The origin of an old, resource-efficient crop, Broomcorn millet or Panicum miliaceum

307. Hunt HV, Badakshi F, Romanova O, Howe CJ, Jones M, Heslop-Harrison JS. 2014. Reticulate evolution in Panicum (Poaceae): the origin of tetraploid broomcorn millet, P. miliaceum. Journal of Experimental Botany 65 (12), 3165-3175.  DOI:10.1093/jxb/eru161 . (Link to local copy J. Exp. Bot.-2014-Hunt-3165-75) Panicum miliaceum (broomcorn millet) is a tetraploid cereal which was among the first domesticated crops, but is now a minor…

Superdomestication, feed-forward breeding and climate proofing crops

Climate Proofing of Food Crops, through genetic improvement for adaptation, is an important, medium-term, objective to ensure food-security and increase production while enhancing the sustainability of agriculture. The IAEA has a Coordinated Research Project discussing this topic (archive version). In the YouTube video here, I discuss some of the challenges plant researchers are addressing, and…