SBARE New & Emerging
Crops Committee Meeting
North Dakota State
University, Morrill Hall 5A
The State Board of Agricultural Research and Education’s New & Emerging Crops Granting Committee meeting was called to order at 10 a.m. Voting members present were Steve Enger, Bob Landman, Holly Mawby and Cal Hoff. Non-voting members present were Blaine Schatz and Dr. Burton Johnson. Also present was Lori Capouch.
The meeting began with presentations of the proposals under
consideration.
Sweet potato
variety selection and date of planting
Researcher: Lorna
Bradbury
Amount requested: $4,778
(year 1 of 2)
This project will
evaluate several varieties of short season sweet potatoes to determine if they
are capable of producing a crop in western North Dakota’s climate. One variety,
which has already shown some promise, is Georgia Jet. That variety will be planted at several
different dates in May and June to determine the best time to plant sweet
potatoes in western North Dakota.
Camelina variety performance
trials in North Dakota
Researcher: Burton
Johnson
Amount requested: $4,500
(year 2 of 2)
Camelina is a potential crop that could quickly become an alternative oilseed crop in North Dakota. Camelina crop performance needs to be determined through research to make production the most successful across the state. This research will document variety performance at different regions of the state.
Seeding date
determination for selected new pulses and grain legumes in North Dakota
Researchers: Burton
Johnson
Amount requested: $3,000
(year 1 of 2)
This research will
identify optimum seeding date for selected pulses and legumes not commercially
grown for production in North Dakota. Determination of proper seeding date for
new crops introduced into a growing region is essential for optimizing crop
performance and sustainability.
Screening potential
new pulses and grain legumes for adaptation in North Dakota
Researchers: Burton
Johnson
Amount requested: $3,000
(year 1 of 2)
This research will
identify new pulses/grain legumes showing adaptation to North Dakota and the
region. This will have the potential to
increase pulse/grain legume diversity and production, and contribute to greater
economic return to producers as the state’s pulse industry continues to evolve.
Developing natural
herbicide tolerance and resistance in lentil
Researchers: Kevin McPhee
Amount requested $5,900
(year 1 of 2)
Individual breeding lines of lentil will be selected for tolerance and resistance to herbicides targeting broad leaf weed species. As lentils are broadleaf plants, they are susceptible to many of the most effective chemicals available. Genetic resistance to these chemicals will allow the lentil breeding program to develop varieties that are resistant to these chemicals making them available for application during the lentil growing season.
Utilizing pruning, thinning, and leaf pulling to ripen
grapes in North Dakota
Researcher: Harlene Hatterman-Valenti
Amount requested: $9,533 (year 1 of 3)
This project will determine the effects of variable numbers
of nodes retained per vine, cluster thinning, and leaf pulling on vine growth,
fruit yield and composition, and shoot lignifications for the main cultivar
grown by three North Dakota grape growers that are in separate growing degree
day regions (base 50) according to 30 year average data by NDAWN.
Development of
grape varieties in North Dakota – germplasm collection and evaluation
Researcher: Harlene
Hatterman-Valenti & Wenhao Dai
Amount requested: $10,563
(year 2 of 2)
In this project,
researchers will evaluate North Dakota native grape germplasm and other
introduced grape materials to develop new grape cultivars or breeding materials
which are winter hardy, good fruit quality, tolerant to drought and alkaline
soil and ideal for grape production in this region. Overall, this project has
the potential to increase grape production, which will benefit all North
Dakotans and enhance the quality of life in communities and family farms.
Field evaluation of
X-disease resistant chokecherry lines for small fruit production in North
Dakota
Researcher: Deying
Li
Amount requested: $8,188
(year1 of 3)
In this project
researchers will select 20 X-disease resistant chokecherry hybrids for field
test to confirm the X-disease resistance and to evaluate yield and fruit
quality under the field condition. Researchers are expecting to release three
to five new chokecherry cultivars in three to five years. Overall, this project
has a great potential to increase production of small fruit trees and conserve
natural resources, which will benefit all North Dakotans and enhance the
quality of life in communities and family farms.
Identification and collection of xeriscape grasses for
saline soil in North Dakota
Researcher: Qi
(Chee) Zhang
Amount requested:
$8,720 (year 1 of 2)
Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis) is the most common turfgrass species use in North Dakota because of its fine leaf texture, dark green color and superior freezing tolerance. It requires frequent irrigation and fertilization to remain functional and maintain its aesthetic qualities under intense use. Furthermore, Kentucky bluegrass is sensitive to drought and saline conditions which are common problems throughout North Dakota. Kentucky bluegrass typically exhibits poor establishment, stunted growth, and leaf chlorosis under stress (e.g., drought, salinity, low fertilization), re-establishment may be necessary under severe conditions. With increasing environmental and economical concerns on turfgrass management, there is interest to identify xeriscape grasses wit h high drought and salt tolerance and low management requirement to replace Kentucky bluegrass for low-maintenance areas, such as low budget residential home lawn, golf course rough, and roadside. Buffalograss, blue grama, alkaligrass, and prairie junegrass are native grasses of the Northern Great Plains which have shown potential to be used as turfgrass. Several turf-type cultivars of the aforementioned native species have been released with finer leaf textures and a higher tolerance of frequent mowing. However limited information is available on the stress tolerance when the aforementioned native species managed under turfgrass condition. Furthermore, no management recommendations have been developed on establishing and managing native grass species as low-input turf. Therefore, researchers are proposing greenhouse and field studies to identify drought and saline tolerant native grasses that can be used in low-input turf management regimes in North Dakota.
Development of a tritipyrum doubled haploid population
with durum wheat and Thinoprum distichum genomes
Researcher:
G.F. Marais
Amount requested:
$12,620 (year 1 of 2)
Thinopyrum species are a valuable source of new useful traits for the continued genetic improvement of small grain cereals. These include both simply inherited traits such as resistance to pests that are easier to transfer and complex multigenic traits (such as salt and drought tolerance) that are extremely difficult to transfer,. A very specific genetic mapping population is being developed which will consist of hybrids between cultivated wheat and the wild maritime grass, Th distichum The 42 chromosomes of the hybrids (called tritipyrums) will consist of 28 wheat (genus Triticum) and 14 Thinopyrum chromosomes. The Thinopyrum chromosomes in each tritipyrum line will constitute a balanced set which will, however, be highly diverse in terms of the combinations of alien chromosomes it contain. The purpose of the population will be two-fold: first, to use it as a tool to systematically study, map, access, and transfer the useful genes contained in this grass species. Second, the tritipyrum lines will be evaluated agronomically to determine its merit for further development as a hardy new cultivated crop.
The committee held a discussion regarding the proposals. Due to a conflict of interest, Dr. Johnson excused himself from this portion of the meeting. Dr. Schatz remained to answer any technical questions and excused himself prior to the committee members’ ranking the projects.
Following the discussion, the voting committee members ranked the proposals to determine priority.
It was moved by Mawby
and seconded by Landman to grant negotiated funding as follows:
The motion carried
unanimously.
It was moved by
Hoffman and seconded by Landman to grant negotiated funding as follows:
The motion carried unanimously.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.