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Farmer Participatory Crop Improvement. I. Varietal Selection and Breeding Methods and Their Impact on Biodiversity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 October 2008

J. R. Witcombe ,
A. Joshi ,
K. D. Joshi  and
B. R. Sthapit
J. R. Witcombe*
Affiliation:
Centre for Arid Zone Studies, University of Wales Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2UW, UK
A. Joshi
Affiliation:
Krishak Bharati Cooperative Indo British Rainfed Farming Project (KRIBP), Dahod, Gujarat, 389151, India
K. D. Joshi
Affiliation:
Lumle Agricultural Research Centre, PO Box 1, Pokhara, Nepal
B. R. Sthapit
Affiliation:
Lumle Agricultural Research Centre, PO Box 1, Pokhara, Nepal
*
† Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
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Summary

Farmer participatory approaches for the identification or breeding of improved crop cultivars can be usefully categorized into participatory varietal selection (PVS) and participatory plant breeding (PPB). Various PVS and PPB methods are reviewed. PVS is a more rapid and cost-effective way of identifying farmer-preferred cultivars if a suitable choice of cultivars exists. If this is impossible, then the more resource-consuming PPB is required. PPB can use, as parents, cultivars that were identified in successful PVS programmes. Compared with conventional plant breeding, PPB is more likely to produce farmer-acceptable products, particularly for marginal environments. The impact of farmer participatory research on biodiversity is considered. The long-term effect of PVS is to increase biodiversity, but where indigenous variability is high it can also reduce it. PPB has a greater effect on increasing biodiversity although its impact may be limited to smaller areas. PPB can be a dynamic form of in situ genetic conservation.

Type
Research Article
Information
Experimental Agriculture , Volume 32 , Issue 4 , October 1996 , pp. 445 - 460
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

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