Seed Info 31, July 2006

S E E D I N F O

Official Newsletter of the WANA Seed Network

No. 31, July 2006

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LITERATURE_______________________________________________________________

Literature, books and journal articles of interest to readers are presented here. Please send information on seed publications on policy, regulation, and technology to the Editor for inclusion in Seed Info.

Bishaw, Zewdie, Abdoul Aziz Niane, Anthony J. G. van Gastel. 2006. Technical Guidelines for Quality Seed Production, ICARDA, Aleppo, Syria. This is a recent publication by the Seed Unit of ICARDA. The guideline is prepared to assist farmers operating village-based seed enterprises (VBSEs) with on-farm quality seed production and marketing. The manual would also be useful to extension agents and staff of agricultural development agencies and NGOs who are supporting local seed production actvities. The gudieline focuses on general principles, however, where necessary specific examples have been drawn to explain the details. If you would like to have a copy of the guideline please write to: Seed Unit, ICARDA, P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria; Fax: +963-21-2213490; E-mail: z.bishaw@cgair.org

Sperling, L. and T. Remington. Seed Aid for Seed Security: Advice for Practitioners. These are ten Briefs that offer advice on how to sustain and strengthen seed systems during disaster response and recovery periods. This up-to-date technical information addresses issues such as introducing new varieties, protecting agrobiodiversity, and exploiting market opportunities during periods of acute and chronic stress. Specific aid-response tools are also offered, including methods for assessing seed system security, guidelines for learning-focused evaluations, and checklists to ensure quality in seed-aid proposal development. The briefs were prepared by Louise Sperling from the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture and Tom Remington of Catholic Relief Services, with CARE-Norway. To download, visit: http://www.ciat.cgiar.org/africa/practice_briefs.htm.

Jones, S., J. Taylor and F. Ash. Seed Identification Handbook: Agriculture, Horticulture and Weeds, 2nd Edition. The publication has pictures of some 200 crops and weed species in the UK, of which many species are also found worldwide. It is a useful tool for seed analysts, biologists and plant physiologists. Information on each species comprises a magnified color photograph of the seeds, two or three sentences giving some background and a description of seed shape, size and color. A white inset 10 mm in diameter within each photograph provides life-size silhouettes of the seeds to aid identification. The arrangement of species is alphabetical within families. Six pages of life-size silhouettes then follow in order of ascending size. The handbook concludes with an index of botanical names (following ISTA List of Stabilized Plant Names 2001), an index of (UK) common names, a substantial bibliography and reference list, and a few relevant websites. NIAB, Price: £35; 94 pp; Website: http://www.niab.com.

Smale, M. (ed.). 2005. Valuing Crop Biodiversity: On-farm Genetic Resources and Economic Change. A collection of essays, the book explores issues of crop diversity as an essential tool in combating pests, diseases and changes in climate, all risk factors in any agricultural system. Crop biodiversity also underpins a range of dietary needs and services that consumers may demand as economies change, within a rapidly changing global food system. Genetic resources are vulnerable assets, susceptible to disruptions caused by drought, floods and wars. Social and economic changes can also have negative consequences, leading to growing concern about the declining diversity of crop genetic resources.

The book assembles a set of empirical case studies conducted in the field and addresses farmer preferences, farmers' demand for biodiversity, social institutions, and seed systems. Aimed primarily at researchers, the collection is intended to show the practical meaning of crop biodiversity, its value and how it can be supported by policy and development strategies. Key issues are well-illustrated with tables or diagrams and useful headings define key issues and breakdown complex information. CABI Publishing, ISBN 0 85199 083 5 (Hb); Price: £60; 336pp; Website: http://www.cabi-publishing.org

Gelb, E. and A Offer (eds.). ICT in Agriculture: Perspectives of technological innovation. What is the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in improving the lives of rural communities in the developing world? Provision of information and training materials are obviously a key area, but there are many more, for example, improving access to financial services and rural credit, and enabling more reliable systems of land registration. By enabling two-way communication, ICTs have the potential to raise the voice of rural communities in the sphere of policymaking and regulation. Many of the papers in this e-book focus on technologies that target specific sectors of agriculture: dairy farming, horticulture, precision agriculture, and irrigation management. However, for most rural communities in the developing world the basic ICTs are the priority. Papers can be downloaded free from: http://departments.agri.huji.ac.il/economis/gelb-main.html

Journals
Plant Genetic Resources: Characterization and Utilization was initiated in April 2003, as successor to the long-running journal Plant, Varieties and Seeds. The journal provides a forum for describing the application of novel genomic technologies, as well as their integration with established techniques, targeted towards the understanding of the genetic variation captured in both in situ and ex situ collections of crop and non-crop plants; and for the airing of wider issues relevant to plant germplasm conservation and utilization. Multi-disciplinary approaches that incorporate both technical and socio-economic focus are particularly welcome.

Useful Internet Websites
Bread Wheat Landrace Website. While there is a multitude of high-yielding modern crop varieties in use today, the work of plant breeders is by no means finished. A variety that is successful today can overnight be rendered ineffective by changes in the agro-ecosystem. One source of genes that can be utilized to meet these constantly emerging challenges to food production is the ancient farmer varieties.

To support this process, seeds of a whole range of farmer varieties, or landraces, have been assembled in a worldwide network of genebanks. The N.I. Vavilov Research Institute of Plant Industry (VIR), the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the Australian Winter Cereals Collection (AWCC), house an impressive collection of over 17,000 bread wheat landraces from diverse environments to which they were adapted.

To facilitate access to this information, a web database was developed that allows the user to efficiently query the data associated with this collection, and provide the capacity to identify custom subsets of accessions with single and multiple trait(s) that may be of importance to breeding programs. This information package can be used as a powerful tool to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of identifying raw material to screen for developing improved varieties.

The accessions detailed by this database are of particular importance to the breeding programs of the CWANA region, because a large proportion of them were collected in the region, many of which would no longer be available in the field.

The site was developed through a collaboration between ICARDA, VIR, and the AWCC, with funding from the Grains Research and Development Corporation. Visit the website at: http://www.bwldb.net. For more information contact: K. Street, GRU, ICARDA, P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria; E-mail: k.street@cgiar.org.

MaizeLink: A New Web Portal of Agricultural Experts. The Raizada Laboratory, University of Guelph, has established MaizeLink, a global online community that permits maize researchers and their expertise to be found rapidly. The portal will also provide free websites and access to open-source databases and journals. Visit the MaizeLink website at: http://www.maizelink.org.

A Resource on Sorghum and Millet. The Interactive Resource Center: Resources for Sorghum and Millet researchers, supported by the Syngenta Foundation, has recent scientific publications, genetic maps, and data on sorghum and millet. For more information, visit: http://irc.igd.cornell.edu/ SorghumMillet/SorghumResources.html.

African Crops News Service. The African Crops News Service covers current research and developments in the improvement of African crops and seed systems. The service compliments the africancrops.net website to enhance the sharing of news and information from projects supported by The Rockefeller Foundation and other organizations. Read more on the African Crops News Service at http://africancrops.net/news/