatest goodfortune to meet Otto Frankel and to work withhim at various Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) conferences, the first being in 1967 at FAO’sheadquarters in Rome, Italy. At FAO, Otto hadmet Erna Bennett, and they worked together toorganize the 1967 conference. I took part in thatconference and was asked to join their newlyformed Panel of Experts to organize a world net-work of genetic resources institutions. Anotherpanel member was Jack Harlan, whom I also got toknow very well.

What were my reactions to these three people?Otto was fiery, complex, practical and a whole mix-ture of other attributes. He did not suffer foolsgladly and said exactly what he thought to whoeverhe talked to. He was, at the same time, loyal, hon-est and friendly. I admired him tremendously. Heand Erna Bennett used to fight like cat and dog,but she, again, was honest, fierce and outspoken.Jack Harlan, on the other hand, was quiet andmuch less outspoken but, like the others, was areally excellent scientist. I liked and respected all

The Evolution of Plant Genetic Resourcesand the Work of O.H. Frankel

J.G. HawkesSchool of Continuing Studies, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK

xvii

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page xvii

three of them and I believe the feelings weremutual. I learned a great deal from their experi-ences and ways of thinking. In his excellent 1999obituary of Otto, Lloyd Evans quoted Otto, who,when asked how he and his wife got on together inCanberra, Australia, after his retirement, replied,‘We don’t mind. We make our own environment.’And this is what Otto had done all his life.

Aside from his interactions with Jack Harlan,Erna Bennett and me, Otto really invented the con-cepts of genetic conservation of plants useful toman, something that had not previously beenclearly thought out. It was also a concept of realvalue to humanity at a time when the old varietiesand landraces of crops were being quickly replacedby new high-yielding varieties throughout theworld, and particularly in developing countries.

One aspect of this concept of plant geneticresources conservation struck me very forcefully atour FAO meetings. We knew what ought to bedone, but who was going to carry it out? Perhapssome four or five of us knew about geneticresources but this was a worldwide problem, need-ing many trained scientists from many countries,particularly from the developing world. We neededgeneticists, plant breeders, botanists and seed physi-ologists at least, and in large numbers, but at thattime there were not enough of them to carry outthese tasks. What could be done?

This was where I believed I could help, by estab-lishing in my Department of Botany at Birminghama Master’s course in the ‘Conservation and

Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources’. I talked tothe Faculty of Science about this and it was agreedto, as long as I did not ask for more money! Iassured them that I would use my own departmen-tal resources, which I did to begin with. When thecourse flourished, I was then able to obtain fundsfrom FAO and other bodies. The first intake ofpostgraduate students took place in 1969. Ottothought I would not be able to continue for morethan a year or two for lack of students. How wronghe was! The course still continues, long after myretirement, and is now in its 31st year. Counting thestudents who come for only short parts of thecourse, nearly 1000 students have graduated fromthe course. So much for Otto’s predictions!

I feel very proud that I was able to set in motionsuch a training course from which these students,mostly from the developing world, have benefited.More importantly, the course has played an impor-tant role in conserving the genetic diversity of cropplants and their wild relatives. I know that Ottoand Erna would have valued that. And Otto, whowas born in 1900 and at 98 survived throughoutalmost the whole of the 20th century, was, I know,happy that by his efforts and the efforts of those ofus who have been associated with him, our task haslargely been successful.

Genetic resources exploration, conservation anduse are now well known throughout the world, andhave been of the utmost value to humanity. Thevalue and use of wild and cultivated geneticresources to breeders have come of age.

xviii J.G. Hawkes

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page xviii

Managing Plant Genetic Diversity

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page i

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page ii

Managing Plant Genetic Diversity

edited by

Johannes M.M. Engels

International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI)Rome, Italy

V. Ramanatha Rao

IPGRI Regional Office for Asia, the Pacific and OceaniaSerdang, Malaysia

Anthony H.D. Brown

CSIROCanberra, Australia

and

Michael T. Jackson

International Rice Research InstituteMakati City, The Philippines

CABI Publishing

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page iii

CABI Publishing is a division of CAB International

CABI Publishing CABI PublishingCAB International 10 E 40th StreetWallingford Suite 3203Oxon OX10 8DE New York, NY 10016UK USA

Tel: +44 (0)1491 832111 Tel: +1 212 481 7018Fax: +44 (0)1491 833508 Fax: +1 212 686 7993Email: cabi@cabi.org Email: cabi-nao@cabi.orgWeb site: www.cabi-publishing.org

© IPGRI 2002. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by anymeans, electronically, mechanically, by photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permissionof the copyright owners.

The International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) is an autonomous international scientific organization, supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). IPGRI’smandate is to advance the conservation and use of genetic diversity for the well-being of present and futuregenerations. IPGRI has its headquarters in Rome, Italy, and offices in another 22 countries worldwide. It operates through three programmes: (i) the Plant Genetic Resources Programme; (ii) the CGIAR GeneticResources Support Programme; and (iii) the International Network for the Improvement of Banana andPlantain (INIBAP).

IPGRI, Via dei Tre Denari, 472/a, 00057 Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy.Tel: +39 06 61181; fax: +39 06 6197 9661E-mail: ipgri@cgiar.org; Web site: www.ipgri.cgiar.org

The geographical designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do notimply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IPGRI or the CGIAR concerning the legalstatus of any country, territory, city or area or its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiersor boundaries. Similarly, the views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the viewsof these participating organizations.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library, London, UK.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataManaging plant genetic resources / edited by J.M.M. Engels ...[et al.].

p. cm.Includes bibliographical references (p. ).ISBN 0-85199-522-5 (alk. paper)

1. Germplasm resources, Plant–Management. 2. Crops–Germplasmresources–Management. I. Engels, J. M. M.SB123.3 .M35 2001333.95�34--dc21 00-054709

ISBN 0 85199 522 5

Typeset in Garamond by Columns Design Ltd, ReadingPrinted and bound in the UK by Biddles Ltd, Guildford and King’s Lynn

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page iv

Contents

Contributors ix

Foreword xiii

Jack Hawkes: Plant Collector, Researcher, Educator and Visionary xvM.T. Jackson

The Evolution of Plant Genetic Resources and the Work of O.H. Frankel xviiJ.G. Hawkes

1 The History of ex situ Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 1G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza and P. Perrino

2 The Past, Present and Future Contributions of Farmers to the Conservation and Development of Genetic Diversity 23

M.S. Swaminathan

3 The Impact of Gene Technologies on the Use of Genetic Resources 33J. Peacock and A. Chaudhury

Theme 1: The Applications of Genomic Sciences for a Better Understanding of Genepools

4 The New Genetic Era: Will it Help us in Managing Genetic Diversity? 43A. Karp

5 DNA Polymorphisms in Accessions of Nephelium lappaceum L. 57P.C. Chew, M.M. Clyde, M.N. Normah and I. Salma

6 Molecular Analysis of Phylogenetic Relationships among Coconut Accessions 61A. Upadhyay, J. Jose, R. Manimekalai and V.A. Parthasarathy

7 Molecular Characterization of Gossypium Germplasm for Cotton Improvement 67R.J. Kohel and J. Yu

8 Molecular Analysis of the Origin and Domestication of Theobroma cacao L. 77J.C. Motamayor and C. Lanaud

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Theme 2: Technologies and Strategies for ex situ Conservation

9 Technologies and Strategies for ex situ Conservation 89F. Engelmann and J.M.M. Engels

10 The Establishment of a Regional Germplasm Centre in the Pacific Island Region 105M. Taylor

11 Accession Management Strategies: Splitting and Lumping 113Th.J.L. van Hintum, N.R. Sackville Hamilton, J.M.M. Engels and R. van Treuren

Theme 3: The Deployment and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems

12 The Deployment and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems 121S.D. Sastrapradja and P. Balakhrishna

13 Combining Static and Dynamic Management of PGR: a Case Study of BetaGenetic Resources 133

L. Frese

14 Rice, Farmers and Genebanks: a Case Study in the Cagayan Valley, Philippines 149J.-L. Pham, S.R. Morin, L.S. Sebastian, G.A. Abrigo, M.A. Calibo, S.M. Quilloy, L. Hipolito and M.T. Jackson

15 A Study on the On-farm Maintenance of Farmers’ Varieties of Sorghum in Malawi 161E.A. Chiwona

Theme 4: The Role of Bioinformatics in Conservation and Use

16 The Role of Bioinformatics in Germplasm Conservation and Use 171B.W.S. Sobral

17 Distributed Databases Retrieval Systems in Germany as a National Approach in an International Context 179

S. Harrer, F. Begemann, J.D. Jiménez Krause and S. Roscher

18 The Potential Role of Passport Data in the Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 185Th. Hazekamp

Theme 5: In situ Conservation of Wild Species

19 In situ Conservation of Wild Species Related to Crop Plants: the Case of Turkey 195A. Tan and A.S. Tan

20 Metapopulation Dynamics of Lima Bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.) in the Central Valley of Costa Rica 205

O.J. Rocha, J. Degreef, D. Barrantes, E. Castro, G. Macaya and L. Guarino

21 Inventories for in situ Conservation of Broadleaved Forest Genetic Resources in South-eastern Europe 217

I. Blada, A.H. Alexandrov, G. Postolache, J. Turok and N. Donita

22 Forest Genebanks: a New Approach to Conserving Forest Tree Genetic Resources 229R.Uma Shaanker, K.N. Ganeshaiah, M. Nageswara Rao and G. Ravikanth

23 Human Impacts on the Coffea arabica Genepool in Ethiopia and the Need for its in situ Conservation 237

Tadesse Woldermariam Gole, M. Denich, Demel Teketay and P.L.G. Vlek

vi Contents

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Theme 6: Indicators for Sustainable Management of Genetic Resources

24 Indicators for Sustainable Management of Plant Genetic Resources: How Well are we Doing? 249

A.H.D. Brown and C.L. Brubaker

25 Decision-making Strategies for Conservation and Use of Forest Genetic Resources 263M.P. Koshy, G. Namkoong, P. Kageyama, A. Stella, F. Gandara and W.A. Neves do Amaral

Theme 7: Germplasm Enhancement and Pre-breeding

26 Germplasm Enhancement to Sustain Genetic Gains in Crop Improvement 275R. Ortiz

27 Genetic Base Broadening in Autogamous Crops: Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. as a Model 291G. Saavedra and W. Spoor

28 An Enhancement Strategy for Rice Germplasm: DNA Marker-assisted Identification of BeneficialQTL for Resistance to Rice Blast 301

K. Okuno and S. Fukuoka

29 Prebreeding in Sugarcane with an Emphasis on the Programme of the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute 307

K. Ramdoyal and G.H. Badaloo

Theme 8: Exploring Underused Species: Diverse Options

30 Underutilized Crops: Trends, Challenges and Opportunities in the 21st Century 323S. Padulosi, T. Hodgkin, J.T. Williams and N. Haq

31 An Initiative in Exploration and Management of Plant Genetic Diversity in Saudi Arabia 339T.A. Al-Turki

32 Mushroom Breeding and Cultivation Enhances ex situ Conservation of Mediterranean Pleurotus Taxa 351

G. Zervakis and G. Venturella

33 Conservation and Use of Underutilized Crops: an Indian Perspective 359V. Joshi, P.L. Gautam, Bhag Mal, G.D. Sharma and S. Kochhar

34 Underutilized Edible Plants from South Africa: a Perspective 371T.V. Jacobs

Theme 9: Implications of Gene Transformation Techniques for ex situ Conservation Choices

35 ‘Mining the Gold’: Finding Allelic Variants for Improved Crop Conservation and Use 379S. Kresovich, A.J. Luongo and S.J. Schloss

Theme 10: GIS Applications for Genetic Resources Management

36 Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources 387

L. Guarino, A. Jarvis, R.J. Hijmans and N. Maxted

37 Predicting Germplasm Differentiation Using GIS-derived Information 405S.L. Greene, M. Gritsenko, G. Vandemark and R.C. Johnson

38 In situ Conservation of Forest Genetic Resources at Regional Level: Two ComplementaryProgrammes Using GIS Approach 413

K.N. Ganeshaiah, R. Uma Shaanker, N. Barve, M.C. Kiran, K.S. Bawa and V. Ramanatha Rao

Contents vii

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Theme 11: The Economics of Managing Genetic Resources and the Role of Private and Public Sectors

39 Managing Plant Genetic Resources and the Role of Private and Public Sectors: Oil Palm as a Model 425

N. Rajanaidu and V. Ramanatha Rao

40 The Community-based Conservation and Management of Genetic Diversity in Agroecosystems: the Role and Function of Law 437

S. Biber-Klemm

41 Evaluating the Benefits of Conserved Crop Germplasm in PNG 455M. Milne, D. Godden, J. Kennedy and R. Kambuou

Summary

42 People, Plants and DNA: Perspectives on the Scientific and Technical Aspects of Conserving and Using Plant Genetic Resources 469

T. Hodgkin and V. Ramanatha Rao

Index 481

viii Contents

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page viii

G.A. Abrigo, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119Philippines

A.H. Alexandrov, Forest Research Institute, Sofia, Bulgaria T.A. Al-Turki, KACST Herbarium, Natural Resources and Environmental Research Institute, King

Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, PO Box 6086, Riyadh-11442, Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaG.H. Badaloo, Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, Reduit, Republic of MauritiusP. Balakhrishna, Regional Biodiversity Programme, Asia, IUCN-World Conservation Union, 48 Vajira

Road, Colombo 5, Sri Lanka D. Barrantes, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica N. Barve, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Hebbal, Bangalore

560 024, IndiaK.S. Bawa, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore 560

065, IndiaF. Begemann, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany S. Biber-Klemm, Faculty of Law, University of Basel, Maiengasse 51, CH-4056 Basel, SwitzerlandI. Blada, Forest Research and Management Institute, Bucharest, Romania A.H.D. Brown, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra

ACT, Australia C.L. Brubaker, Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra

ACT, Australia M.A. Calibo, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines E. Castro, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica A. Chaudhury, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia P.C. Chew, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan

Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, MalaysiaE.A. Chiwona, Malawi Plant Genetic Resources Centre, Chitedze Agricultural Research Station, Lilongwe,

Malawi M.M. Clyde, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan

Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

Contributors

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J. Degreef, National Botanic Garden of Belgium, Domaine de Bouchout, 1860 Meise, Belgium M. Denich, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany N. Donita, Forest Research and Management Institute, Bucharest, Romania.F. Engelmann, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy J.M.M. Engels, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via delle Sette Chiese 142, Rome, Italy L. Frese, Federal Centre for Breeding Research on Cultivated Plants (BAZ), Gene Bank, Bundesallee 50,

38116 Braunschweig, Germany S. Fukuoka, National Institute of Agrobiological Resources (NIAR), Tsukuba 305–8602, Japan F. Gandara, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil K.N. Ganeshaiah, Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, University of Agricultural Sciences,

GKVK, Bangalore 560 065, India P.L. Gautam, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India D. Godden, Department of Agricultural Economics, A04, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia Tadesse Woldermariam Gole, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn,

Germany S.L. Greene, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350, USAM. Gritsenko, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350, USAL. Guarino, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for the Americas,

c/o CIAT, AA 6713, Cali, ColombiaN. Haq, International Centre for Underutilized Crops (ICUC), Southampton, UK S. Harrer, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany J.G. Hawkes, School of Continuing Studies, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UKTh. Hazekamp, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy R.J. Hijmans, International Potato Center (CIP), Lima, Peru L. Hipolito, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119

Philippines T. Hodgkin, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy M.T. Jackson, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, PhilippinesT.V. Jacobs, Department of Botany, University of Transkei, Private Bag XI, UNITRA, Umtata 5117, South

Africa A. Jarvis, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for the Americas, c/o

CIAT, AA 6713, Cali, Colombia J.D. Jiménez Krause, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI),

Information Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany R.C. Johnson, USDA ARS WRPIS, 59 Johnson Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164,

USA J. Jose, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India V. Joshi, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India P. Kageyama, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil R. Kambuou, National Agricultural Research Institute, Port Moresby NCD, Papua New Guinea A. Karp, IACR-Long Ashton Research Station, University of Bristol, Long Ashton, Bristol BS41 9AF, UK J. Kennedy, School of Business, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3083, Australia M.C. Kiran, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Hebbal, Bangalore

560 024, India S. Kochhar, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India R.J. Kohel, Crop Germplasm Research Unit, 2765 F&B Road, College Station, TX 77845, USA M.P. Koshy, Department of Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada

x Contributors

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page x

S. Kresovich, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA

C. Lanaud, CIRAD, TA 40/03, Av. Agropolis, 34398 Montpellier Cédex 5, France A.J. Luongo, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,

Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA G. Macaya, Centro de Investigación en Biologia Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad

Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica Bhag Mal, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), New Delhi 110 012, India R. Manimekalai, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India N. Maxted, School of Biological Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK M. Milne, Department of Agricultural Economics, A04, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia S.R. Morin, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines J.C. Motamayor, FUNDACITE, Av. Las Delicias, Maracay, Edo. Aragua, Venezuela M. Nageswara Rao, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK,

Bangalore 560 065, India G. Namkoong, Department of Forest Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4,

Canada W.A. Neves do Amaral, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Via dei Tre Denari 472a,

00057 Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy M.N. Normah, Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti

Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia K. Okuno, Hokkaido National Agricultural Experiment Station, Sapporo, 062-8555, Japan R. Ortiz, Crop Improvement Division, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), c/o L.W.

Lambourn & Co., Carolyn House, 26 Dingwall Road, Croydon CR9 3EE, UKS. Padulosi, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for Central and

West Asia and North Africa, c/o ICARDA, PO Box 5466, Aleppo, SyriaV.A. Parthasarathy, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India J. Peacock, CSIRO Plant Industry, GPO Box 1600, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia P. Perrino, National Research Council, Germplasm Institute, Bari, Italy J.-L. Pham, Centre IRD, BP 5045, 34032 Montpellier Cédex, FranceG. Postolache, Institute of Botany, Chisinãu, Moldova S.M. Quilloy, Genetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), MCPO Box 3127,

1271 Makati City, Philippines N. Rajanaidu, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, No. 6 Persiaran Institusi, Bandar Baru Bangi, 43400 Kajang,

Selangor, Malaysia V. Ramanatha Rao, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Regional Office for Asia, the

Pacific and Oceania, Serdang, 43400 Selangor, Darul Ehsan, Malaysia K. Ramdoyal, Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, Reduit, Republic of Mauritius G. Ravikanth, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore

560 065, India O.J. Rocha, Escuela de Biologia, Universidad de Costa Rica, Ciudad Universitaria ‘Rodrigo Facio’, San

Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José, Costa Rica S. Roscher, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI), Information

Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany G. Saavedra, Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias, CRI La Platina, PO Box 439, Santiago, Chile N.R. Sackville Hamilton, Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (IGER), Aberystwyth,

UK I. Salma, Strategic, Environment and Natural Resources Research Center, MARDI, PO Box 12301, GPO

50774, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaI. Santini de Siegel, German Centre for Documentation and Information in Agriculture (ZADI),

Information Centre for Genetic Resources (IGR), Villichgasse 17, 53177 Bonn, Germany

Contributors xi

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S.D. Sastrapradja, Indonesian Institute for Sciences, Center for Research in Biotechnology, Raya Bogor,Km 46, Cibinong, Bogor, Indonesia

G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza, National Academy of Sciences, Rome, Italy S.J. Schloss, Institute for Genomic Diversity and Department of Plant Breeding, Cornell University,

Ithaca, NY 14853–2703, USA L.S. Sebastian, Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Maligaya, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, 3119

Philippines R. Uma Shaanker, Department of Crop Physiology, University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bangalore

560 065, India G.D. Sharma, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi 110 012, India B.W.S. Sobral, Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, Virginia Tech (0477), 1750 Kraft Drive, Suite 1400,

Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA W. Spoor, Scottish Agricultural College, The King’s Buildings, Agriculture Building, West Mains Road,

Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK A. Stella, Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais, Av. Padua Dias 11, Piracicaba, SP Brazil M.S. Swaminathan, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, 3 Cross Street, 600113 Chennai (Madras),

India A. Tan, Aegean Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 9, Menemen, Izmir, Turkey A.S. Tan, Aegean Agricultural Research Institute, PO Box 9, Menemen, Izmir, Turkey M. Taylor, TaroGen, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Suva, Fiji D. Teketay, Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization, Addis Ababa, EthiopiaJ. Turok, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) Via dei Tre Denari 472a, 00057

Maccarese (Fiumicino), Rome, Italy A. Upadhyay, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod-671124, Kerala, India Th.J.L. van Hintum, Centre for Genetic Resources, The Netherlands (CGN), Plant Research

International, Wageningen, The Netherlands R. van Treuren, Centre for Genetic Resources, The Netherlands (CGN), Plant Research International,

Wageningen, The Netherlands G. Vandemark, USDA ARS, Washington State University, 24106 N. Bunn Road, Prosser, WA 99350,

USA G. Venturella, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Dipartimento di Scienze Botaniche, Via Archirafi 38, I-

90123 Palermo, Italy P.L.G. Vlek, Centre for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany J.T. Williams, International Centre for Underutilized Crops (ICUC), Southampton, UK J. Yu, Crop Germplasm Research Unit, 2765 F&B Road, College Station, TX 77845, USA G. Zervakis, National Agricultural Research Foundation, Institute of Kalamata, Lakonikis 85, 24100

Kalamata, Greece

xii Contributors

M.P. Gen. Resources Prelims 14/11/01 10:49 AM Page xii

Foreword

It has been many years since leading members of the plant genetic resources community got together tocritically review the latest scientific and technological developments and collectively map out action for thefuture. Thus, after wide consultation with many of our partners, in June 2000 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,IPGRI, together with the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), convened the International Conference onScience and Technology for Managing Plant Genetic Diversity in the 21st century (SAT21).

The conference brought together more than 230 participants from over 60 countries. Most of thepapers presented at the conference are included in these proceedings. The final chapter provides a synthesisof the major outcomes and recommendations of the conference and their implications for future research. Ibelieve that the value of SAT21 was enormous, extending well beyond the conference’s assessment of thestate of knowledge and exploration of priorities for the future. As always at such events, a major benefit wasundoubtedly the informal sharing of information among participants, and the forging of friendships andnetworks with the potential to lead to new, productive research partnerships. An international steeringcommittee was established in Kuala Lumpur to explore various options for maintaining the momentumachieved at the conference. One such option is the creation of an international genetic resources societywhich would organize future conferences at regular intervals. For IPGRI, SAT21 has provided new under-standings and helped us forge new partnerships that will be invaluable in our efforts to achieve our vision,as described in our strategy, Diversity for Development. This vision foresees collective, concerted action byfarmers, forest dwellers, pastoralists, scientists, development workers and political leaders in harnessing thefull potential of the earth’s plant genetic diversity to eradicate poverty, to achieve food security and to pro-tect the environment. The conference addressed the key scientific and technical aspects of this vision: thewise management of plant genetic resources, which is the material to which farmers and scientists applytheir skills in the service of development.

I would like to thank here all the individuals and institutions involved in organizing the conference, inparticular our co-organizers, the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), and co-sponsors: the Ministry ofScience, Technology and Environment, Government of Malaysia (MOSTE), the Food and AgricultureOrganization of the United Nations (FAO), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), theGerman Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Forest ResearchInstitute of Malaysia (FRIM), the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI),the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), theUS Agency for International Development (USAID), the Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation ofIndia (ICICI) and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA).

I would also like to thank all the members of the International Programme Committee for their

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valuable input to the programme, the IPGRI Task Force and the Local Organizing Committee for all theirhard work and dedication in handling the logistics, and a special word of thanks must go to Ms Patti Sandswho worked so tirelessly to help make the conference a success. Finally, I would like to express my thanksto the editors of this volume who have put together what I believe will be, for many years to come, aninvaluable reference text on the science and technology of managing plant genetic resources.

Geoffrey HawtinDirector General, IPGRI

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In 1938, Jack Hawkes persuaded his superiors atthe Empire Potato Breeding Station in Cambridge,UK, to sanction a visit to Leningrad to meet withRussian scientists working on potatoes and theirtaxonomy. Jack was scheduled to join an expedi-tion late that same year to collect potatoes in theAmericas. While in Leningrad, he met N.I. Vavilovand I suppose that was the start of a life-longinterest in genetic resources and their use.

Jack graduated with first class honours from theUniversity of Cambridge in 1937, and received hisPhD in 1942 from the same university. His thesiswas one of the first studies on the diversity andtaxonomy of potatoes, based on the materials hehad collected during 1938 and 1939. He contin-ued to work in Cambridge until 1948 when hemoved with his wife Barbara and two daughters toColombia, where his twin sons were born. InColombia, he helped establish a national potatoprogramme and, with his younger colleagueNelson Estrada, he developed a breeding strategyinvolving crosses between tetraploid and diploidpotatoes that remains until today an importantmethod to broaden diversity in potato breeding. In1952, he accepted a Lectureship in theDepartment of Botany at the University ofBirmingham. In the 1960s he was first given aPersonal Chair, and then appointed MasonProfessor of Botany and Head of Department. Jackremained in the department (although it changedits name) until his retirement in 1982.

Jack’s contribution to the taxonomy and biosys-tematics of potatoes has been enormous. Over sev-eral decades he returned to Central and SouthAmerica several times to collect wild potatoes. Withhis Danish colleague, J.P. Hjerting, he publishedimportant monographs on the potatoes ofArgentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay (in 1969)and Bolivia (in 1989). He established crop plantevolution and taxonomy studies as important disci-plines at Birmingham. He led a major project thatculminated in the publication of a computer-mapped flora of Warwickshire, the very first ven-ture of this type. With colleagues in the university’sMedical School, he applied serology to understandspecies relationships among potato species, anotherpioneering approach.

I first met Jack in early 1970 when, as anundergraduate student, I applied for a place on theMaster’s course on genetic resources conservationand use that he had just initiated. Like many of hisstudents, I was infected by Jack’s enthusiasm forthe study of crop plants and their evolution, inwhich he brought together so many of his inter-ests, particularly archaeology. The early 1970s wereheady days; we were pioneers in the emerging discipline of genetic resources conservation. Jackinvited many of the leading lights of the geneticresources conservation movement, among themErna Bennett and Jack Harlan, to Birmingham, tointeract with his students. Through Jack I later metSir Otto Frankel.

Jack Hawkes: Plant Collector, Researcher,Educator and Visionary

M.T. JacksonGenetic Resources Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),

Makati City, Philippines

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I interacted with Jack professionally on ourwork and interests in potatoes over 20 years beforemoving on to rice. I made only one small collectingtrip with him, in the Andes of central Peru in 1975.It was an eye-opening experience to collect withsomeone so knowledgeable about potatoes, theirtaxonomy and ecology. It seemed as though Jackcould almost smell the potatoes without seeingthem. We always found small populations in justthe places he expected.

Jack’s contribution to genetic resources conservation and use has been outstanding. His

leading contribution as an educator and visionaryhas been the training he provided to students,most coming from developing countries. Today,many of these former students occupy importantpositions in national and international pro-grammes, as both administrators and researchers.There now exists a cadre of trained scientists whounderstand the technical issues and challenges ofgenetic conservation.

It has been my pleasure and privilege to workwith him; I am proud to have him as my mentorand friend.

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It is a curious aspect of human thought processesthat until we find the right words to encapsulatethem, we do not seem to make progress with them.Let me try to explain this.

If we consider the collection of plant diversitywe automatically cast our minds back to the geniusof the Russian scientist, N.I. Vavilov. Before histime plant breeders made selections and hybridsfrom the old landraces of their own countries.Now, of course, we realize that a wider range ofgenetic diversity might well be much more usefulin providing genes for disease and pest resistance.Until Vavilov this concept was hardly considered.We have not only come to recognize the need forconserving the genetic diversity of our ancient cropplants, we have also recognized the value of thegenetic diversity of related wild species. Somecrops, such as wheat and barley, do not have manywild ancestral species related to them. Others, likepotatoes, have almost too many related wildspecies. The cultivated potato, Solanum tuberosum,is ‘backed up’ by some 200 wild species, many ofthem carrying genes for adaptation and diseaseresistance that are not known in the cultivatedspecies. This is just one example of the value of wild species related to crops and bearingextremely valuable resistance genes unknown inthe crop itself.

By the 1950s breeders were providing farmerswith high-yielding and more pest- and disease-resistant varieties. This was of course excellent, butthe breeders did not at first realize that these new

varieties were replacing the very genetic diversitythat they would need as a basis for furtheradvances in the future. Indeed, it was not until thelate 1960s and the early 1970s that this paradoxbecame evident and the importance of conservingwhat were then called ‘plant genetic resources’ or‘crop plant genetic resources’ was recognized.

The leader of this movement, to which I hadthe honour to belong at its early stages, wasundoubtedly O.H. Frankel. I had the greatest goodfortune to meet Otto Frankel and to work withhim at various Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) conferences, the first being in 1967 at FAO’sheadquarters in Rome, Italy. At FAO, Otto hadmet Erna Bennett, and they worked together toorganize the 1967 conference. I took part in thatconference and was asked to join their newlyformed Panel of Experts to organize a world net-work of genetic resources institutions. Anotherpanel member was Jack Harlan, whom I also got toknow very well.

What were my reactions to these three people?Otto was fiery, complex, practical and a whole mix-ture of other attributes. He did not suffer foolsgladly and said exactly what he thought to whoeverhe talked to. He was, at the same time, loyal, hon-est and friendly. I admired him tremendously. Heand Erna Bennett used to fight like cat and dog,but she, again, was honest, fierce and outspoken.Jack Harlan, on the other hand, was quiet andmuch less outspoken but, like the others, was areally excellent scientist. I liked and respected all

The Evolution of Plant Genetic Resourcesand the Work of O.H. Frankel

J.G. HawkesSchool of Continuing Studies, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK

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three of them and I believe the feelings weremutual. I learned a great deal from their experi-ences and ways of thinking. In his excellent 1999obituary of Otto, Lloyd Evans quoted Otto, who,when asked how he and his wife got on together inCanberra, Australia, after his retirement, replied,‘We don’t mind. We make our own environment.’And this is what Otto had done all his life.

Aside from his interactions with Jack Harlan,Erna Bennett and me, Otto really invented the con-cepts of genetic conservation of plants useful toman, something that had not previously beenclearly thought out. It was also a concept of realvalue to humanity at a time when the old varietiesand landraces of crops were being quickly replacedby new high-yielding varieties throughout theworld, and particularly in developing countries.

One aspect of this concept of plant geneticresources conservation struck me very forcefully atour FAO meetings. We knew what ought to bedone, but who was going to carry it out? Perhapssome four or five of us knew about geneticresources but this was a worldwide problem, need-ing many trained scientists from many countries,particularly from the developing world. We neededgeneticists, plant breeders, botanists and seed physi-ologists at least, and in large numbers, but at thattime there were not enough of them to carry outthese tasks. What could be done?

This was where I believed I could help, by estab-lishing in my Department of Botany at Birminghama Master’s course in the ‘Conservation and

Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources’. I talked tothe Faculty of Science about this and it was agreedto, as long as I did not ask for more money! Iassured them that I would use my own departmen-tal resources, which I did to begin with. When thecourse flourished, I was then able to obtain fundsfrom FAO and other bodies. The first intake ofpostgraduate students took place in 1969. Ottothought I would not be able to continue for morethan a year or two for lack of students. How wronghe was! The course still continues, long after myretirement, and is now in its 31st year. Counting thestudents who come for only short parts of thecourse, nearly 1000 students have graduated fromthe course. So much for Otto’s predictions!

I feel very proud that I was able to set in motionsuch a training course from which these students,mostly from the developing world, have benefited.More importantly, the course has played an impor-tant role in conserving the genetic diversity of cropplants and their wild relatives. I know that Ottoand Erna would have valued that. And Otto, whowas born in 1900 and at 98 survived throughoutalmost the whole of the 20th century, was, I know,happy that by his efforts and the efforts of those ofus who have been associated with him, our task haslargely been successful.

Genetic resources exploration, conservation anduse are now well known throughout the world, andhave been of the utmost value to humanity. Thevalue and use of wild and cultivated geneticresources to breeders have come of age.

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1 The History of ex situ Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources

G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza1 and P. Perrino21National Academy of Sciences, the Forty, Rome, Italy; 2National Research Council,

Germplasm Institute, Bari, Italy

Introduction

Information on the history of plant geneticresources conservation and use can be found in sev-eral reports, catalogues and newsletters publishedby different institutions (Food and AgricultureOrganization (FAO), International Board for PlantGenetic Resources (IBPGR), International PlantGenetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), ConsultativeGroup on International Agricultural Research(CGIAR) and others). Recent developments in themaintenance, management and sustainable use ofbiodiversity, in general, and of plant geneticresources in particular led to the publication of special issues on the history of conservation andagricultural use of plant germplasm (Scarascia-Mugnozza, 1995, 1998; Pistorius, 1997).

Plants have travelled, during human migrationsand along the ancient caravan routes, from conti-nent to continent. Moving from the Old to theNew World and vice versa, they have made manyimportant contributions to agricultural and eatinghabits around the planet (FAO, 1959).

Movement of plants from place to place andfrom people to people implies the use of germplasmas a food but also for improving agricultural pro-duction and for increasing diversification. Startingfrom the beginning of agriculture, man has storedplants and seeds from one cycle of cultivation tothe next in different ways, some of which areknown to us and are still used today. Storage of

germplasm also took place during migration. Asagriculture progressed and human populationincreased, the need to store plants and seeds ex situgrew and involved even longer distances and lapsesof time than the short break between seasons ofcultivation or time needed to migrate. In a broadsense, ex situ conservation of germplasm is a prac-tice that humans have used since the beginning ofagriculture, to expand cultivation and/or to colo-nize new lands and to ensure the spread of agricul-ture around the world.

This chapter aims to trace a historic profile of exsitu plant germplasm conservation with a mainemphasis on the aspects most relevant to protectionof genetic diversity and its use for agriculturaldevelopment.

History of ex situ Plant GermplasmConservation

From the beginning of agriculture, farmers havedomesticated hundreds of plant species and withinthem genetic variability has increased owing tomigration, natural mutations and crosses, andunconscious or conscious selection. This gradualand continuous expansion of genetic diversitywithin crops went on for several millennia, untilscientific principles and techniques influenced thedevelopment of agriculture. This happened at thebeginning of the 20th century, when Mendel’s laws

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were used. The spread of new and more productivecrop varieties, which were genetically less heteroge-neous than primitive populations, paradoxicallystarted the well-known process of ‘genetic erosion’.

In fact, in the 1920s and 1930s, N.I. Vavilovand Jack Harlan began to notice that traditionalcrop varieties, or landraces, were being lost fromcultivated fields around the world. Since then, scientific efforts to conserve plant genetic diversityalso focused on collecting material and placing it inex situ storage. In this chapter, we have divided all ofthe efforts made by humans on ex situ germplasmconservation into the following sections:

● conservation and use of crop germplasm beforethe 1967 FAO/IBP (International BiologicalProgramme) Technical Conference;

● plant genetic resources developments since1967;

● ex-situ collections and genebanks;● genetic resources: maintenance, use and regulation.

Conservation and Use of CropGermplasm before the 1967 FAO/IBP

Technical Conference

Before 1967, the international exchange of geneticresources functioned mainly among the network ofplant introduction stations in western Europe, theUSA, Australia, New Zealand and eastern Europe(mainly the Soviet Union). There were only a fewgenebanks (introduction stations) that exchangedgenetic material. The oldest and most famous ofthem, with worldwide scope and adequate evalua-tion facilities, were:

1. The All-Union Institute for Plant Industry, inLeningrad (now St Petersburg), Russia (1920).2. The Commonwealth Potato Collection atCambridge, UK (before the Second World War).3. The collections for research programmes of theRockefeller Foundation in the USA (1943).4. The National Seed Storage Laboratory (NSSL)at Fort Collins, Colorado, USA (1958).

Most of the other seed banks were inadequatewith regard to the later requirements of interna-tional agricultural research and most collectionswere considered erratic or unreliable. Moreover,most collections required frequent regeneration. Inspite of the circumstances under which most of the collections, of truly international scope, were held

in the 1950s, the overall picture on a regional levelshowed promising initiatives.

For example, in West Africa, plant quarantineregulations were initiated in the late 1950s. TheInter-African Phytosanitary Convention of 1954was the umbrella of the Organisation of AfricanUnity. Ghana established a Plant Exploration andIntroduction Service. In the 1960s, universities inNigeria and Côte d’Ivoire started collecting activi-ties. In Latin America, plant exploration started inthe 1950s and 1960s. Argentina started a NationalService, Venezuela began maintenance of papayaand oil crops, Colombia focused on potato andgrasses, and Costa Rica and Mexico on cacao. Mostof these activities had a strong interaction with theRockefeller Foundation. In Asia, India started col-lecting pulses, cruciferous and forage crops in thelate 1960s. Other collections were started by theInternational Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in thePhilippines and other countries. In Japan, theNational Seed Storage Laboratory was opened in1966 (Ito, 1972). Australia introduced muchgermplasm in the late 1960s, although a PlantIntroduction Service, under the AustralianCommonwealth Scientific and Industrial ResearchOrganization (CSIRO), was established in 1930.

However, the collection of plant genetic resourceswas more significant in North America and Europeas well as the activities undertaken by FAO.

North America

Official government recognition of the importanceof agricultural development first came in 1827,with President John Adams. Only in 1898 was agreat impetus provided through the creation of theOffice of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction. Inthe early 1960s, this office was renamed the NewCrop Research Branch, with its headquarterslocated at the USDA Plant Industry Station inBeltsville, Maryland.

Owing to increasing demands for food and fibreand the industrialization of agriculture, cropimprovement between 1900 and 1930 was mostlyconcerned with adaptation and yield factors of newvarieties. However, even before the Second WorldWar, breeders had problems related to disease resis-tance, quality, planting and harvesting methods,and reactions to plant protection or weed controlpractices. Therefore, germplasm material in USgenebanks was mainly collected for short-term use

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in specific breeding programmes or for tests regard-ing agricultural diversification.

Once the demand of researchers was satisfied,the germplasm was stored at the NSSL at FortCollins, Colorado. This laboratory was created in1958 and was the first genebank with long-termseed storage equipment.

Advanced and well-organized collection ofgermplasm was coordinated by the RockefellerFoundation in the USA in the 1940s and 1950s. Aprogramme for the improvement of basic crops,primarily maize, wheat and potato was started. Thiswas called the Mexican Agricultural Program, andwas guided mainly by N.H. Borlaugh (1970 NobelPeace Prize winner). Later on, this programme gaverise to the so-called ‘Green Revolution’. Similarprojects were carried out in Guatemala, El Salvador,Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Costa Rica,Cuba, Colombia, Peru and Chile, under the auspicesof US and American Land-Grant Universities. Thesecollections, according to some scientists, formed thebasis for a global network recommended by the FAOPanel of Experts in the early 1970s.

An important initiative of the USA was, then,the establishment of four Regional PlantIntroduction Stations, at Ames (Iowa, 1947),Geneva (New York, 1948), Experiment (Georgia,1949) and Pullman (Washington, 1952) and oneinter-regional programme on potato. The stationswere coordinated by the New Crops ResearchBranch at the Agricultural Research Stations (ARS)in Beltsville. Thus, the NSSL at Fort Collins,Colorado, was used for long-term storage andpreservation of valuable plant germplasm propa-gated by seed, while the four smaller RegionalStations were used to maintain stocks for ongoingbreeding work.

Europe

In the 1920s the USSR went through a rapidindustrialization of its agricultural sector. Vavilovmade successful collecting expeditions during the1920s and 1930s, not only in the USSR, but alsoin over 50 countries in Asia, the Americas,Northern Africa, Europe and the Mediterraneanbasin. In all, 50,000 seed samples, mainly ofwheat, rye, oat, pea, lentil, chickpea and maize,were collected and provided the basis for the estab-lishment of modern genebanks in the USSR(Plucknett et al., 1987).

Vavilov’s ideas led him to establish the well-known concept of the 12 Vavilovian centres of cropdiversity. Plant breeding approaches after Vavilov’sdeath urged the USSR to collect new material. Inthe early 1960s, Zhukovsky (from the N.I. VavilovAll-Union Scientific Research Institute of PlantIndustry, VIR, Leningrad) complained about thelack of a continuous introduction of new materialof cotton, maize, potato, bean, pumpkin, tomato,pepper, tobacco and groundnut. In fact, despiteVavilov’s efforts the institute’s collections had considerable gaps (especially from Latin America,Australia, the Balkans and the Iberian Peninsula).In the 1960s, Zhukovsky was the only Russian contacting FAO in order to organize expeditions toLatin America to introduce potato species resistantto virus degeneration, races of Phytophthora, nema-todes, Colorado beetle, Epilachna and other pests(Whyte, 1958).

Germplasm activities were also initiated at theInstitut für Kulturpflanzenforschung, founded in1942 at the Tuttenhof domain, near Vienna. Thefirst director was Hans Stubbe. During the SecondWorld War, in 1945, the Institute was moved toQuedlinburg and in 1946 to Gatersleben (GermanDemocratic Republic). In 1948, it was integratedinto the German Academy of Science in Berlin,renamed in 1968 Zentralinstitut für Genetik undKulturpflanzenforschung, under the direction ofRudorf Mansfeld (1949–1960) and S. Danert(1961–1970).

In Western Europe, there was a general need foran international central organization. An attemptto solve the problem of maintaining genetic stocksof potato species and varieties in their originalintegrity and free from diseases was made by theBritish Commonwealth, which had established theCommonwealth Potato Collection (and by theUSA with its IR-1, Inter-Regional PotatoIntroduction Project at Wisconsin). However, forseveral reasons, such as lack of updated reports, andbecause breeders had discarded more promisinglines, this initiative did not work (Hawkes, 1961).

The aforementioned situation was typical forother crops. For example, in Italy, since the begin-ning of the century, the improvement of Triticumspecies was based, by N. Strampelli and later on byothers, on the collection and use of the widegenetic diversity available in landrace populationsand also on distant germplasm, for example fromJapan (Scarascia-Mugnozza and Porceddu, 1972;Porceddu, 1972). This European experience led to

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the conclusion that an international station couldbe the solution to the problem of conservation.

The European Society for Research and PlantBreeding (EUCARPIA) was established in 1956 inthe Netherlands. In the early 1960s it was the firstorganization to promote a collecting network. Itstarted off with a more generalist ecogeographicalorientation (ecoregional genebanks). In 1962, thethird EUCARPIA General Congress, in Paris,emphasized the danger of loss of genetic resources.In 1966, EUCARPIA delegates advised theEuropean plant breeding institutes to start a collabo-ration through regional genebanks on the continent.

The proposal resulted in the establishment ofthe following four sub-regional genebanks:

● North Western Europe. The bank was estab-lished at the former Institute of Crop Scienceand Seed Research of the Federal AgriculturalResearch Centre (FAL) at Braunschweig-Völkenrode, West Germany. Today, thegenebank is part of the Federal Centre forBreeding Research of Cultivated Plants (BAZ).Dieter Bommer was the main initiator.

● Central and Eastern Europe. In the originalplan, more than one genebank would beneeded, for example, in Leningrad (alreadyexisting) and Gatersleben (already existing).Hans Stubbe (1942), O. Schwarz (1946), R.Mansfeld (1949), S. Danert (1961) and C.O.Lehmann (1970) were the main actors.

● Southern Europe, including the Mediterraneanregion. The genebank was established at Bari, Italy.The main instigator was G.T. Scarascia-Mugnozza.

● Scandinavia. The bank was established at Lund,Sweden, as a cooperative effort among theNordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland,Norway and Sweden). The main instigatorswere Ebbe Kjellqvist and Stig Blixt.

Although none of the genebanks acted as a sub-regional centre, they were all very active andsuccessful. In the 1970s, a special section ofEUCARPIA, the Genebank Committee, formallylinked to the section Wild Species and PrimitiveForms, was established (Hawkes was the firstChairman). There were annual meetings of mem-bers and genebank directors from Eastern Europe.

FAO

In the 1950s and early 1960s, the other major actorin the conservation of genetic resources was FAO.

Several World Catalogues of Genetic Stocks (wheat,rice, maize, barley) were set up in the late 1950s,while the FAO Plant Introduction Newsletter wasseen as a key initiative and intermediary betweenbreeders of the world. In the 1960s, the FAO Plantand Protection Service dealt with a continuousstream of enquiries for samples of seed or vegetativematerial for use by breeders. FAO genetic resourcespolicies show a significant distinction betweenplanning and actual programming. A strong call forimmediate action in conservation, particularly forlandraces and wild relatives, had already been madeduring the 10th Session of the FAO Conference inRome, November 1959. The need for a truly inter-governmental initiative to streamline germplasmconservation and distribution was recognized dur-ing the 1961 Technical Meeting on PlantExploration and Introduction, but was not workedout during later years. The dominance of breedersin the 1960s had a double impact: (i) conservationand use were closely linked; and (ii) storage in thefirst instance took place in industrialized countriesand was tied to plant breeding institutes. Naturally,the history of FAO in the collection and exchangeof germplasm is much richer in events (Pistorius,1997