Yield and quality of wheat cultivars in organic and conventional farming systems - Is there an influence of the breeding history?

Summary

Organic farmers often use the same wheat cultivars as conventional farmers. Most of these cultivars have been bred under high-input conditions. Organically managed soils frequently do not deliver enough nutrients and fertilizers are limited. Therefore cultivars bred under high-input conditions often cannot perform to the full extent of their high genetic potential. Better nutrient uptake efficiency would be of great value for organic farms and conventional farms, producing under low-input conditions. Studies with winter wheat showed that cultivars, selected directly under organic conditions finally yielded higher under organic conditions than cultivars selected under conventional conditions [1], indicating a successful adaptation to low-input conditions during selection.