Vegetable Breeding Working Group (VGBR)

VGBR is part of the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS)

Minutes (2002 meeting)

• Vegetable Breeding Working Group Business Meeting
• American Society for Horticultural Science 2002 Annual Conference
• Fairmont Royal York Hotel
• Toronto, Canada
• Held in conjunction with the XXVIth International Horticultural Congress
• Monday, August 12, 2002

Proposed Agenda

• Approval of 2001 Minutes
• ASHS Vegetable Breeding Award of Excellence for 2001 and 2002
• Colloquium sponsorships for 2003
  • Genomics and Germplasm
  • Food Quality, Safety, and Human Health
• Joint ASHS/CSSA Symposiums
• VBR Working Group Organization
• Election of Secretary for 2003
• Nominations for 2003 Vegetable Breeding Award of Excellence
• Other Issues for 2003 meeting (100th Anniversary of ASHS) in Providence
  • Reviews for 100th Anniversary
  • Cosponsorship of Statistics Symposium
  • Workshop Topics

The annual business meeting of the Vegetable Breeding (VGBR) Working Group was called to order at 9:00 am in the Confederation 5 room of the Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

The following members were present: Mark Farnham (chair) Phil Simon (chair elect), Jim Myers (secretary), Ed Ryder, Janice Strachan, Todd Wehner, Kathy Reitsma, Jim McCreight, Kevin Brink, Chris Cramer, Barbara Liedl, Larry Knerr, George Hosfield, Jim Kelly, Kevin Crosby, Jack Staub, Mikel Stevens, John Stommel, Mark Hutton, Tim Ng, and Maria Jenderek.

Farnham noted that the minutes of the 2001 meeting held in Sacramento California were posted on a site maintained by Todd Wehner at:

http://cuke.hort.ncsu.edu/cucurbit/vgbr/vgbrmnts01.html

Minutes were unanimously accepted as written.

Discussion turned to the Vegetable Breeding Award of Excellence. The award was not given in 2001. Therefore, the nominating committee decided to give awards for both 2001 and 2002. Nominees for the awards were David Groff and Richard Lower for the 2001 and 2002, respectively. Groff (now retired) was an Asgrow breeder of squash, cucumber, and spinach. Lower was nominated for his career in the public and private sectors, breeding cucumbers, squash, and onion.

Makeup and membership for the award nominating committee for 2003 was solicited. A motion that the nomination subcommittee consists of three members from VGBR working group, the three current working group officers, and the past chair was approved (M/S Hostfield/Reitsma). A committee of seven could represent the working group membership and would not be subject to ties in voting. The subcommittee membership for 2003 is Todd Wehner, John Stommel, and Linda Wessel-Beaver. Names of potential award recipients were: Jay Scott, Teddy Morelock, Dick Fery, Jack Hannah, Larry Baker, and Carroll Briggs. The names of other nominees are invited from members of the VGBR working group and should be provided to this subcommittee.

Colloquiums, symposiums and workshops were the next topic of discussion. The deadline for colloquiums for 2003 was August 1, and the VGBR working group did not propose any. There had been discussion last year of cosponsoring a colloquium with Home Horticulture on heirloom varieties, with Home Horticulture coordinating the event. Apparently, this colloquium has been dropped. The VGBR working group is cosponsoring two other colloquiums for the 2003 meeting in Providence, RI: a germplasm and genetics colloquium on Human Nutrition, and one on Food Quality and Safety in Relation to Human Health. They differ in that the emphasis of the latter is on safety.

The joint ASHS/CSSA symposium was discussed. These symposia began with the 1992 symposium on application of RAPD markers to plant breeding, and had been rotating between the Horticulture and Crop Science meetings. The last symposium was in 2000 at the CSSA meeting. The symposium involved an additional level of planning, required time outside of the regular meetings, and incurred additional registration fees. The symposia were begun to get representation at ASHS meetings that breeders and geneticists felt was lacking. Initially, funds were held separately, but were then combined with ASHS funds. A proceedings was published through the Heterosis symposium, but not for symposia held from the mid 1990s on. It was moved that the VGBR working group cease to sponsor joint ASHS/CSSA symposia (M/S Wessel-Beaver/McCreight). The motion passed unanimously.

The deadline for workshops for 2003 is September 15 for an outline, with a detailed program by spring. Some ideas put forth were breeding for specific environments, breeding for sustainability, and breeding for climate change. It was pointed out that the Organic working group wanted to develop a workshop on breeding for organic horticulture, which would complement the topic of sustainability. A bioinformatics workshop (statistical analysis of molecular data) to be presented in 2003 came from discussions of the statistics symposium (see below). A workshop subcommittee consisting of Mark Hutton and George Hosfield was established, to be coordinated by the incoming chair (Phil Simon).

A review / workshop for the 100th anniversary is being developed for presentation at the 2003 meetings. It will involve retrospectives from various fields, but the intent is to focus on what will happen in the next 100 years. Names of possible speakers in breeding and genetics would be Teddy Morelock for a historical review, Irwin Goldman for history of breeding, and Todd Wehner for gain from selection.

Cosponsorship of a symposium on statistical methods for horticulture research was discussed. The idea for this symposium arises from the perceived need to educate authors in common statistical mistakes made in journal papers. The VGBR working group would like to see additional details on program composition before supporting this symposium.

An idea for a colloquium for 2004 stemming from workshop discussions was on plant breeding for developing countries, and perhaps combined with farmer participatory breeding. Subcommittee members to pursue this program are John Stommel, Linda Wessel-Beaver, and Mikel Stevens, with Jim Myers as chair-elect to coordinate. Colloquium proposals will be due in September 2003.

Mikel Stevens (Brigham Young University, Provo, UT) was elected as secretary for the 2003 meetings.

Meeting adjourned at 10:15 am.