Canadian Organic Vegetable Improvement: Integrating Genomics, Ecophysiology, and Farmer Participation for Climate Adaptation

From the research activity proposal:

Increasing climate volatility threatens whole-farm resiliency and seed security for Canadian organic vegetable farmers, who rely largely on imported seed that has not been bred for organic farming conditions or Canada’s diverse growing regions. The lack of domestically produced organic vegetable seed limits the gene pool available for adaptation to climate change and inhibits the economic development of the Canadian organic vegetable sector. We propose a systems-based approach within an established participatory vegetable crop improvement network to increase the climate resiliency and security of the Canadian organic seed system, particularly with respect to carrot and salad greens. We will:

1. Increase the quality, quantity, and diversity of favorably adapted carrot and salad greens seed varieties available to Canadian plant breeders and farmers. We will define which traits are important to farmers for single-crop and whole-farm climate resiliency in these crops, and we will measure these traits in commercially available varieties, new breeding populations, and seeds held in seed banks. Trials will be on organic farms across Canada as well as hub research sites at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and Bishop’s University in Quebec. Based on trial results, we will also breed new crop cultivars by making strategic crosses and selecting from progeny.

2. Better understand how carrots adapt to different environments by using genomic and functional ecology approaches. We will identify regions of the carrot genome – small or large pieces of DNA, or genetic markers – that appear in carrots that are adapted to extreme or variable climates. Then we will look for those markers in cultivated carrots to find possible parents for new carrot varieties. We will also investigate the physiological strategies carrot varieties use to adapt to different environments and assess whether regionally adapted varieties show more efficient growth in their regions of origin.

3. Strengthen our existing grower network to deepen the impact of our plant breeding work and better respond to the multiple stresses of climate change. Our established network will facilitate better understanding of farmers’ most pressing crop breeding priorities with respect to climate resiliency, along with social or economic barriers to using varieties selected using genomic or ecophysiological approaches. Moreover, this network will enable knowledge exchange around complex impacts of climate change, along with systems-based approaches to addressing climate volatility.