Breeding for frost tolerance in barley

Project summary

Researchers have validated the commercial significance of Japanese-derived frost-tolerant barley, and justified investment (by breeding organisations) in the development of new frost-tolerant varieties.

Growers may have access to frost-tolerant barley varieties to increase:

• production yield
• stability of production
• economic viability of production.

Outcomes

• The project confirmed that there are differences in frost tolerance between Australian barley varieties.
• This trial confirmed that barley lines containing Japanese-derived genes had improved frost tolerance.
• Australian lines such as Keel and WI3806 were found to be more frost tolerant, at least equivalent to the Japanese-derived lines.
• Some older varieties such as Galleon and Arapiles express significantly higher levels of damage when exposed to frost.
• The availability of frost-screening facilities and protocols will allow future barley varieties to be benchmarked for frost tolerance/susceptibility and and assist growers’ decision making when selecting varieties.

Background

Frost damage causes significant economic losses to Australian cereal farmers in affected areas. Losses average more than $33M a year in South Australia and Victoria alone. The damage occurs during the reproductive stages of development. Frost events that occur close to flowering can cause floret sterility, significantly reducing yield. Subsequent frosts during grain filling can result in downgrading of grain quality.

Frost tolerance identified in Japanese varieties had not yet been formally validated within Australian genetic backgrounds or under mainstream cropping conditions. However, barley programs in both Western Australia and South Australia used these varieties as parental material in barley breeding. Barley breeders are incorporating the frost-tolerant alleles (hereditary units or genes) into a range of genetic backgrounds, including elite malting quality material.

The project supported these breeding initiatives by confirming that significant variation exists for frost tolerance in barley. It found that the genetic regions on chromosome 2H and 5H are the main factors influencing these differences. The project provided screening services for the barley breeding programs to confirm the level of frost tolerance/susceptibility in breeding lines developed using molecular marker technology.

Related projects

CSP00131 – Finding the balance between frost tolerance and flowering time in wheat

UA00100 – Nationally coordinated frost trials – Southern region

UA00114 – Frost tolerance in wheat