Distance Education Courses

 

Plant Breeding Methods

Distance Education version
CS, HS 541-section 801, 601 DE; 3 credits; lecture only
Prerequisite: a statistics course

North Carolina State University will be offering CS,HS 541, Plant Breeding Methods in a distance education version this fall. The instructor is Todd Wehner.

This is an introductory Plant Breeding course for first year graduate students and advanced undergraduate students. The emphasis is on traditional methods of developing improved cultivars of cross-pollinated, self-pollinated, and asexually-propagated crops, and the genetic principles on which breeding methods are based. The purpose of this course is to provide the student a general background in all areas of plant breeding. The goal is to develop students who are knowledgeable in all of the areas of plant breeding, and to have sufficient understanding to work as an assistant breeder at a seed company, or to continue with advanced courses in plant breeding.

CS,HS 541 presents an overview of plant breeding methods, including germplasm resources, pollen control, measurement of genetic variances, and use of heterosis. Special topics include genotype-environment interaction, index selection, stress resistance, polyploidy, and mutation breeding. The course provides in-depth coverage of methods for breeding cross-pollinated, self-pollinated and asexually-propagated crops. Courses usually taken before CS,HS 541 are genetics and statistics. Courses taken after often include HS 703 (breeding asexually propagated crops), CS,HS 719 (germplasm and biogeography), CS,HS 720 (molecular genetics), CS,HS 745 (quantitative genetics), CS,HS 746 (advanced breeding), CS,HS 748 (pest resistance, now PP590), CS,HS 860 (breeding lab 1), and CS,HS 861 (breeding lab 2).

For more information, visit the resources linked below:

 

Quantitative Genetics in Plant Breeding

Distance Education version
CS, HS 745-section 601 DE; 1 credit; lecture only
Prerequisites: Plant Breeding Methods, Experiment Design

North Carolina State University will be offering CS,HS 745, Quantitative Genetics in Plant Breeding in a distance education version this spring. The instructor is Joe Burton (ltta@ncsu.edu).

This is an advanced Plant Breeding course for graduate students who have completed a course in plant breeding, as well as a statistics course that covers variance components. The emphasis is on traditional methods of developing improved cultivars of cross-pollinated, self-pollinated, and asexually-propagated crops, and the genetic principles on which breeding methods are based. The purpose of this course is to provide the student a general background in all areas of plant breeding. The goal is to develop students who are knowledgeable in all of the areas of plant breeding, and to have sufficient understanding to work as an assistant breeder at a seed company, or to continue with advanced courses in plant breeding.

CS,HS 745 covers theory and principles of plant quantitative genetics, including experimental approaches of relationships between type and source of genetic variability, concepts of inbreeding, estimation of genetic variance and selection theory. It compliments other advanced courses, including CS,HS 719 (germplasm and biogeography), 720 (molecular genetics), 746 (advanced breeding), 748 (pest resistance, now PP590), 860 (breeding lab 1), and 861 (breeding lab 2).

For more information, visit the resources linked below:

 

Plant Breeding Overview

Distance Education version
HS 590-602; 1 credit; lecture only
Prerequisites: undergraduate biology, genetics

North Carolina State University will be offering HS 590, Plant Breeding Overview in a distance education version this fall. The instructor is Todd Wehner.

This is an introductory Plant Breeding course for first year graduate students and advanced undergraduate students. The emphasis is on methods of developing improved cultivars of cross-pollinated, self-pollinated, and asexually-propagated crops. The purpose of this course is to provide the student a working knowledge of the main areas of plant breeding. The course is aimed at students interested in having a background knowledge of plant breeding, working with plant breeders, or doing breeding work in their home garden.

HS 590 presents an overview of plant breeding, including germplasm resources, male sterility, and use of heterosis. Special topics include genotype-environment interaction, index selection, disease and insect resistance, interspecific hybridization, and mutation breeding. The main focus is on methods for breeding cross-pollinated, self-pollinated and asexually-propagated crops.

For more information, visit the resources linked below: