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Crossing Contamination along Contiguous Borders of Certified Alfalfa Seed Fields 1
Author(s) -
Brown D. E.,
Kehr W. R.,
Manglitz G. R.,
Elgin J. H.,
Ostazeski S. A.
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.76
H-Index - 147
eISSN - 1435-0653
pISSN - 0011-183X
DOI - 10.2135/cropsci1980.0011183x002000030033x
Subject(s) - biology , cultivar , pollen , medicago sativa , agronomy , pollination , pest analysis , pollinator , horticulture , botany
Multiple pest resistant alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.) cultivars in commercial production were used to study cross‐pollination along contiguous borders using contrasting levels of disease and insect resistance. Twenty‐eight seed samples were obtained from each of 3 cultivars and 26 from the fourth cultivar. In 110 sample comparisons with foundation and certified lots, only five departures from expected levels of resistance were found. Departures appeared to be random in relation to distance from foreign pollen source and leafcutter bee, Megachile rotundata (F.), locations and were interpreted as sampling variations. Thus the data indicated that isolation requirements for production of certified seed in fields larger than 2 ha using M. rotundata (F.) as pollinators could be less stringent than current standards without sacrificing the integrity of the cultivar.