2015 Africa-wide Breeding Task Force Trials for Mangrove - PET

In 2010, the Africa-wide Rice Breeding Task Force was launched by AfricaRice involving National Agricultural Research System (NARS) from about 30 countries. The objectives of the network are to evaluate the stability of traits incorporated in breeding processes and to identify varieties best fit to growth conditions in target regions and to markets. The Task Force also accumulates data on performance of new elite lines, thereby facilitating varietal release procedures. Furthermore, by exposing breeders from NARS and farmers to these elite lines during the testing phase, dissemination will be facilitated. The activities conducted by the Task Force consists of a series of consecutive trials. Promising breeding lines developed by AfricaRice or by national and international partners, such as IRRI, CIAT and the NARS are nominated for evaluation in one or several rice cultivation environments: rainfed lowland, irrigated lowland, rainfed upland, high elevation and mangrove. All nominated lines should be fixed and accompanied by supporting data on traits incorporated during the breeding process and with information on yield performance. These characteristics are checked at AfricaRice before incorporation into the network. The first phase (MET, Multi-Environment Testing) consists of an initial evaluation of about 100 lines selected from the nominated lines. Each national partner evaluates these lines at sites in his/her country. Such sites may be at an experimental station under optimal management to evaluate yield potential, or may be ‘hot spots’ to check the performance of the nominations in a stressed growth environment. Trials are replicated three times and include at least a common and a local check. The second phase (PET,Participatory Evaluation Trial) serves to evaluate and confirm the performance of the selected lines. These lines are cultivated using the same experimental design with 3 replications. An important feature of PET is that farmer and other stakeholders such as miller and traders are invited to participate in varietal selection and their opinion on the performance of all entries (i.e. participatory varietal selection, PVS) collected. Based on the data collected, observations by the breeders and the opinion of stakeholder groups, NARS partners select up to 10 lines. Further, NARS evaluated these lines in at least three sites per country and during one or more growing seasons, depending on varietal release requirements. All stakeholders are again invited to get acquainted with the new lines and voice their opinion to help select lines for further advancement. Among the 10 lines, farmers are invited to select three lines and cultivate these in their own fields, together with a common check and their own variety.2010年，非洲水稻中心（AfricaRice）发起全非洲水稻育种工作组，合作方涵盖约30个国家的国家农业研究系统（National Agricultural Research System, NARS）。该网络的宗旨为评估育种流程中整合的性状稳定性，并筛选最适配目标区域种植条件与市场需求的品种。工作组同时会收集优良新品系的表现数据，以此优化品种审定流程。此外，通过在测试阶段向国家农业研究系统的育种人员与农户展示这些新品系，可加速品种推广。 工作组开展的活动包含一系列连续试验。由非洲水稻中心、各国及国际合作伙伴（如国际水稻研究所（International Rice Research Institute, IRRI）、国际热带农业中心（International Center for Tropical Agriculture, CIAT）及国家农业研究系统）培育的优良育种品系，将被提名至一个或多个水稻种植环境中开展评估，这些环境包括雨养低地、灌溉低地、雨养高地、高海拔区域与红树林区域。所有提名品系需为稳定纯合品系，并附带育种过程中整合的性状相关支撑数据以及产量表现信息。上述特征将在非洲水稻中心完成审核后，方可纳入该网络。 第一阶段为多环境试验（Multi-Environment Testing, MET），内容为从提名品系中筛选约100个品系开展初步评估。各国合作方将在本国的试验站点开展评估，这些站点既可以是管理优化的试验站以评估产量潜力，也可以是“胁迫热点区域”以检验提名品系在逆境生长环境中的表现。试验设置3次重复，且至少包含1个通用对照品种与1个当地对照品种。 第二阶段为参与式评价试验（Participatory Evaluation Trial, PET），用于评估并确认筛选出的品系表现。该阶段采用相同的试验设计，同样设置3次重复。参与式评价试验的核心特色在于，邀请农户及碾米商、贸易商等其他利益相关方参与品种选择，并收集他们对所有参试材料的评价意见（即参与式品种选择（Participatory Varietal Selection, PVS））。 基于收集到的数据、育种人员的观测结果以及利益相关方的意见，各国国家农业研究系统合作伙伴可筛选至多10个品系。随后，各国国家农业研究系统需根据品种审定要求，在本国至少3个试验站点以及1个或多个生长季内对这些品系开展评估。再次邀请所有利益相关方了解新品系并发表意见，以协助筛选可进一步推进的品系。在这10个品系中，邀请农户从中挑选3个品系，连同通用对照品种与农户自有品种一同在自家农田进行种植。