The most important evolutionary event in the success of commercial tea cultivation outside China in ~30 countries came about by the origin of India hybrid tea in India, derived from the extensive spontaneous hybridization ...

Maize (Zea mays L. ssp. mays) was domesticated from one wild species ancestor, the Balsas teosinte (Zea mays ssp. parviglumis) about 9000 years ago. Higher levels of gene diversity are found in teosinte taxa compared to ...

Whereas breeders have exploited diversity in maize for yield improvements, there has been limited progress in using beneficial alleles in undomesticated varieties. Characterizing standing variation in this complex genome ...

After drought, a major challenge to smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa is low-fertility soils with poor nitrogen (N)-supplying capacity. Many challenges in this region need to be overcome to create a viable fertilizer ...

Association mapping is a powerful approach for exploring the molecular basis of phenotypic variations in plants. A maize (Zea mays L.) association mapping panel including 527 inbred lines with tropical, subtropical and ...

Molecular breeding for complex traits in crop plants requires understanding and manipulation of many factors influencing plant growth, development and responses to an array of biotic and abiotic stresses. Molecular ...

Efficient production and use of doubled haploid lines can greatly accelerate genetic gains in maize breeding programs. One of the critical steps in standard doubled haploid line production is doubling the haploid genome ...

Maize is the most cultivated cereal in Africa in terms of land area and production, but low soil nitrogen availability often constrains yields. Developing new maize varieties with high and reliable yields using traditional ...