12. The breeding of improved synthetic cultivars of Echinacea angustifolia
18.1 Extension methods for new industries:
Emerging Opportunities in Agriculture/New Crops Options Information Days
New industries are high risk, long term investments for rural producers. The available information is usually scarce and of variable authenticity. A new model for information delivery, the side-show alley model has been developed in consultation with industry partners and primary producers and has been trialled in Queensland (Pittsworth, Roma) and New South Wales (Harden, Tamworth). The model requires that a local committee of producers and industry cooperators identify the topics of interest to be presented in the side-shows. Development of the model, studies of the efficiency with which information is delivered and the development of appropriate follow-up processes are being continued and the developments expanded further afield.
Collaborators:
Mr Gordon Stone, The Big Event Company, Gordon Stone and Associates, Toowoomba
Primary Producer Organisations
State Departments of Agriculture
RIRDC
Duration of Project: 1996-2002
Funding Agencies:
RIRDC (1996, 1997, 1998)
GRDC (1996, 1997, 1998)
Gordon Stone and Associates
School of Land and Food
18.2 New crop choice and the commercialisation of new crop industries
The major difficulty confronting primary producers and funding agencies is the choice of new industry to be commercialised. A process for individual consultation, several approaches for information dissemination and industry networking and a 13 step process for new industry commercialisation have been developed and are being tested.
Collaborators:
Mr Greg Ferguson, School of Natural and Rural Systems Management, Gatton
Mr Chai McConnell, Queensland Department of State Development, Brisbane
Duration of Project: 1993-2001
Funding Agencies:
RIRDC (1993-2000)
GRDC (1993-1998)
Sugar Consultants Australia Pty Ltd
18.3 Coleoptile length in wheat
The character potential coleoptile length in wheat has been related to seedling establishment counts in areas where deep sowing is often necessary. Preliminary studies by Dr Fletcher demonstrated that genes for the control of coleoptile length in wheat exist. A standardised regime for the evaluation of the character coleoptile length has been described and its genetic control investigated in a number of cultivars. Field trials are investigating the value of such a character.
Collaborators
Dr Phillip Banks, Leslie Research Centre, QDPI, Toowoomba
Mr Brian Monaghan and Dr Howard Eagles, Sustainable Agriculture Research Centre, Department of Agriculture, Horsham, Victoria
Mr Rafiul Alam
Duration of Project: 1996-1999
Funding Agency:
GRDC
18.4 The development of the Echinacea angustifolia industry in Australia
A range of investigations has enabled the description and development of a series of protocols for the germination of seed, development and establishment of seedlings, growth of plants and harvesting and preparation of plant material for sale. The future studies will involve the scaling up of this operation, using a number of sites and cooperators.
Collaborators
Mr Nicholas Walker
The late Mr Andrew Nugent
Barry and Robyn Walker
Bill and Dawn Nugent
Duration of Project: 1996-2000
Funding Sources:
RIRDC
Echo Valley Farms
Plantalab Laboratories
18.5 The Australian Ginseng Research Program;
Ginseng Crop Establishment Project
Dr Rob Fletcher and Professor Richard Williams
The first part of the project has been aimed at providing an objective measure of the limits to successful ginseng cultivation by establishing experimentally-based climate limitation criteria. The second part has been aimed at finding a commercially viable means of breaking seed dormancy. Tissue culture has also been used to produce aseptic cultures from a range of ex-plant sources and for both species of ginseng. Clones of over 200 individuals of each species have been established in vitro and have the potential to form the basis of an extended research program.
Collaborators
Duration of project: 1996-2000
Funding Agencies
RIRDC
Primary Options Pty Ltd
18.6 The development of the amaranth industry in Australia
Selection over a number of seasons has identified the possibility of breeding for tolerance to Lixus weevil infestation in grain amaranth plants in the field. Studies are continuing of the field performance of grain amaranth and its suitability as breakfast cereal.
Collaborators:
Mr Phil Delacretaz, Micronized Foods, Melbourne
Mr Howard Ebneter, Clifton Farming Company, Clifton
Duration of project: 1999-2001
Funding Agencies
Micronized Foods, Melbourne
Clifton Farming Company, Clifton
18.7 The development of the German Chamomile industry in Australia
Solar D Herbs has been involved in studies of the establishment, growing, harvest, processing and marketing of chamomile flowers and oil for several years. The development of the industry is the subject of an investigation based in the School of Land and Food.
Collaborators
Duration of project: 1997-2001
Funding Agencies:
Solar Distributors Pty Ltd
18.8 The development of the Do Our Own Marketing Research Course for new industries
The Do Our Own Research approach, based on the Participatory Action Management Model has been adapted to the problem of carrying out pre-feasibility marketing analyses of new crop products. A two day course has been trialled at a number of locations in 1997-8 and will be further tested and developed, further afield in 1999.
Collaborators
Mr Peter Twyford-Jones, Sheep and Wool Institute, Queensland Department of Primary Industries, Brisbane
Mr Gerry Kregor
Mr Tony Sadler, Primary Options Pty Ltd
Mr Peter Blessing, Commerce Unit, South Queensland Institute of TAFE, Toowoomba
Mr Allan Davidson, Toowoomba
Mr Nicholas Walker, Echo Valley Herbs, Toowoomba
Duration of project: 1996-2002
Funding Agencies
Queensland Department of Primary Industries
Solar Distributors Pty Ltd
Primary Options Pty Ltd
Echo Valley Herbs
18.9 The development of the millet/panicum industry in Australia
The major problem confronting the millet/panicum industry is the instability of the industry. Initial studies have identified the individual problems through a marketing analysis and investigations of morphological variability and its influence on yielding ability. Future studies will investigate the use of these species as human food and will pursue the development of the industry through several approaches, including the Top Crop approach, breeding for higher yield and the release of improved selections of both Setaria italica and Panicum miliaceum.
Collaborators
Mr Steven Mitchell
Regional primary producers and producer groups
Queensland Produce Seed and Grain Merchants Association, Millets Sub-committee
Duration of project: 1994-2000
Funding Agency
GRDC
Queensland Produce Seed and Grain Merchants Association
18.10 Osmoregulation in birdseed millets
The character osmoregulative capacity has been identified within Setaria italica (Foxtail millet) and Panicum miliaceum (Proso millet; White French Millet) lines and its usefulness has been demonstrated. Its genetic control is a single gene and crosses have been made to improve the osmoregulative capacity of Australian cultivars, hence improving drought tolerance.
Collaborators
Duration of project: 1995-1999
Funding Agencies
AUSAid
GRDC
18.11 Establishment of recalcitrant medicinal herbs in Australia
Nineteen medicinal herbs have been identified which are of interest to manufacturers in Australia but which are currently not sourced from within Australia. The usual reason for this is the range of difficulties encountered by growers in germinating and/or establishing these medicinal herbs. The protocol followed to overcome these difficulties with the Echinacea angustifolia crop will be used in an attempt to establish these medicinal crops in Australia.
Collaborators
Mr Nicholas Walker
The late Mr Andrew Nugent
Mr Allan Davidson
Duration of project: 1999-2002
Funding Agencies
Echo Valley Herbs
Plantalab Laboratories
Voile Farms
18.12 The breeding of improved synthetic cultivars of Echinacea angustifolia
Dr Rob Fletcher
A collection of 140 superior yielding Echinacea angustifolia plants from Echo Valley Herbs and 110 superior yielding plants from Mr Allan Davidson have been established as source material for a polycross nursery to compare general combining ability for yield and quality in order to identify source plants for synthetic cultivars.
Collaborators
Mr Nicholas Walker
Mr Allan Davidson
Duration of project: 1998-2006
Funding Agencies
Echo Valley Herbs
Plantalab Laboratories
Mr Allan Davidson
Contact: Dr Rob Fletcher, School of Agriculture and Horticulture, The University of Queensland Gatton, 4343; Telephone: 07 5460 1311 or 07 5460 1301; Facsimile: 07 5460 1112; International facsimile: 61 7 5460 1112; Email:
r.fletcher@mailbox.uq.edu.au[
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