Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting: The annual meeting was held 26 July 2011 at the South Dakota State University West River Ag Center in Rapid City, SD. Arvid Boe served as meeting chair and Heathcliffe Riday served as meeting secretary. Research reports were given by lead investigators and cooperators, if present. Discussion focused on: 1) identifying those collaborative research projects that were completed during the past year and the status of manuscripts in preparation that will report the results and impacts of those studies, and 2) the present status and future direction of ongoing collaborative research projects. Accomplishments Objective 1: Evaluate new plant characters and develop germplasm and cultivars with these characters to improve perennial forage species as livestock feed and biofuel uses to enhance rural vitality and promote more secure energy sources. 1.1 Alfalfa 1.1.1. Identification of traits useful for improving M. sativa ssp. falcata germplasm. Lead: Brummer, Noble Fnd. Cooperating Locations: AFCSF, NGPRL, SD, and FRRL. This project was completed and a manuscript is in preparation. At FRRL selections were made for vigor, growth habit and forage yield. Progeny were established in spaced-plant nurseries at two locations in 2010 and data were collected on vigor, growth habit, and yield in 2011. 1.1.2. Genetics and improvement of naturalized alfalfa (M.sativa subsp. falcata). Lead: Boe, SDSU. Cooperating Locations: GA, NGPRL, and FRRL. Boe has data from half-sib family evaluations in IA, ND, SD, and UT. This project was completed and a manuscript is in preparation. Selections from naturalized population are being evaluated under grazing in inter-seeded rangeland in northwestern SD. At FRRL data were collected in 2011on progenies of plants selected for vigor, growth habit, and forage yield in 2010. 1.1.3 Breeding alfalfa for resistance to alfalfa snout beetle. Lead: Viands, NY. Cooperating locations: other alfalfa researchers. Problem is primarily in NY, but is spreading slowly. Progress has been made from 8 cycles of selection in the greenhouse. Field trials were established 2 yrs ago in NY. Significant increases in resistance have been realized from recurrent phenotypic selection in some populations. In 2009 and 2011, these populations were planted in replicated plot trials on land naturally infested with alfalfa snout beetle. Yield, plant stand, and root damage from alfalfa snout beetles will be determined this year. This field research will allow comparison of the later cycles of selection to Cycle 0 to determine if the breeding efforts under greenhouse conditions translate into differences in forage yield and plant stand in the field. When the 2009 trial was harvested in late June 2011, the alfalfa populations with the highest cycles of selection appeared greener and more vigorous than the non-selected populations. Seed of two of the alfalfa populations with the highest level of resistance is being produced by a commercial company this year in anticipation that one or both will be released as our first cultivar with at least moderate level of resistance. After developing plant populations with resistance, NE-1010 participants will evaluate these populations for yield and persistence at multiple field locations. This project was described to seed company representatives and seed producers during a field tour in March and July 2011. 1.1.4 Developing alfalfa germplasm with potato leafhopper resistance from three diverse genetic sources. Lead: Viands, NY. Cooperating locations: Noble, SD. Glandular hair x diploid falcata (SD 201) x Peruvian were made in NY. The goal of this project is to develop germplasm with multiple mechanisms for more stable resistance to potato leafhopper (PLH). Seed of Medicago sativa ssp. falcata SD201, which was selected for resistance to PLH in SD, subsequently was selected for resistance in NY. These selected plants were pollinated by hand as 2x X 4x crosses, using pollen from NY germplasm that had been selected for resistance to this insect. The NY germplasm originated from glandular trichome sources crossed with Peruvian germplasm that had been selected for resistance to PLH. The cross with the SD germplasm created an alfalfa population presumably with three distinct sources of resistance in one plant population. The five hybrid plants from these crosses were intercrossed by hand, followed by a second generation of intercrossing to accomplish genetic recombination. Seed was sent to the cooperators for establishing field nurseries in 2004. Each nursery was established with about 1000 plants at each cooperating location to begin three cycles of recurrent phenotypic selection for resistance. Plants appearing to be resistant to PLH from NY and from IA were intercrossed as separate populations in the greenhouse during the winter of 2006-07. A field nursery for the third cycle of selection was established in NY in June 2010. Individual plants will be evaluated for plant vigor, lodging resistance, and freedom of symptoms due to PLH in 2011 and 2012. 1.16. Aluminum tolerance in tetraploid alfalfa. Lead, Acharya, AFCL. Cooperating locations: NY, AFCCH, Noble. From Phase I we were able to complete the selection and produced half-sib seeds from the selected plants from each of four starting parent synthetics (LRC9695PG-1, NA90-1002, NY9627, and LRCAT04-01). Phase II was initiated in 2010. In Phase II we are evaluating the performance of off-springs on acidic soils in Kentville, Lethbridge and Ithaca. Phase II will include two experiments. Experiment 1 was initiated in the spring of 2010 (see above). In experiment 1 we are currently completing the assessment of heritability of acid tolerance in alfalfa. Due to lack of sufficient seeds, experiment 2 will be initiated in 2012 (Kentville, Lethbridge, Ithaca and Athens) and evaluate alfalfa response to selection for acid tolerance under field conditions in four diverse regions. In NY, the first cycle of selection for acid tolerance in all the cooperators alfalfa populations had been completed in a field nursery in 2008. A field experiment with half sib progenies was established in 2010 to determine heritability for this trait. For each of three harvests, individual plants are being visually scored in 2011 for vigor and plant color, and the half-sib rows are being harvested for forage yield. 1.2. Birdsfoot Trefoil 1.2.1 Rhizomatous birdsfoot trefoil for yield improvement. Lead: Riday, USDFRC. Cooperating locations: NY, SD, AFCCH. Riday is evaluating half-sib families from a Czechoslovakian population. NY has been selecting birdsfoot trefoil for rhizomes and plant vigor in germplasm developed in MO by crossing rhizomatous germplasm with NY germplasm (a precursor of Pardee trefoil). We completed the fourth cycle of selection in 2010, but the vigor of this population is still low; therefore, we are backcrossing the Cycle 4 plants to advanced germplasm from Pardee, followed by more selection for plant vigor and rhizome production. 1.2.2 Single-row plot evaluation of birdsfoot trefoil for vigor. Lead: Peel, FRRL. Cooperating locations: MN, NY, AFCCH, USDFRLThis trial was established at Nappan, Nova Scotia in the spring of 2010. During the first production year, plots were harvested (first cut) on June 22, 2011. In spring 2010 NY established a replicated plot trial with 17 birdsfoot trefoil populations. These populations were evaluated for vigor, plant stand, and diseases in 2011, and data will continue to be collected during subsequent production years. This trial was re-established in 2010, following a failure in 2009, at Utah State Universities Pasture research facility as a seeded plot for forage yield and in a separate trial for grazing tolerance. It has been harvested once in 2011, and the second trial is being grazed with cattle. 1.5 Multiple Species 1.5.1 Selection of fiber digestibility and cell wall pectin. Lead: Viands, NY. Cooperating locations: AFCSF, USDFRC. Data reported previously indicate that neutral detergent soluble fiber (NDSF) concentration (pectin) can be increased in alfalfa forage by phenotypic selection, resulting in higher forage digestibility. Based on this research, we selected plants higher in NDSF and NDF (neutral detergent fiber) concentrations. In 2008, NY released a new alfalfa cultivar N-R-GEE, which was the result of two cycles of selection for higher pectin concentration. According to a Cornell computer model, this cultivar was predicted to produce 25 pounds more milk per dry ton of forage and 1,759 pounds more milk per acre than WL 322 HQ. In 2009, we established a small field of N-R-GEE (higher pectin) and Vernal (lower pectin) to compare these two cultivars for the effects on weight gain in sheep feeding trials. Sheep weight gain is correlated to cow milk production. Hay baled in 2010 was fed to sheep during a 38-day feeding trail in spring 2011. Data on weight gain of sheep will be analyzed to compare the two cultivars later in 2011. Selection for pectin and other quality components will continue on alfalfa populations in 2011, and a new field nursery was established in 2011 to continue selection in subsequent years in additional plant populations. 1.5.2 Grass-grass and grass-forb mixtures for long-term sustainable biomass. Lead: Ehlke, MN. Cooperating locations: SD. Ehlke reported that this project was terminated due to resignation of a graduate student. Data collected prior to resignation will be analyzed and manuscripts will be prepared. 1.5.3 Red Clover: Marker-assisted selection. Lead: Riday, USDFRL. Cooperating locations: AFCNS, Noble, and Europeans. Markers are being developed. 1.6 White Clover: Marker-assisted selection. Lead Brummer, Noble. Cooperating locations: USDFRL. Five hundred half-sib families were evaluated. Additional research is uncertain at this time. 1.7 Kura Clover: Vigor and spreadability. Lead: Ehlke, MN. Cooperating locations: FRRL, USDFRL. Selections from multiple cycles are being evaluated in MN, UT, and WI. Additional testing at multiple locations may justify release of one or more cultivars. Objective 2: Build on previous research to evaluate additional breeding methods for improving yield and persistence of alfalfa, red clover, orchardgrass, and other forage species to make production agriculture more economical and sustainable. 2.1 Alfalfa 2.1.1 Comparison of mass, S1, and S2 selection in alfalfa. Lead: Hansen and Viands, NY. Cooperating locations: AFCSF, AFCL, AFCSK, GA, MN. Synthetic 2 seed of alfalfa populations selected by the mass, S1 and S2 methods was planted in yield trials in 2006 at multiple locations in North America to determine progress from selection for yield during three production years. Third production year data were collected in 2009 at both NY and MN. Preliminary data analyses were done and reported at the North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference in Boise, ID in 2010. This project has been completed, and a manuscript will be prepared in the future. 2.1.2. Replicated clonal selection from improving forage yield of alfalfa. Lead: Viands, NY. Cooperating locations: AFSSF, GA, AFCL. A broad-based alfalfa population was developed by two generations of random mating among Seedway 9558 (from NY), 5454 (sent by IA), and SF 9001=AC Viva (from AFCSF). For each of three harvests in each of two production years (2005 and 2006), data were recorded for the number of plants, forage yield, and disease symptoms. Cooperators sent their data to NY, and the highest yielding genotypes (10% = 20 genotypes) across all the locations were selected. Seed was produced on these plants in the greenhouse in 2008. A population at each location also was developed from the same germplasm using mass selection. In 2009, 200 random plants from the Cycle 1 clonal population were cloned to establish nurseries for the second cycle of selection in spring 2009. Data on the second production year are being collected in 2011. 2.2 Orchardgrass 2.2.1. Clonal selection in orchard grass for broad adaptation. Lead: Phillips, KY. Cooperating locations: GA, AFCL, AFCSF, AFCSK, FRRL, SD, Noble. Clones have not been successfully propagated. Evaluation will begin when adequate clonal replicates are produced. 2.2.2. Non-heading orchardgrass research. Lead: Casler, USDFRL. Cooperating locations. AFCSK, AFCL, AFCSF, AFCNS, FRRL, ID, MN, KY, WV, NY, Newfoundland. Project was completed and manuscripts are in preparation. 2.3 Red Clover 2.3.1. Selection for general adaptation in red clover. Lead: Papadopoulos, AFCCH. Cooperating locations: NY, AFCL, AFCSF, AFCSK, SD, KY, GA, USDFRC. Phase III of this project was initiated during 2007 winter. Up to 100 plants from each location were selected and inter-crossed to produce Syn. 1 seed. Seven of the cooperating sites successfully completed plant selection to initiate Phase III: AFCSF lost all plants due to severe 2006/2007 winterkill; IA plots were accidentally plowed; KY lost all plants during the first production year. Crossing of the seven populations (AFCCH, AFCSK, AFCL, AFCA, NY, USDFRC, SD), using bumble bees and leafcutter bees, was initiated in a diallel mating design (in Nova Scotia and Idaho). A total of 28 populations (seven populations selected from each cooperating site and 21 pairwise population crosses) were developed in 2008, 2009 and 2010. For each pairwise cross, 50 plants were chosen at random from each of the two populations. We are anticipating completing the required seed production during the winter and summer of 2011 and initiating Phase IV in 2012. 2.3.2. Selection for persistence in red clover using half-sib families. Lead: Riday, USDFRL. Cooperating locations: GA, SD, AFCCH. Project completed. Seed produced on selections in WI (Syn. 2 seed from AFCCH and WI) will be used to establish trials in future. In Charlottetown, three populations were selected in the fall of 2007; TRC07-101, TRC07-102 (based on best plant in best family performance) and TRC07-103 (based on most vigorous plants in the fall of 2007). The seed production of Syn. 1 from the three selected populations is currently underway in cages using bumble bees and leafcutter bees. We anticipate completing the crossing during the winter of 2011. 2.4. Legume/Grass Mixtures: Compatibility of legumes with various grasses. Lead: Peel, FRRL. Cooperating locations. AFCCH, AFCL, GA, MN, NY, USDA-MN. Peel has SARE grant for this research and is looking at 25%, 50%, and 75% legume composition. Lamb is directing grass/alfalfa mixtures biomass trials at MN, WI, and SD. Robins is evaluating 24 cultivars of orchardgrass in monocultures and mixtures with alfalfa in UT, to determine economic return from N fertilizer vs. biological N fixation from alfalfa. 2.5. Red Clover Biofuels: Lead: Papadopoulos, AFCNS. Initial study included mixtures with grasses and several combinations of red clover and grasses that were identified as having potential for biofuels. Based on those results, a new study was initiated in 2011. 2.6. Methods to improve reed canarygrass: Lead, Casler, USDFRL. Collections have been made from populations across much of North America. Evaluations of molecular and phenotypic genetic variation are ongoing. Objective 3: Evaluate new experimental populations and cultivars of perennial forage species for characteristics necessary for breeders, seed companies, seed and forage producers, and crop consultants to make decisions on commercial use over large regions. 3.1 Alfalfa 3.1.1. Evaluation of new M. sativa subsp. falcata populations. Lead: Peel, FRRL. Cooperating locations: AFCSF, AFCL, NGPRL, SD. New trials will be established as new populations are developed from breeding programs. New populations recently developed in SD, UT, and WI will be available for multiple-site testing after adequate seed supplies are generated. 3.1.2. Hybrid alfalfa yield evaluation: Lead: Riday, USDFRL. Cooperating locations. USDA-MN, GA, NY, FRRL, SD. Project completed. Data from all locations were sent to Riday, and a manuscript is in preparation. 3.1.4. Evaluation of salt tolerant alfalfa. Lead: Acharya, AFCL. Cooperating locations: FRRL. This project will be developed after more salinity studies are completed during 2011. 3.3 Multiple Species 3.3.1. Biomass alfalfa/grass mixture evaluation. Lead: Lamb USDA-ARS, Cooperating locations SD, USDFRC. Biomass and species composition data were collected during 2010 and 2011. Biomass yield data and plant samples for species composition analysis will be sent to Lamb after the second harvest in autumn 2011. 3.4 Meadow and hybrid bromegrass: Evaluation of meadow and hybrid bromegrasses. Lead: Coulman, Univ. Sask. Cooperating locations: AFCSF, AFCCH, SD, USDFRL. Evaluation of five meadow brome and two hybrid brome synthetic populations selected at five locations began in 2011. Replicated trials at these five locations in USA and Canada will provide data to support potential germplasm or cultivar release. 3.5 Red Clover Evaluation: Lead: Papadopoulos, AFCCH. Cooperating locations: AFCSF, AFCSK, AFCL, NY, USDFRL, SD. Study was completed and manuscript is in preparation. 3.6 Tall Fescue 3.6.1. Selection for persistence in the Coastal Plain area. Lead: Brummer, Noble. Cooperating locations: KY, FRRL, Noble. This project is in development. New Projects: Discussion of new projects focused primarily on the inclusion of collaborative research on bioenergy crop genetics, breeding, production, and management. It was decided that specific objectives would be developed at the 2012 meeting. Since most of the committee members are actively involved in bioenergy crop breeding and evaluation, primarily with native and introduced perennial grasses, biomass production and other agronomic data collected by committee members in their respective regions over the past 10 years will provide a basis for developing strong collaborative long-term multistate research projects. These projects will generate new knowledge as to the range of adaptation of current experimental populations and cultivars in a wide range of environmental settings in North America and thus lead to collaborative development of new high-biomass-yielding cultivars with wider adaptation than those presently available (e.g., some of the highest yielding families of switchgrass presently under evaluation in the northern Great Plains were developed by selection for biomass production in Wisconsin within natural populations from Wisconsin). Election of Officers and Meeting Place in 2012: Riday was elected Secretary for 2012. The 2012 meeting will be held in Ithaca, NY in conjunction with the NAAIC, Grass Breeders, and Trifolium Conference meetings in early July.

Objective 1: a) More than 200 accessions and a naturalized rangeland population of alfalfa (Medicago sativa ssp. falcata) were evaluated for forage yield, pest resistance, and adaptation for 3 years in the Intermountain West, Northern Great Plains, Midwest, and eastern Canada. Those collaborative studies have produced genetic information on agronomic traits in this germplasm (manuscripts in preparation), and selected populations are being tested for potential cultivar development. b) Eight cycles of selection for resistance to snout beetle in the greenhouse produced two populations of alfalfa (Medicago sativa ssp. sativa) currently being evaluated in the Northeast in fields with high natural infestations of snout beetle. It is anticipated that one or both will be released as cultivars after adequate testing by NE 1010 participants at multiple locations. c) Mode of gene action and heritability of tolerance to toxic levels of aluminum is being determined for alfalfa in field nurseries in high-aluminum soils at diverse locations in Canada and USA. Results obtained over the next 2 to 3 years will provide the genetic information necessary to design the appropriate selection schemes for developing tolerant populations. d) Three different sources of resistance (two tetraploid and one diploid) to potato leafhopper were combined by hand pollination in the greenhouse in a population of alfalfa, and the third cycle of selection for resistance is being evaluated in the field. e) Progress was made in the introgression of rhizomatous growth habit into birdsfoot trefoil. Agronomic potential is being improved by backcrossing to an elite non-rhizomatous cultivar, Pardee, followed by additional cycles of recurrent selection. f) Several promising birdsfoot trefoil populations are being evaluated for multiple years under hay and grazing systems for forage production and persistence. g) Recurrent selection is ongoing for increasing pectin concentration and fiber digestibility in alfalfa. Objective 2: a) Seven synthetic populations and 21 pairwise population crosses of red clover were developed by intercrossing selected plants from field nurseries for each of four locations in Canada and three locations in USA. Those populations are currently in the seed increase phase for testing in multiple environments to determine ranges of adaptation for each population. In addition, selection among and within families for improved persistence also is ongoing within three of these recently developed populations. Objective 3: a) The first multiple-location and multiple-year evaluation of Medicago sativa ssp. falcata x M. sativa ssp. sativa crosses and their parents compared with elite alfalfa cultivar checks was completed and a manuscript is in preparation. b) Seed was produced from intercrossing selected genotypes from replicated forage production trials composed of two cultivars each of meadow and hybrid (smooth bromegrass x meadow bromegrass), one cultivar of smooth bromegrass, five experimental populations of meadow bromegrass, and two experimental populations of hybrid bromegrass conducted at three locations in Canada and two locations in USA. Syn. 1 seed from seven populations was planted at five locations, and data collection will begin in 2012.

Hansen, J.L., and D. Viands. 2010. Alfalfa variety comparison. University of Wisconsin Agriculture & Natural Resources. Editors Undersander, D., and K. Silveira. http://www.uwex.edu/ces/ag/alfalfa/index.cfm Hansen, J.L, D.R. Viands, R. Deubler, J. Crawford, and J. Schiller. 2010. New York forage legume and grass variety yield trials summary for 2010 - season totals http://plbrgen.cals.cornell.edu/cals/pbg/programs/departmental/forage/foragetest.cfm Lui, X., Y. Wei, K.J. Moore, R. Michaud, D. Viands, J.L. Hansen, and C. Brummer. 2011. Association mapping of biomass yield and stem composition in a tetraploid alfalfa breeding population. The Plant Genome, 10.3835/plantgenome2010.09.0022. Mayton, H.S., J.L. Hansen, P. Salon, L. Fink, J. Crawford, R. Crawford, and D.R. Viands. 2010. Yield and quality of perennial warm season grasses for bioenergy feedstock in response to inorganic nitrogen fertilizer in New York State. ASA Meeting 31 Oct. 31  4 Nov. 2010. Long Beach, CA. Agron. Abstr. ASA Madison, WI. http://a-c-s.confex.com/crops/2010am/webprogram/Paper59455.html Mayton, H.S., J. Hansen, R. Crawford, J. Crawford, and D. Viands. 2011. Field-scale yield of switchgrass under varying nitrogen management treatments in New York State. ASA Meeting. 16-19 October 2011. San Antonio, TX. Agron. Abstr. ASA Madison, WI. http://ncsungrant1.sdstate.org/upload/FeedstockStatusReport_ExecutiveSummary33111.pdf Miller-Garvin, J.E., J.L. Hansen, N.J. Ehlke, Y.A. Papdopoulos, R.R. Smith, G.C. Bergstrom, M.J. Wunsch, D.W. Kalb, B.P. Tillapaugh, J.L. Crawford, and D.R. Viands. 2011. Improving birdsfoot trefoil for resistance to Fusarium wilt. Crop Sci. 51:585-591. Owens, V.N., C. Hong, E. Heaton, J. Fike, D. Viands, R. Farris, R. Mitchell, and D. Bransky. Biomass resource development of herbaceous energy crops. In Regional Biomass Feedstock Partnership Status Report. Sun Grant/Dept. of EnergyOffice of Biomass Programs. pp. 15-18. http://ncsungrant1.sdstate.org/upload/FeedstockStatusReport_ExecutiveSummary33111.pdf [not NE-1010 research, but related] Viands, D.R., E.J. Shields, J. Crawford, A. Testa, and J. Hansen. 2010. Northern New York Agricultural Development Program 2008-2009 Project Report. Breeding Alfalfa Varieties with Resistance to Alfalfa Snout Beetle. http://www.nnyagdev.org/_fieldcrops.htm#Alfalfa