Minor 1: Plant Breeding and Seed Production
This minor focuses mainly on conventional plant breeding techniques. You will design a breeding programme and execute the different steps in developing new cultivars.
- Determine the goals or aim of the breeding programme, based on the analysis of crop production and market data.
- Introduce genetic variation.
- Assess selection trials and storage of data.
- Design selection experiments for desired traits, while including disease tests.
Minor 2: Advanced Breeding Methods in Plant Breeding
This minor focuses on the advanced methods used in plant breeding. Here you will analyze big data sets of selection trials to advise breeders on which material they should continue using in their breeding programmes. You will be given a course in molecular breeding and training in data analysis, clonal propagation and in vitro techniques. In your assessment you will develop the competencies to research, innovate, globalize and be self-driven.
- Assessment
- Molecular breeding: Describe the most important molecular tools to enhance the breeding process. Discuss laws and regulations regarding genetic modification.
- Training data analysis: Use mixed models, multivariate analysis and spatial analysis to analyze data from novel data collection from field trials.
- Training in clonal propagation and in vitro: Discuss the importance of cell and tissue culture in plant breeding. Apply the most important methods for clonal propagation and tissue culture.
- Plant breeding in international context: Mention the most important players and developments in the world wide sector of Plant Breeding.
