Abstract
Increases in biomass yield of switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum L.) have been achieved, but the rate of gain has been slow and would benefit from improved efficiency of selection methods. Dry matter (DM) determinations at the time of harvest are a traditional method to adjust fresh matter yield (FMY) to a DM basis. The purpose of this study was to determine if DM determinations in switchgrass yield evaluations are necessary or unnecessary. Data from 219 trial‐years of 11 published experiments were used to evaluate the value of DM adjustment. Heritability for FMY and dry biomass yield (DBY) were similar, and the genetic correlation between these two traits was >0.8 for 96.7% of the trial‐years. The direct effect of FMY on DBY was three to four times greater than the direct effect of DM concentration. Because DM determination requires a larger field crew at the time of harvest, the use of FMY as a selection criterion requires significantly less labor than DBY at harvest time. Tripling the number of families evaluated and eliminating the DM step would increase the expected genetic gain for DBY by 17%. However, decreasing the number of replicates per family while eliminating the DM step would undermine the gains in efficiency due to reduced heritability for FMY. Although the risk of using FMY is low, achieving this increase in efficiency requires a serious commitment to evaluating a very large number of replicated families in each generation, an effort that may be beyond the ability and scope of most breeding programs.
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Claims 6
Claim · model-written summary
Heritability of fresh and dry biomass yields was similar.
- Taxon
- switchgrass
Panicum virgatumt0 - Outcome
- Heritability for FMY and dry biomass yield (DBY)e0
- Direction
- similare0
- Comparator
- dry biomass yield (DBY)e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“Heritability for FMY and dry biomass yield (DBY) were similar”
Claim · model-written summary
Genetic correlation between fresh and dry biomass yield exceeded 0.8 in 96.7% of trial years.
- Taxon
- switchgrassPanicum virgatumt0
- Outcome
- genetic correlatione0
- Value
- >0.8e0
- Qualifier
- 96.7% of the trial‐yearse0
- Comparator
- these two traitse0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“the genetic correlation between these two traits was >0.8 for 96.7% of the trial‐years”
Claim · model-written summary
The direct effect of fresh matter yield on dry biomass yield was three to four times that of dry matter concentration.
- Taxon
- switchgrassPanicum virgatumt0
- Outcome
- direct effect of FMY on DBYe0
- Direction
- greatere0
- Value
- three to four timese0
- Comparator
- direct effect of DM concentratione0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“The direct effect of FMY on DBY was three to four times greater than the direct effect of DM concentration.”
Claim · model-written summary
Selecting on fresh matter yield requires significantly less harvest labor than selecting on dry biomass yield.
- Taxon
- switchgrassPanicum virgatumt0
- Outcome
- labore0
- Direction
- lesse0
- Comparator
- DBYe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“the use of FMY as a selection criterion requires significantly less labor than DBY at harvest time”
Claim · model-written summary
Tripling evaluated families and eliminating dry matter determination was expected to increase genetic gain for dry biomass yield by 17%.
- Taxon
- switchgrassPanicum virgatumt0
- Treatment
- Tripling the number of families evaluated and eliminating the DM stepe0
- Outcome
- expected genetic gain for DBYe0
- Direction
- increasee0
- Value
- 17%e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“Tripling the number of families evaluated and eliminating the DM step would increase the expected genetic gain for DBY by 17%”
Claim · model-written summary
Reducing family replicates while eliminating dry matter determination undermined efficiency gains through lower fresh matter yield heritability.
- Taxon
- switchgrassPanicum virgatumt0
- Outcome
- gains in efficiencye0
- Direction
- underminee0
- Comparator
- reduced heritability for FMYe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“switchgrass”
e0“decreasing the number of replicates per family while eliminating the DM step would undermine the gains in efficiency due to reduced heritability for FMY”