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Use of Partially Male-Sterile Perennial Ryegrass for Hybrid Cultivar Production¹

The possibility of breeding ryegrass hybrid varieties based on partial male-sterility was investigated. Frequency of hybridization between perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne L., and annual ryegrass, L. multiflorum Lam., was determined by using two partially male-sterile perennial ryegrass genotypes. Clones of a desynaptic diploid (2n = 14) and a trisomic (2n = 15) perennial ryegrass plant were inter-pollinated with annual ryegrass plants having the dominant markers fluorescent-roots and awned-florets. The progeny of perennial x annual ryegrass showed fluorescent-roots and all except two plants had awned-florets, suggesting 100% hybridization on inter-pollination. In the reciprocal crossings, annual x perennial ryegrass, hybridization frequency approached 100% with the trisomic pollinator, but was only 29% with the perennial desynaptic pollinator. Although most F₁ plants were fertile and had good seed set, mortality in F₂ and back-crosses was high. It was concluded that partially male-sterile genotypes can be used for the production of hybrid ryegrass cultivars.

Key Words: Lolium perenne L. • L. multiflorum Lam. • Interspecific hybrids • Hybrid varieties • Root-fluorescence • Self-incompatibility • Trisomics • Desynapsis

² Research geneticist.

Received for publication December 27, 1979.