Genetic and physiological bases for adaptation of soybeans to mega-environments

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Since 1980 soybean production in Canada has grown almost 10-fold (SoyCanada, 2017). The world soybean production continues to increase as well, especially in Brazil and Argentina. However, new markets for soybean production are developing around the world. Perhaps the fastest growing market is in the Ukraine, which is expected to increase its soybean production area from about 3 million hectares (ha) in 2016 to about 10 million ha by 2022. Partly due to similarities in the climate and latitude, many current successful soybean cultivars grown in the Ukraine have been developed in Canadian breeding program including the University of Guelph's. This has created excellent opportunities for Canadian seed companies to build their business and export seeds from Canada to increase the profits and benefits to their own business as well as to Canadian economy. The aim of the proposed research is to gain a better understanding of underlying genetic and physiological bases for high yield and improved agronomic and seed quality traits when breeding for target environment, especially those that are overseas. To achieve this Genome Wide Association Analysis (GWAS), quantitative trait loci (QTL) on biparental populations designed to validate QTL will be used along methods in concert with methods aimed at determining the physiological basis of yield and stress tolerance in soybean. The improved understanding of these principles and the development of breeding and selection tools to facilitate better products will allow for significant growth of the export markets for seed companies in Canada.