b"gen from leaves and stems back to theirI think some of the things like lowerHe further explains that researchers roots at the end of the growing season,grain protein, we can start to selectcan use standard breeding and transgen-which is what perennial plants do.on right away so theres less nitrogenics, but that the most efficient method Corn has wild relatives with thisdemand, Buckler says. Cold tolerance islikely is gene editing. desired trait. For example, gamagrassa hard trait. Corn is an annual, and its closest wild is cold tolerant, used for forage, andrelatives are annuals, Buckler says. But if grows as far north as Wisconsin andHigh-tech Solutions you go back in time, all its ancestors were Massachusetts. Maize has a perennialHe believes genomic tools will make coldperennials. Were just adding little bits of wild relative found in Mexico called Zeatolerance possible. that back in.diploperennis that remobilizes nitrogen atWe've been able to use all theseBucklers team has worked in close the end of the growing season back downgenomic tools to look at about 500consultation with corn grower groups and to its roots. wild species related to corn, Bucklerforesees maintaining yields, if not improv-We're not going to make a perennialsays. The first corn genome cost abouting them.crop, but these relatives of corn have all$30 million to sequence and now we'veIf were planting earlier, every few the traits we want, Buckler says. Webeen able to look at 500 other species adegrees of cold tolerance we get a yield know the genetics we need to achievedecade later for maybe a couple millionbump, Buckler explains. If we can this type of thing are already out there,dollars. achieve overwintering in parts of the and we think that this set of traits canHaving available wild species fromSouthern U.S., we might see up to a 30% provide some real benefit when com- which to draw desired traits speeds theyield bump. bined with a range of other agronomicprocess. Researchers have started iden- I think that the wins in dealing with approaches. With this type of corn intifying the wild relatives genes and arenitrogen are threefoldfewer input costs, conjunction with improved rotations andtesting key genes to cross into corn.less water pollution, and fewer green-fertilizer applications, we think we're onI think at the end of five years, we'llhouse gas emissions. Whichever perspec-the order of cutting down greenhousehave identified the key genes we needtive you're coming at this from, we all gas emissions by over 50% and reducingfor this process, and then at that point wewant this to work.SWfertilizer inputs by over 50%.will work carefully with industry to start Buckler realizes this will take somedeploying those in the next five years, time to implement. Buckler says.Elevate your business with the knowledge you need.Subscribe now for exclusive insights, breakthrough trends, and expert analysis delivered directly to your inbox. Join the Seed World Daily community today!seedworld.com/subscribeDECEMBER 2023SEEDWORLD.COM /53SW_SWDailyNewsletters_HP.indd 1 2023-11-07 9:50 AM"