Plant Breeding and Sustaining Agricultural Systems
The Waite breeding programs deliver outcomes that directly impact both the Australian and global agricultural industries. The ability to feed the world sustainably relies on research approaches that examine both complex farming systems and molecular interactions, such as plant defence responses to pathogens.
Plants do not exist in isolation. They are part of a dynamic system and interact with a range of other organisms, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, insects and other plants. The Waite hosts world-leading researchers in soil science, natural resource management and understanding the impact of climate on ecosystems. Researchers within the Waite organisations work collaboratively and across disciplines to achieve more nutritious food, produced with the most efficient use of resources, and without negative impacts on our natural environment.
Cereal varieties developed here at Waite comprise approximately 80% of all those in production across southern Australia. Success stories include new varieties of barley, durum wheat, oats, pulses, bread wheat and grapevine rootstocks with increased yields and increased resistance to pests, diseases, increasing drought events and soil salinity.
Relevant research groups
- Plant Breeding and Genetics, UoA
- Fertiliser Technology Research Centre (FTRC)
- Crop Improvement and Water Resources, SARDI
- Agronomy and Entomology, SARDI
- Analytics for the Australian Grains Industry (AAGI)
- Australian Grain Technologies
- CSIRO Division of Agriculture and Food and Land
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space
- ARC Training Centre for Future Crops Development
- Australian Plant Phenomics Network