15.04.2014

Ilmar Tamm

Ülle Tamm

Anne Ingver

Organic projects in Estonian Crop Research Institute (ECRI)

ERA–NET CORE ORGANIC: Coordinating Organic plant Breeding Activities for diversity

ERA-NET - Networking the European Research Area

Duration: 2013-2017

COBRA

Project brings together over 40 partner organizations from 18 European countries:

UK, Turkey, Denmark, Italy, Austria, Norway, Luxemburg, Slovenia, Belgium, France, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Hungary, Switzerland

COBRA

Aims:COBRA aims to support and develop organic plant breeding and seed production in Europe with a focus on increasing the use and potential of plant material with High genetic Diversity (Hi-D), such as Composite Cross Populations (CCPs)

COBRA

Specific objectives: (1) To improve methods to ensure seed quality and health (develop the testing of germination and diseases on NIRS eqipment); (2) to determine the potential to increase resilience, adaptability, and overall performance in organic systems by using crop diversity at various levels;

COBRA

Specific objectives: (3) to improve breeding efficiency and to develop novel breeding methods to enhance and maintain crop diversity (selection for quality based on single seeds; Marker Assistent Selection etc).

COBRA

Specific objectives: (4) to identify and remove structural barriers to organic plant breeding and seed production (embedding the CCPs to the production chain; funding of organic breeding through cooperation to the production chain, regulatory framework of organic seed systems) (5) to improve networking and dissemination in organic plant breeding.

COBRA

Crops included:wheatbarleypeafaba bean

COBRA

Role of ECRI:trialling selected entries of spring and winter wheat and spring barley with focus on:

a) disease resistanceb) weed suppression abilityc) food quality

COBRA

Trials (ECRI):

• Wheat: yield, quality, weed suppression ability (early qrowth vigour, allelopathic ability); CCPs and variety mixtures

• Barley: disease resistance (loose smut, leaf stripe), increasing genetic diversity (different barley types :2 ja 6-row, hulless, awnless, dark coloured), yield, quality

COBRA

COBRA

COBRA

COBRA

COBRA

COBRA

Project Title: An integrated approach to diversify the genetic base, improve stress resistance, agronomic management and nutritional/processing quality of minor cereal crops for human nutrition in Europe

Healthy minor cereals (HMC) (EU 7. framework project)

Duration: sept 2013–aug 2018

Participants: 16 partners from 10 countries

Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Switzerland, Turkey and United Kingdom

Healthy minor cereals (HMC) (EU 7. framework)

General aim:to enhance the exploitation of five of the so-called 'minor cereal' species:

oat rye spelt einkorn emmer

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Research topics: • Breeding (food quality, biotic (diseases) and

abiotic (drought) stresses, yield etc) • Agro- technology (fertilisation, variety

mixtures, weed control)• Improving processing technologies,

development new products

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Research topics: • Assessing nutritional content of minor

cereals

• Enhance the market prominence for minor cereals

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Role of ECRI: • Breeding: multiplicatin and phenotyping

wide range of genotypes, crossings

• Biotic stresses: testing of disease resistance of rye and oat in field and lab conditions

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Role of ECRI:

• Fertilisation trial:Crops: rye, oat (4 varieties per crop)Fertiliser types: compost, farm manue, biogas digestate, mineral fertiliser

Fertiliser rates: N0, N50, N100

Healthy minor cereals (HMC)

Role of ECRI:

• Testing of variety mixtures• Farm trials (including organic farms)

Thank you!

Ilmar.tamm@etki.ee