The Need: Plants are widely utilized as major sources of food, beverages, animal feed, and plant derived products such as medicines, supplements, cosmetics, rubber, and textiles. Other valuable uses include ornamental and landscaping applications, phytoremediation, and improvement or protection of soils. Agricultural industry and innovation depend on the development of improved plant varieties to address new consumer demands, emerging pests and diseases, and ever-changing environments. Research and development of new cultivars requires diverse gene pools to draw upon. Crop genetic diversity is a natural resource that has evolved over many millennia across the globe, via human selection and natural selection. Much of this diversity is not native to North America or the USA, rather, diverse plant materials have been imported, propagated, and subsequently conserved in germplasm repositories such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS). If lost, these gene pools are oftentimes irreplaceable due to diminished popularity of cultivars or landraces, changes in environmental conditions, degradation of native habitats, or international inaccessibility. Furthermore, an emphasis on crop uniformity for increased efficiency of operations has decreased the amount of genetic diversity utilized in many areas of production in the USA and worldwide.

NPGS serves research, breeding, and higher education as a public source of plant genetic diversity. The NPGS is a cooperative effort by State, Federal, and other organizations to acquire, preserve, evaluate, document, and distribute plant germplasm. As of 2017, more than 15,000 plant species in the form of more than 500,000 accessions were actively held by NPGS. Approximately 250,000 samples per year were distributed during the five year period 2012 – 2016; typically 70% of these were domestic and 30% were foreign distributions.

The NPGS Plant Genetic Resources Unit (PGRU) located on the campus of Cornell AgriTech at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station (NYSAES) in Geneva, NY is comprised of the Northeast Regional PI Station for seed crop collections, and the National Germplasm Repository-Geneva for clonal crop collections, as well as the Apple Rootstock Breeding Program. The seed and clonal repositories hold 12,670 and 7,606 active NPGS accessions, respectively. Major collections conserved are tomato, onion, celery, winter squash, Brassica (cole crops and Brassica rapa), radish, apple, cold-hardy grape, and tart cherry, including crop species and their wild relatives. Safeguarding these genetic resources is critical to meet future stakeholder demands, including many states in the Northeast USA, where many of these crops are principal sources of economic activity and potential commercial growth. The Northeast Regional Multistate Research Project, NE9, brings together representatives from 12 states (CT, DE, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT, WV) and Washington DC to address mutual interests in plant breeding, research and extension/education. Members of the Regional Technical Advisory Committee (RTAC) represent state universities, State Agricultural Experiment Stations (SAESs), and the USDA-ARS; the duty of Project Administrative Advisor is assigned to the director of Cornell AgriTech at NYSAES. Breeding, research, and extension within the NE9 region are supported and strengthened by services and activities performed by PGRU and NPGS. Funding from the NE9 Project has been critical for the realization and sustainability of PGRU germplasm activities. PGRU Seeds and Clonal germplasm projects rely heavily on collaborations for evaluation trials and cultivar development, which are largely beyond the scope of NPGS.

Proposed Objectives: Objectives of this project are directed towards providing the required germplasm to assure stable and sustainable production of nutritious fruits and vegetables in the Northeast USA and worldwide:

1. Efficiently and effectively acquire and maintain the safety, genetic integrity, health, and viability of priority genetic resources, and distribute them and their associated information worldwide.


2. Develop more effective germplasm maintenance, evaluation, and characterization methods and apply them to priority genetic resources. Record and disseminate evaluation and characterization data via the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN-Global) and other data sources.


3. With other NPGS gene banks and Crop Germplasm Committees (CGCs) develop, update, document, and implement best management practices and Crop Vulnerability Statements (CVSs) for priority fruit and vegetable genetic resources and information management.


4. Develop novel germplasm that integrates diverse, useful genes from various resources and breed, release, maintain, and evaluate improved germplasm and cultivars. 

Note: Objectives 3 and 4 require collaboration. Developing strong collaborative relationships among PGRU staff and reliable and productive cooperators are viewed as part of these objectives.

Importance of the Work:  The tomato, onion, Brassica, winter squash, celery, artichoke, and asparagus genetic resources managed by this project represent approximately 36% of the combined dollar value of fresh and processing vegetables in the USA. The fruit crops maintained by PGRU account for about 49% of the value of USA fruit and vine crop production (Appendix A, Table 1). Among all fruit and nut crop production in the USA, the economic value of utilized production for grapes, apples, and tart cherries rank 1st, 4th, and 20th with values of $5.561, $3.394, and $0.087 billion in 2016, respectively (Appendix A, Table 1). Production in millions of metric tons is highly significant globally for PGRU’s major clonal and seed crops (Appendix A, Table 2). Historically, the NE9 Project has made substantial contributions to the vegetable and fruit industries through distribution of germplasm and associated information for developing improved varieties with higher and more stable yield, disease and insect resistance, and improved quality. For example, germplasm of tomato has been extensively used for development of resistance against pests and diseases; the Malus collection has been used for disease and pest resistance, fruit and storage quality, and drought tolerance; and the Vitis collection has been used for cold-hardiness, powdery mildew resistance, and phylloxera resistance.

During the past five years, PGRU maintained more than 12,600 accessions of tomato, onion, radish, winter squash, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, other cole crops, celery, tomatillo, asparagus, other vegetables, and buckwheat, representing 29 genera, 151 species and 200 taxa. Approximately 150 – 200 seed crop accessions were regenerated per year to replenish stocks. In addition, 143 new accessions were acquired of Allium, Apium, Brassica, Cucurbita, Fagopyrum, Physalis, Raphanus, Solanum, and other miscellaneous seed crops. PGRU maintained 5,910 accessions of Malus, 1,392 accessions of Vitis, and 130 accessions of tart cherries. Through introduction, exploration, and exchange, PGRU acquired 162 new clonal accessions and 306 seed accessions of Malus, 14 new clonal accessions and 3 seed accessions of Vitis. In total, 367 wild Malus sieversii and selective seedlings of M. sieversii were added to the permanent collection.

The collections have been extensively used worldwide to develop new cultivars and for research purposes, such as genetic analysis of disease resistance, quality, genetic diversity, and population structure. PGRU scientists characterize germplasm for priority traits to make the material more readily usable. Much of this characterization and evaluation is performed in collaboration with scientists from the NE9 region and also other regions in the USA and abroad. Research into quality and health-beneficial traits was initiated at the request of partners in various CGCs and has become increasingly emphasized. From 2013 – 2017, PGRU distributed 29,092 seed lots (49% domestic and 51% foreign). On average, 5,818 unique accessions were distributed per year, i.e., approximately 46% of the active collections each year. PGRU distributed 36,751 clonal crop samples in 1,613 domestic requests and 121 foreign requests. In the states covered by NE9 there were 3,086 seed samples from 2,997 accessions distributed for the seed crops and 18,940 samples from 3,770 accessions distributed for the clonal crops.

Technical Feasibility and Value of a Multi-state Project:  Acquisition, conservation, and characterization of germplasm collections are more efficient at a central location than through individual state organizations, which would result in unnecessary duplication of efforts. A cooperative approach among state partners and the PGRU allows for an efficient conservation of fruit and vegetable germplasm while plant breeders and other scientists can take the lead in characterization and evaluation, especially for quantitative traits that require replicated field trials. Utilization of germplasm for crop improvement by geneticists and breeders at individual SAESs capitalizes on the genetic resources and the characterization/evaluation information maintained by the NPGS.

The PGRU is primarily supported by appropriated funds authorized by Congress, which provides long term stability for performing basic activities. It is located within a vibrant agricultural region on the Cornell AgriTech at NYSAES campus, and is well suited to take maximum advantage of additional multi-state funds from the NE9 project for conservation and characterization/evaluation of fruit and vegetable germplasm of important crops to the Northeast region. Funding from NE9 provides critical resources for better management of the collection and quality service of germplasm distribution. It also supports major efforts in supplying germplasm to screen for high-priority traits, such as important disease and pest resistances and traits important to human health, much of which is done in collaboration with scientists from SAESs.

Impact: Genetic resources in the PGRU repository will continue to prove useful in developing improved cultivars of seed and clonal crops, and stabilize agricultural production. Exotic pests and diseases are of increasing threat with the expansion of imports and exports throughout the world. Intensified efforts to improve the sustainability of national food production while reducing deleterious impacts are essential. For example, genetic resistance to pests and diseases reduces dependency on pesticides and preventative chemical sprays, which reduces risks for agricultural workers and impact on the environment. In response to changing environmental conditions, PGRU collections will be used as sources of resistance to environmental stresses to increase the range of adaptation of fruit and vegetable crops. PGRU collections can also be utilized as consumer preferences change. For example, nutritional quality is of increasing importance to consumers and many of the plant species held at PGRU are being studied for health-promoting phytochemicals which reduce the risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and numerous other chronic or life-threatening conditions. Finally, maximizing the use of available germplasm at PGRU will help USA producers thrive in a competitive global marketplace. For example, within the current NE9 project, PGRU has provided accessions of radish and cabbage as sources of natural pigments for breeding programs aimed at emerging markets; identified a wild tomato germplasm accession used for late blight resistance in cultivated tomatoes; and identified apple germplasm with multiple disease resistances and improved plant architecture to develop new rootstocks.

Germplasm from PGRU has proven useful in developing improved cultivars of fruits and vegetables in the Northeast region, the USA, and the World:

• Genes from wild tomatoes have been exploited to increase ease of harvesting, disease resistance, and for stress and drought tolerance.


• More than 20 genes from the PGRU tomato collection for bacterial speck, spotted wilt virus, tobacco mosaic virus, leaf mold, fusarium wilt, verticillium wilt, late blight, and nematode resistance have been bred into modern varieties.


• Phylloxera resistant grape rootstocks and hybrids derived from North American wild Vitis germplasm were instrumental in rescuing the European grape and wine industry.


• The recent spread of grape cultivation throughout the USA, especially in the northeast, has been made possible by use of the germplasm collection for breeding of new cultivars of Vitis vinifera that are adapted to environments where vinifera could not previously be grown.


• PGRU was the only institution that maintained the 100+ founding ancestors of popular apple cultivars.


• Genetic resources for resistance to apple scab, fire blight, and wooly apple aphids maintained in the germplasm collection have been deployed in disease resistant apple rootstocks and cultivars. Millions of insect and disease resistant apple trees can be traced back to the PGRU apple collection.

Germplasm maintained at PGRU is currently or will be used for crop improvement of fruits and vegetables:

• Wild tomato germplasm is being screened for novel sources of resistance to Fusarium wilt race 3 because currently available sources cause negative pleiotropic effects on cultivars such as weaker vines.


• Brassica oleracea (including cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprout, kale) germplasm is being characterized for glucosainolate profiles; these are sulfur-containing compounds with chemopreventive properties.


• PGRU’s fruit and vegetable germplasm collections are being screened for medicinal and nutraceutical properties for development of cultivars that will improve the health benefits of consumption.


• Germplasm of apple progenitors from Central Asia and other wild Malus is being screened for important disease resistances such as fire blight and scab and is being incorporated into breeding programs.


• Grape germplasm will continue to be used in developing new grape cultivars for better resistance to disease and climate change.


• The apple collection has been used extensively by the hard cider industry in the USA and is assisting in the importation of new cider apple varieties from Spain and England and their subsequent distribution.