Crop Centre in Print
Please find the latest journal publications from the Crop Centre listed below.
For a full list of publications from the School of Life Sciences please visit the Latest Journal Publications
A future workforce of food-system analysts - Nature Food
A comment piece in the newly launched Nature Food journal puts the IFSTAL approach to creating food-system thinkers in the spotlight.
The piece, authored collaboratively by members of the IFSTAL team, including Rosemary Collier from Warwick's School of Life Sciences, sets out the case for a systems approach to challenges in the food system and highlights the aspirations of the programme.
IFSTAL’s successes to date – including the engagement of 1,500 students from 45 different university departments as well as the programme’s well established overseas activity – are also laid out.
The article, A future workforce of food-system analysts, is available to read on the Nature Food website.
Identification and QTL mapping of resistance to Turnip yellows virus (TuYV) in oilseed rape, Brassica napus
Dieter Hackenberg, Elvis Asare‑Bediako. Adam Baker, Peter Walley, Carol Jenner, Shannon Greer, Lawrence Bramham, Jacqueline Batley, David Edwards, Regine Delourme, Guy Barker, GrahamTeakle, John Walsh
Turnip yellows virus (TuYV) is transmitted by the peach-potato aphid (Myzus persicae) and causes severe yield losses in commercial oilseed rape crops (Brassica napus). There is currently only one genetic resource for resistance to TuYV available in brassica, which was identified in the re-synthesised B. napus line ‘R54’. In our study, 27 mostly homozygous B. napus accessions, representing a diverse subset of the B. napus genepool, were screened for TuYV resistance/susceptibility. This is the first report of the QTL mapping of TuYV resistance in natural B. napus.
Extended studies of interspecific relationships in Daucus (Apiaceae) using DNA sequences from ten nuclear orthologues
Martínez-Flores, Fernando, Crespo, Manuel B., Geoffriau, Emmanuel, Allender, Charlotte J., Ruess, Holly, Arbizu, Carlos I., Simon, Philipp and Spooner, David M
Daucus has traditionally been estimated to comprise 21–25 species, but a recent study expanded the genus to c. 40 species. The present study uses ten nuclear orthologues to examine 125 accessions, including 40 collections of 11 species newly examined with nuclear orthologues. We propose the new combination Daucus junceus (Durieua juncea) for a neglected species endemic to the south-western Iberian Peninsula often referred to as D. setifolius, and we place D. arcanus in synonymy with D. pusillus. Three lectotypes are also designated.
Assembly and characterisation of a unique onion diversity set identifies resistance to Fusarium basal rot and improved seedling vigour
Taylor A, Teakle GR, Walley PG, Finch-Savage W, Jackson AC, Jones JE, Hand P, Thomas B, Havey MJ, Pink DAC, Clarkson JP
Conserving biodiversity is critical for safeguarding future crop production. Onion (Allium cepa L.) is a globally important crop with a very large (16 Gb per 1C) genome which has not been sequenced. Onion yield losses regularly occur worldwide due to Fusarium basal rot. Accessions with strong basal rot resistance and increased seedling vigour were identified along with associated markers, confirming the utility of the diversity set for discovering beneficial traits. The onion diversity set and associated trait data therefore provide a valuable resource for future germplasm selection and onion breeding.
Living on the Edge: Using and Improving Trap Crops for Flea Beetle Management in Small-Scale Cropping Systems
David George, Gordon Port and Rosemary Collier
The use of trap crops to manage pest insects offers an attractive alternative to synthetic pesticides. Trap crops may work particularly well at smaller production scales, being highly amenable where crop diversification and reduction of synthetic inputs are prioritised over yield alone. Our results of a small-scale open field trial showed that a turnip rape trap crop alone reduced flea beetle damage to cauliflower, significantly so later in the season at higher pest pressures, but that addition of tomato companion plants did not improve pest control potential.
Rosemary Collier publications
Using physical barriers to prevent carrot fly (Psila rosae (Fabricius)) damage in domestic production
Anna Platoni, Ian Waghorn, Stephanie Bird, Joe Perry, Rosemary Collier, Gerard Clover
A field experiment was used to assess the effectiveness of different barriers in protecting garden‐scale carrot production from carrot fly (Psila rosae (Fabricius)) damage. Some of the vertical barriers tested were found to provide a useful method of protecting early season carrots from carrot fly in terms of the percentage of carrots free from damage but, under cumulative pest pressure of several generations of carrot fly, such barriers were found to provide insufficient protection
Journal of Applied Entomology. August 2019
Innovation in the UK fresh produce sector: Identifying systemic problems and the move towards systemic facilitation
Menary, Jonathan, Seers, Kate and Collier, Rosemary
Innovation has been promoted to help meet the various challenges faced by the UK fresh produce sector. However, what barriers hinder the development and spread of new ideas in the sector have not been investigated. This article explores the social and economic constraints to innovation by combining the agricultural innovation systems conceptual framework with a functional-structural analysis. The findings show that, whilst the UK fresh produce sector is highly innovative, a number of systemic problems slow or prevent the acquisition and utilisation of knowledge. Retail-led grower groups also provide a means to improve trust between suppliers and customers in the sector and promote new technological trajectories.