Publications by authors named "Lennin Musundire"
Optimization of a breeding program requires assessing and quantifying empirical genetic trends made through past efforts relative to the current breeding strategies, germplasm, technologies, and policy. To establish the genetic trends in the Kenyan Highland Maize Breeding Program (KHMP), a two-decade (1999-2020) historical dataset from the Preliminary Variety Trials (PVT) and Advanced Variety Trials (AVT) was analyzed. A mixed model analysis was used to compute the genetic gains for traits based on the best linear unbiased estimates in the PVT and AVT evaluation stages.
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- Monitoring genetic gains is essential for improving breeding programs, and this study is the first to analyze two decades of data for Zimbabwe's maize breeding efforts from 2002 to 2021.
- The research evaluated 107 intermediate and 162 advanced variety trials across various stress conditions, finding significant increases in grain yield (28-35 kg ha per year) in different environments, although plant and ear height remained unchanged.
- Key improvements included reduced stalk and root lodging and lower susceptibility to diseases, indicating progress in overcoming challenges, but the study also emphasizes the need for new breeding technologies to enhance genetic gains further.
Estimating genetic gains is vital to optimize breeding programs for increased efficiency. Genetic gains should translate into productivity gains if returns to investments in breeding and impact are to be realized. The objective of this study was to estimate genetic gain for grain yield and key agronomic traits in pre-commercial and commercial maize varieties from public and private breeding programs tested in (i) national performance trials (NPT), (ii) era trial and, (iii) compare the trends with the national average.
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