TEXAS A&M PLANT BREEDING Bulletin September 2011 COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND LIFE SCIENCES Department of Soil and Crop Sciences Academic & Student Advising Office Texas AgriLife Research recently released new and improved cultivars of peanut and Hibiscus, and unique germplasm lines of upland cotton. Tamrun OL 11 peanut cultivar was developed by Michael Baring (pictured), Charles Simpson, and Mark Burow and released as a high yielding, high oleic, runner-type peanut (Arachis hypogaea L. Subsp. hypogaea var. hypogaea) cultivar. This new high oleic cultivar has resistant to Sclerotinia minor Jaggar and exhibits improved grade attributes relative to previous Sclerotinia resistant runner-type cultivars. This improved high oleic peanut cultivar was tested in 25 trials between 2006 and 2009. It performed equal to the Sclerotinia resistant Tamrun OL 07 and superior to the widely grown Flavor Runner 458 cultivar for yield and disease resistance under heavy Sclerotinia incidence. It also performed equal to Flavor runner 458 and superior to Tamrun OL07 for TSMK percentages. Tamrun OL11 will perform equal to or better than the high grading Flavor Runner 458 under disease-free culture and consistently better under conditions of severe Sclerotinia blight. Tamrun OL11 is not resistant to TSWV and is being released with the intentions of being grown in the West Texas growing region where little to no TSWV is present, but Sclerotinia is of concern to the growers. The West Texas peanut production region has grown over 75% of the state s total peanut acreage during the past decade and Flavor Runner 458 has been planted on approximately 60% of this regional acreage due to its high yield and high TSMK percentage in the absence of disease. Tamrun OL11 will give West Texas growers a Sclerotinia resistant cultivar option that will yield and grade equal to or better than Flavor Runner 458 whether or not Sclerotinia is present. Foundation seed of Tamrun OL11 will be maintained and distributed by the Foundation Seed Service of Texas AgriLife Research Center, Vernon, TX 76384. Contact the Texas Foundation Seed Service for all seed request. Plant variety Protection (PVP) for this cultivar is pending and the cultivar may only be sold and grown as a class of certified seed by name only.
Combined test data from 2006-2009 comparing Tamrun OL11 peanut cultivars across seven West Texas tests. Entry Yield Value Quality Size Kg/ha $/ha % TSMK g/100 see Tamrun OL11 6920 ns 2882 a 76.7 a 72.2 c Flavor Runner 458 6831 2795 ab 75.7 ab 66.4 e Tamrun 98 6611 2711 ab 73.5 c 68.2 d Tamrun OL07 6532 2650 bc 73.4 c 78.2 b Means within columns followed by the same letter are not different at 5% probability level Blue Angel and Robert Brown Winter-Hardy Hibiscus (Hibiscus x moscheutos L.) Blue Angel and Robert Brown are two new and distinct cultivars of winter-hardy hibiscus developed and released by Dariusz Malinowski, Steve Brown, and William Pinchak, Texas AgriLife Research, Vernon, TX. Blue Angel has deeply cut leaves that are green with purplish veins. Plants are intensively branched at the bottom and reach heights of 1 m. Flower color is pale II purple (RHS 91 C) in full sunlight in the morning hours (Fig. I), and changes to light violet (RHS 92B) as the flower matures in the afternoon. The bluish flower color becomes more intensive in shade or during days with overcast. The center eye is red on the outside edge, becoming dark brown towards the center of the flower. Seed pods are small (0.5 cm diameter) and contain 4 to 6 seeds. Robert Brown has flowers that are deep purplish pink (RHS 67C) with randomly distributed white stripes. The center eye is light red on the outside edge, becoming brown towards the center of the flower. Robert Brown plants are intensively branched at the bottom and also reach heights of 1 m. Seed pods contain 6 12 seeds. All colors are as described by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Color Chart 7 (Royal Hort. Soc. and Flower Council of Holland, 2007). Both Blue Angel Robert Brown cultivars were evaluated for two years in Vernon, TX (USDA hardiness zone 7a) and have proven to be fully cold-hardy at this location where the lowest temperature recorded during the evaluation was -17 C in February 2011. Long-term trials have not been conducted in other regions. Considering winter hardiness of their parentage components, it is anticipated Blue Angel hibiscus will be well adapted to USDA hardiness zone
5 and higher, while Robert Brown will be adapted to zones 4-11. Both are well suited for use as a single specimen plant for small gardens where their architecture and unique flower colors can be best displayed. As with other winter-hardy hibiscus cultivars, Blue Angel and Robert Brown should be planted in full sun to promote maximum plant development and blooming. No diseases or insect pests have been observed on these cultivars at Vernon, TX. However, as with other species in the mallow family, they may be susceptible to cotton root rot caused by the fungus Phymatotrichum omnivorum, especially when grown in areas where cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is cultivated. U.S. Plant Patents are pending for Blue Angel and Robert Brown winter-hardy hibiscus cultivars with rights assigned to the Texas A&M University System. Propagation and production rights have not been assigned to a specific commercial partner to date. Three upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) germplasm lines, TAM 94L-25-M24, TAM 94L-25-M25, and TAM 94L-25-M30 were developed by Nino Brown, Wayne Smith, Dick Auld, Steve Hague, and Eric Hequet, Texas AgriLife Research, through the use of a chemical mutagen, ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS). The M 0 parent line, TAM 94L-25, was released by Wayne Smith in 2003 and exhibits longer upper half mean fiber length (UHML) than most upland cotton cultivars. TAM 94 L-25-M24, TAM 94L-25-M25, and TAM 94L-25-M30 exhibited UHML and fiber bundle strength (FBS) that exceeded that of the parent. These mutant lines represent unique and beneficial variation for fiber quality that will be useful to breeders in developing improved cultivars of upland cotton with improved fiber length and strength. Deploying beneficial and unique fiber quality genes into high yielding cultivars will be necessary for U.S. cotton to remain competitive in the international fiber market. Development of these new and unique cotton germplasm lines was supported by Cotton Incorporated and the Texas Department of Agriculture. Inquiries regarding availability of seed for research purposes should be directed to Wayne Smith. Inquiries regarding commercial use should be directed to the Office of Technology and Commercialization, 3369 TAMU, College Station, TX 77845 (979-847-8628).
Summary Data Table. HVI fiber quality parameters for germplasm lines TAM 94L-25-M24, TAM 94L-25-M25, TAM 94L-25-M30 grown in College Station and Weslaco, TX in 2008 and 2009. Length Genotype Micronaire UHML Uniformity Str Elongation (units) (in) (index) (g tex -1 ) (%) TAM 94 L-25 M-24 3.8 c 1.37 a 83.7 a 32.8 a 6.4 b TAM 94 L-25 M-25 3.8 c 1.37 a 83.0 a 32.7 a 6.3 b TAM 94 L-25 M-30 3.8 c 1.34 a 83.2 a 32.2 a 6.3 b TAM 94 L-25 4.4 b 1.22 b 82.9 a 30.9 b 6.0 b FM 832 4.6 b 1.19 b 84.2 a 30.9b 6.5 b PSC 355 5.0 a 1.12 c 84.1 a 28.9 c 8.1 a - Upper Half Mean Length (UHML), Fiber Bundle Strength (Str) Other News Currently we have 50 graduate students seeking an MS or PhD in Plant Breeding at Texas A&M University. Polly Longenberger Corn Breeder with Pioneer recently visited Campus to visit with Ivan Barrero Farfan, Pioneer Fellow Graduate Student, and to visit with graduate students nearing completion of their graduate studies. The 2012 NAPB annual meeting will be held in Indianapolis, Indiana and hosted by Dow AgroSciences (contact Dr. Don Blackburn). Additional information at http://www.plantbreeding.org/napb/meetings/meetings.html. ASA, CSSA, and SSSA International Annual Meetings will be held Oct. 16 19 in San Antonio, TX. Numerous faculty and graduate students from the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences will present research data. Additional information at https://www.agronomy.org. The Soil and Crop Sciences Mixer that is held each year at the ASA/CSSA/SSSA meetings will be Tuesday evening, 18 October, at Casa Rio Mexican Restaurant in San Antonio. We look forward to an evening of fun, food, and renewing. The 12 Monsanto Plant Breeding Fellows at Texas A&M visited research facilities in Raleigh, NC on 10-14 September. Additional comments to follow.
Please direct comments concerning this bulletin to Wayne Smith, cwsmith@tamu.edu or 979.845.3450.