The de-domestication of Ornithopus sativus Brot. to develop cultivars with physical dormancy (hardseed)

Authors

Robert J. Harrison, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Western AustraliaFollow
Bradley J. Nutt, Murdoch University
Ronald J. Yates, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Western AustraliaFollow
Belinda F. Hackney, Select Carbon, Queensland
John G. Howieson, Murdoch University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-14-2024

Journal Title

Grass and Forage Science

ISSN

0142-5242 e-ISSN: 1365-2494

Keywords

domestication; forage legume; hardseed; ley-farming; Pink serradella

Disciplines

Agricultural Science | Agronomy and Crop Sciences | Plant Breeding and Genetics

Abstract

Ornithopus sativus Brot. (French serradella) is a forage legume that is well adapted to acidic coarse textured soils (sands) which are characterized by poor nutrition and an inability to retain water. During the process of domestication of O. sativus, there was an unintentional loss of seed physical dormancy (PY) thus compromising its self-regeneration after a cropping interval. Through mass screening of seed, we identified for the first time that heritable sources of PY exist in three populations of O. sativus. This rare genetic material was then incorporated into suitable genetic backgrounds of differing maturity through targeted hybridization. We demonstrated that the heritability of PY was dominant in the population of 97ZAF5sat but inconsistently recessive in the population of cv. Emena. Flowering time was variable in each source population, with a large variation in time to emergence of first flowers (95–175 days). Selection for early flowering maturity was heritable and stable. F6 generations selected for PY in different maturity classes were then evaluated in situ to establish whether PY would allow a proportion of seeds to survive in the soil through consecutive seasons exposed to a Mediterranean climate. The breeding lines FHS3, 7 and 23 remained dormant, thus viable, in the soil for up to 3 years, indicating the likelihood that O. sativus with PY could survive and persist in a ley farming system. The de-domestication program in O. sativus has resulted in commercially successful cultivars (most recently cv. Fran2o) suited to sustainable dryland agriculture in a Mediterranean climate.

Recommended Citation

Harrison, R J, Nutt, B J, Yates, R J, Hackney, B F, and Howieson, J G. (2024), The de-domestication of Ornithopus sativus Brot. to develop cultivars with physical dormancy (hardseed). Grass and Forage Science, 79 (3), 366-380.
https://library.dpird.wa.gov.au/fc_researchart/206