15AGRITECHCAT4: Application of innovative plant breeding and phenotyping to reduce the nutrient requirement of forages to reduce the environmental....

多年生黑麦草和白三叶草等饲料作物是英国牲畜的主要饲料，也是可持续反刍动物生产的重要组成部分。英国陆地上有1100万公顷的草地，其中120万公顷的草地龄小于5年，每年有32.5万公顷的草地被重新播种，种植各种牧草和豆类（Defra）。草地农业的主要重点是提高干物质产量、饲料质量和动物产量。更大的欧盟监管意味着英国草地部门现在面临着减少生产对环境的影响，同时提高其产量和效率。养分的有效利用是草地有效管理的关键组成部分之一，氮、磷的施用是保持优质草地生产力的必要条件。畜牧业农民被鼓励从饲料中生产更多的产品，而难以预测的化肥价格可能会增加成本。该项目将通过在NPPC内应用植物育种和基因组学技术以及强化表型技术，提高多年生黑麦草和白三叶品种的养分利用效率，解决增加草地农业可持续集约化的挑战。对草地的肥料投入取决于制度和管理制度。目前氮肥价格为每吨270英镑或每公斤78便士。施氮量的范围很广：标准范围为每年160公斤至100 - 204公斤氮公顷，具体取决于放养率、浓缩物使用、粪肥施用和饲料豆类的使用。通过有针对性的植物育种来改善英国草地系统对氮和磷的利用是一项重大挑战，但也为植物育种者提供了一个重要的机会。本项目将利用早期对多年生黑麦草和白三叶的研究成果，开发出新的遗传资源和育种技术，以提高牧草的养分利用效率，从而使多年生黑麦草和白三叶品种的单位干物质产量所需的氮和磷更少，为初级生产者提供经济效益和环境效益。该项目将利用阿伯里斯特威斯大学（Aberystwyth University）的国家植物表型中心（National Plant Phenotyping Centre），在种子生产前分析选择对单个植物氮肥利用效率的影响，并在田间试验中进行评估，并通过优化的营养管理验证结果。开发的改良种质将在项目结束后（完成后5年内）由Germinal Holdings Ltd. （GHL）开发，以生产GHL在英国和海外销售的成品品种，潜在地将其品种的使用量增加10%（目前GHL供应英国饲料种子市场的30%，为10,000吨）。

Forage crops such as perennial ryegrass and white clover are the major feed of UK livestock and an important component of sustainable ruminant production. Grassland covers 11million ha of the UK landmass of which 1.2million ha is <5 years old, with 325,000ha resown annually with varieties of forage grasses and legumes (Defra). The major emphasis of grassland agriculture has been on increasing dry matter yield, forage quality and animal production. Greater EU regulation means the UK grassland sector is now faced with reducing the environmental impact of production whilst simultaneously improving its production and efficiency. The effective use of nutrients is one of the key components of efficient grassland management, with the application of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) integral to maintaining the productivity of high quality swards. Livestock farmers are being encouraged to produce more from forage, while less predictable fertiliser prices, may act to increase costs. This project will address the challenge of increasing the sustainable intensification of grassland agriculture through applying plant breeding and genomics technologies in parallel with enhanced phenotying technologies, within the NPPC to improve the nutrient use efficiency of perennial ryegrass and white clover varieties.Fertiliser inputs to grassland depend upon system and management regime. Nitrogen prices are currently £270/t or 78p/kg N. Application rates range widely: a standard range would be 160kg to >204kg N ha/year depending upon stocking rate, concentrate use, manure application and use of forage legumes. Improving the use of N and P in UK grassland systems through targeted plant breeding is a major challenge but also presents a significant opportunity for plant breeders. This project will exploit outcomes of earlier research on perennial ryegrass and white clover that has developed novel genetic resources and breeding technologies that will enable selection for improved nutrient use efficiency in forages, leading to varieties of perennial ryegrass and white clover requiring less N and P per unit of dry matter production, providing an economic benefit to primary producers and environmental benefits. The project will use the National Plant Phenotyping Centre at Aberystwyth University (AU) to analyse the effect of selection on NUE on single plants prior to seed production and evaluation in field trials and validation of the outcomes through optimised nutrient management. The enhanced germplasm developed will be exploited beyond the project (within 5 years of completion) by Germinal Holdings Ltd. (GHL) to produce finished varieties marketed by GHL in UK and overseas, potentially increasing the use of their varieties by 10% (currently GHL supply 30% of UK forage seed market of 10000t).