Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
1. Design, conduct and analyse basic breeding and selection programmes for crop improvement;
2. Appreciate the importance of the diversity of crops and to realise the need for conservation and know alternative means of conservation of important crops of PNG.
The evolution of crop plants; Centres of diversity; Exploration collection and conservation of plant genetic resources; Genetic principles in plant breeding; Classification of breeding methods; Breeding procedures for representative self-pollinated cross-pollinated and clonal crops; Special techniques in plant breeding - mutation, polyploidy, inter specific hybridisation and in vitro techniques; Breeding for disease resistance; Trial, multiplication and release of improved varieties; Current breeding programmes in important crops of PNG.
Sleper, D. A., Poelhman, J. M., Breeding field crops, Blackwell Publishing, Ames, USA, 2006.
Simmonds, N. W., Principles of crop improvement, Longman, London, UK, 1979.
Continuous assessment 40%
Written examination 60%
Phone: +675 473 4999 Fax: +675 475 7776
