or the past 30 years, the Texas potato breeding efforts have been conducted under the leadership of Dr. Creighton Miller, Professor in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University.
Since the inception of the program, by Dr. Miller in 1973, 1,438, 469 seedlings have been grown for selection in Texas. From these, 6,706 regional selections have been made, 11 improved varieties have been developed/co-developed and/or released through his program. The released varieties have been instrumental in raising the Texas average yields/A from 200 CWT in 1973 to 390 CWT/A in 2001. These results have had a significant impact on the Texas potato production industry, and are a tribute to Dr. Miller and his lab group at Texas A&M University.
2001-02 Potato Breeding Summary
The Texas Potato Variety Development Program used three locations in the 2001-2002 growing season (Click here to see Table 1).
The first planting was near McCook, Texas on 13 December 2001, and harvested on 1 and 15 April 2002. Two proprietary trials and a seed evaluation and increase nursery were planted on this site. The next planting was near Springlake, Texas on 18 to 22 March 2002, and harvested on 16 and 29 July, and 6 and 20 August. This location included twelve replicated trials, one one-row observation trial, and first generation seedlings for selection. The final plantings were near Dalhart, Texas on 9 May and 18 June. Eight replicated trials, a seed evaluation and increase nursery, and one one-row observation trial and first year seedlings for selection were planted at this site.
Seedling Program
In 2002, 84,432 first year seedlings, resulting from 440 different parental combinations or families (crosses), were grown for selection on the Barrett Farm (55,595) near Springlake and on the CSS Farm near Dalhart (28,837). Two-hundred-twenty-four original selections were made from this material.
The 2002 first year seedling tubers from Texas (8,702) were grown during the fall of 2001 at College Station, primarily from true seed provided by Rich Novy in Idaho. The remaining seedling tubers were provided by Rich Novy, Idaho (11,464), Al Mosley, Oregon (20,604), David Holm, Colorado (20,135), Bob Hanneman, Madison, Wisconsin (5,539), and Susie Thompson, North Dakota (17,988). The Texas program provided 5,484 second - fourth size seedling tubers to Colorado, while 2,814 and 1,700 were sent to North Dakota and Idaho, respectively.
Adaptation trials
The objectives of the adaptation trials are: (1) to test advanced selections and named varieties to determine their potential as replacement varieties for those presently grown in Texas, and (2) to identify potential parents for use in the Texas breeding program.
Some 332 entries were evaluated near McCook, 426 advanced selections and varieties were tested in replicated and nonreplicated trials near Springlake, while 617 entries were evaluated near Dalhart (Table1). A small seed increase nursery was again grown at the San Luis Valley Research Center in Center, Colorado by David Holm.
Since 1973, 19,756 entries have been evaluated. Through the years, findings from the Texas Potato Variety Development Program trials have resulted in the release of several improved varieties, which have contributed significantly to the competitiveness, sustainability, and profitability of the Texas potato industry.
Results from a specific trial can be obtained by contacting:
Dr. Creighton Miller
Department of Horticultural Sciences
MS 2133 HFSB
Texas A&M University
College Station, Texas 77843
