1Dept. of Plant Breeding, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India
2International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, Mexico D.F., Mexico.
The paper was prepared during the period of appointment as Visiting Professor with the Ohio State University, U.S.A.
The pollination systems of crop plants can be altered by using genetic tools. Any change in the pollination system of a naturally self-fertilized crop which would facilitate outcrossing offers unlimited scope for gene recombination and population improvement. It has been suggested that genetic male sterility should be employed in wheat to create germ plasm composites simulating random mating populations. Selection in such populations will lead to more efficient utilization of additive genetic variance for variety improvement and for the intensification of specific characteristics. A scheme has been outlined for establishing two source populations for the isolation of improved male sterile seed parents and their pollinators in a hybrid breeding programme. These source populations would be amenable to reciprocal recurrent selection aiming to exploit additive as well as non-additive variance in the development of hybrids.
