Genetic materials for ornamental plants are not centrally collected and maintained anywhere in the world, said Dr. Jim Metzger, an Ohio State floriculturist who also holds the D.C. Kiplinger Endowed Chair position. And, with the consumer demand for big, showy flowers and new colors, it's plausible that some traits could be eliminated in the breeding process for these flowers.
The genes for crops that provide food, feed or fiber, such as wheat, corn and cotton, have been stored for many years at national gene banks, called repositories. Drs. Metzger and Miller McDonald, a seed physiologist with the University, have spearheaded a drive to team the university with industry and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund and support a similar center for ornamental crops.
All repositories work about the same way, no matter the crop, said Eric Roos, research leader at the National Seed Storage Laboratory in Ft. Collins, Colorado (Photo. 1) (Photo. 2) . Growers and breeders send genetic material, usually in the form of seeds, to the center where it is stored at extremely cold temperatures to prevent deterioration (Photo. 3) (Photo. 4) . A duplicate set of germplasm is sent to the National Seed Storage Laboratory for safekeeping.
Germplasm is all the combinations of minute differences in genetic codes of the same gene. These combinations make an individual of one species - be it a plant, animal or insect - unique from another individual of the same species. Currently, researchers and breeders have open access to this diverse supply of genetic material. With it, they can develop plants with superior pest and disease resistance, cultural adaptations, stress tolerance or specific marketing traits. "The National Plant Germplasm System has concerned itself with only preserving the genetic diversity for agricultural crops, Roos said, but now this is being challenged to include ornamentals. The ornamental industry is a large industry in the United States, Roos said. If it can be shown that an ornamental germplasm repository has economic value, I think it's worth doing from a biological point of view. But, a center still needs to be justified from an economic basis. Landscaping plants, cut flowers and house plants are part of an industry worth more than $11 billion in annual sales nationwide.
Flowers and ornamental plants may not fill a basic survival need, Dr. McDonald explained, but they do enhance the aesthetic value of living. If flowers and plants weren't important to people, it would not be as large of a business as it is. Also, with the advent of biotechnology, scientists can now move genes from one species of plant to another. For example, a gene from a lettuce plant could be transplanted into a tomato plant. In the past, the germplasm pool for corn would include all the varieties of corn, plus anything closely related, Roos said. Now, that potential gene pool has ballooned exponentially. Ornamental plants might carry genes that could be beneficial fro unrelated plants.
The floriculture industry doesn't know for certain what will be desirable characteristics in the future, explained Dennis Kirven, executive director of the Ohio Florists Association. If a domesticated flower becomes susceptible to a disease, the best solution is to search genes from the wild or earlier forms of that plant. Having these genes available for scientists and breeders will help the industry react more quickly and efficiently.
