At the end of May the Cousin partner James Hutton Institute highlighted two important barley projects for BBC Landward.

The Institute invited Arlene Stuart to visit their barley fields and seed store to showcase their diverse barley germplasm collection.The James Hutton Institute has over 23,000 genotypes stored which include some wild barley, landraces and modern varieties.
Barley domestication occurred around 10,000 years ago. Wild barley is much more genetically diverse than modern barley and well adapted to environmental stresses (drought/frost etc). Landraces are traditional varieties that have been selected for and grown by farmers. Dr Joanne Russell explained the collections of James Hutton Institute and why it’s important to maintain and use genetically diverse material. The natural diversity in landraces and wild barleys will provide novel genes for more sustainable farming. Helping farmers to face more challenging conditions.

One of the projects that seeks to exploit genetically diverse barley is the BBSRC funded R-evolve project, thataims to rapidly “evolve” wild barley. Instead of looking for specific exotic genes in the wild barley, we have reversed the breeding approach and will transfer the key domestication genes from elite modern barley into the wild background. This will replicate the 10,000 year evolution that barley has gone through. Wild barley grain shatters and falls from the plant when mature, a useful trait for wild seed dispersal but not for farmers. The project will produce a partially domesticated barley population that is usable by researchers/farmers while being much more genetically diverse. We hope to combine traits important to farmers with the environmental resilience of wild barley.

The second focus is the our Horizon Europe EU Cousins project, that also looking at genetic diversity associated with crop wild relatives, but this time with a focus of unlocking the diversity in below ground root traits of barley. The partner will investigate the importance of barley roots traits for future sustainability. Roots are incredibly important for plant health yet have been historically glossed over in crop research because they are difficult to see under the soil surface. Its easier to explore root diversity now with advancements in root imaging. Dr Ruth Hamilton explained that the roots of modern barley are generally very short, compared to traditional varieties/wild barley which can have deeper or more complex root systems. Root traits can affect nutrient uptake, water absorption, drought/waterlogging and can contribute to carbon storage in soils. Breeding for beneficial roots traits will be essential for improving crop resilience. The EU Cousins project will exploit crop wild relatives for sustainable farming practices. In the last century most of the genetic diversity in farming has been lost. We aim to bring back some of that diversity by creating barley with resilient root systems.

The piece that was broadcast on national television in the UK can be seen at this link for those who have access to the BBC iPlayer:

Watch the video!

In the cover photo: Prof Tim George and Dr Ruth Hamilton with BBC Landward filming crew, photo taken by Molly Brown