The Progress of Foxtail Millet Breeding in China

Abstract

Understanding the breeding and research history of Foxtail millet has important significance for guiding future breeding and research. In this paper, several Foxtail millet breeding development stages in our country as well as the breeding targets and representative varieties of each stage are reviewed. From the founding of People's Republic of China to new century, the goals of Foxtail millet breeding can be roughly divided into two stages: high-yield breeding stage (1950-1985) and high-yield, multi-resistance and high-quality stage (1986-2000). In the new century since 2001, the millet breeding goals and breeding methods have undergone major changes, which can be roughly divided into three stages. The first stage is from 2001 to 2008, which broke through the contradiction between high quality and high yield. A series of representative varieties were bred at this stage, including first class high quality Jigu 19 and Changnong 35 whose yield in the regional test increased by more than 10% compared to the control, the first sethoxydim herbicide-resistant hybrid variety Zhangzagu No. 3, and the first sethoxydim herbicide-resistant multi-line variety Jigu 25. The second stage is from 2009 to 2018, which broke through the limitation of light and temperature sensitivity. The high quality and widely suitable variety Yugu 18 was bred, which can be used in 4 ecological regions. 50% of the tested varieties in the regional test at this stage were resistant to herbicide. The representative varieties such as Jigu 39, Jinmiao K1, and Zhangzagu 13 have high quality, broad adaptability, herbicide-resistance, and suitability for mechanized production. Some new varieties, such as herbicide-resistant varieties with resistance to imazethapyr and nicosulfuron, high glutenin varieties, and high resistant starch varieties, were bred at this stage. The third stage is after 2018. The herbicide-resistant varieties in the regional test increased to 89%. They were widely used, and 4 of Top 5 lagest planting area varieties in the country were herbicide-resistant. The new herbicide-resistant varieties resistant to sulfamethoxazole were bred. Preliminary progress has been made in biological breeding at this stage. A high-efficiency genetic transformation system of millet has been established, high-oleic acid varieties have been bred with molecular markers, and new materials such as haploid inducible lines have been created by genome editing.

Keywords

• foxtail millet breeding
• breeding progress
• breeding objective
• variety
• high-yield
• herbicide- resistant
• biological breeding