NEWS

logo.gif (1594 bytes)

NEWS

Breeding research is an integral part of Delta and Pine Land
Scott, Mississippi
January 11, 2000

Soon after Delta and Pine Land Company was formed in 1911, breeding research came to the forefront. The first breeding program was started in 1915, conducted under the leadership of Early C. Ewing, Sr. with the goal of improving varieties available to farmers. Through the years, many things have changed as research efforts grew to include other regions of the Cotton Belt. The customer focus has remained. Now, the company has efforts in picker, stripper, Acala and Pima cotton as well as soybeans with all programs utilizing the latest techniques to create varieties for maximum performance.

"We need to develop varieties that meet our customers’ changing needs so D&PL research objectives are forever being refined," says Dr. Bill Hugie, the company’s vice president of research. "As a research department, we need to predict what those needs will be in 10 years and begin the development now to meet those goals."

Steve M. Hawkins, company president says, "D&PL has led the industry with advanced research and high standards of product performance and quality. Our research department continues to reach current goals and set new ones by setting clear objectives both Beltwide and locally."

National objectives cross all of the picker programs that are located in Hartsville, SC; Leland and Scott, MS; Maricopa, AZ and locations to be determined in Georgia and the Texas Rolling Plains. Those objectives include increased yield, improved fiber quality, improved nematode and disease resistance all while testing for variety stability to ensure consistent performance over time and locations.

The localized objectives for picker programs include the following:

  • Mid-South ¾ early maturing varieties and increased nematode resistance
  • Southeast – drought and heat tolerance
  • West/Arizona – increased seed size and turnout

There are some similar objectives regarding increased yield and improved fiber quality for the stripper program headquartered in Hale Center, TX that will soon be joined by the new station in the Rolling Plains. However, increased storm resistance and verticillium wilt resistance combine with earliness as stripper-specific objectives.

Acala and Pima varieties are developed through a cooperative program with Olvey & Associates in Arizona. This program focuses on developing high yielding Acalas and Pimas with superior fiber quality.

Soybean variety research is also an important area for D&PL’s research department.

"Our soybean programs are in Scott, MS and Hartsville, SC are striving to provide customers the best varieties for Southern conditions," Hugie says. "We have developed a very successful soybean product line and have a deep pipeline we will continue to work with and add to in the coming years."

Increase yield and yield stability are the primary objectives in the soybean programs. Breeders also work to develop varieties with multiple pest resistance, herbicide tolerance, output traits and agronomic traits specific to the region supported by the program.

All of these programs draw from the latest in technology with transgenic and molecular breeding gaining in importance. D&PL’s transgenic program capitalizes on the successful gains made in the conventional picker and stripper programs by utilizing backcrossing. The molecular program identifies genetic "markers" that are linked to different traits. These markers will ultimately be used to select for the presence and activity of desired traits, thus speeding up the breeding process.

Delta and Pine Land Company is a commercial breeder, producer and marketer of cotton planting seed, as well as soybean seed in the Cotton Belt. For more than 80 years, the Mississippi-based company has used its extensive plant breeding programs drawing from a diverse germplasm base to develop superior varieties. Delta and Pine Land has offices in seven states and facilities in several foreign countries.

Company news release
N2387

.0

Copyright © 2000 SeedQuest - All rights reserved