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January 6, 2012
happiness and success to you and your families. The American Seed Trade Association worked hard for you in 2011 to improve the movement of seed with imports, exports and re-exports; make sure your voice was heard on issues at the state, federal and international levels; and provide networking and educational opportunities for members and those in the industry. This work will continue in 2012 and I'm excited about the year we have ahead and the projects we'll be rolling out and working on. I ask that you check in with us frequently and let us know what your issues are. We are working on your behalf. The New Year is sure to bring some new challenges, but I have complete confidence that with the right minds at the table these challenges will become opportunities. Best regards,
Andy LaVigne
ASTA welcomes a new member to the science and international affairs team The American Seed Trade Association named Kelly Crist manager of science and international affairs. Crist of Arlington, Va., is responsible for providing administrative management and logistical support to other team members to ensure that all department and related activities are completed in an efficient and accurate manner. "I am very excited to join the ASTA community, and look forward to meeting as many of you as possible at ASTA's 51st Vegetable & Flower Seed Conference and throughout the year," Crist says. From 2009-2011, she served as executive coordinator for George Washington University's Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Prior to that, Crist worked for the U.S. Grains Council as the international operations coordinator for Asia. "We are excited to bring Kelly on board," says Bernice Slutsky, ASTA vice president of science and international affairs. "Her knowledge of USDA's Cooperator Programs will benefit our team and the association." Crist replaces Anna Burks who recently moved to Charleston, S.C., to be with her fiancée and begin graduate school. Burks is currently contracting with ASTA to continue work on the FuSE Committee. Crist can be reached at kcrist@amseed.org or 703-837-8140.
NCCPB honors Major Goodman with the Public Service Award The National Council of Commercial Plant Breeders (NCCPB) recognized Major Goodman, during ASTA's CSS 2011 & Seed Expo, with the Public Service Award for his outstanding contributions to the advancement of plant breeding and genetics in the public sector. "It's an honor as president of NCCPB to be able to recognize an individual who has served the industry throughout their career," said Don Cummings, NCCPB president, as he handed Goodman an engraved plaque and $1,500 check. Goodman is the William Neal Reynolds and Distinguished University Professor of Crop Science, Statistics, Genetics and Botany at North Carolina State University. It was at NCSU that he received his masters and doctoral degrees, both in genetics and statistics. He earned his bachelors at Iowa State University in mathematics and chemistry. Cummins said Goodman's accomplishments and positions are too many to read aloud. A few of these include completing a post-doc in Brazil, various roles at NCSU, publishing more than 100 refereed journal articles, 40 book chapters and two books. His major research has included evolution of maize and other cultivated plants, plant breeding isozyme genetics and numerical taxonomy among many, many other things. "Major has developed and released a number of corn breeding lines and germplasm resources," Cummings said. "He's a prolific contributor to this group and has been a leader to the Germplasm Enhancement of Maize (GEM) Committee and many other activities throughout the year." More about Goodman and his work at NCSU are available at http://www.cropsci.ncsu.edu/maize/index.html.
A variety of seeds best for environmental and conservation efforts, expert said The debate about whether land rehabilitation and reclamation can best be accomplished with local ecotypes, or tested, selected, or cultivar classes of native plants continues. A South Dakota State University professor and plant breeder says some combination of the four classes, depending on land utilization goals, may be the best approach. "We are at a cross-road now," says Arvid Boe. "We are gaining knowledge and data from genetic and agronomic research about these different germplasm classes, but we must figure out how best to use them." During the American Seed Trade Association's Farm & Lawn Seed Conference, Boe explains to participants that it's important to have a balance between usefulness and value of different classes of germplasm starting with the local ecotype concept all the way through to materials that have received much more attention, like cultivars that have been developed for forage and biomass sources. Plants such as miscanthus have been targeted for increased yield. For the production of biomass crops, it's all about yield, Boe says. The U.S. Department of Energy has set a goal that any feasible biomass crop must produce at least 10 tons per acre. There's a need for long term trials in Plant Adaptation Regions that determine the relative adaptation of cultivars, cultivar blends based on ecoregions, and local ecotypes to those different environments, both in monocultures and mixtures with other grasses and forbs. "A landscape approach is very important," Boe says. "You can't just use a shotgun approach and expect to be successful." Grassland Oregon names new vice president of North American Turfgrass Sales Grassland Oregon's welcomes Duane Klundt as vice president of Turfgrass Sales for North America. "With a long history of exemplary service to the industry, reputation of superior turf knowledge, and management skills we are fortunate to have Duane join our team and oversee Grassland Oregon's growth in this market sector," says Jerry Hall, general manager and partner. Klundt was previously senior territory manager for The Scott's Company's Professional Turf Sales for North America. He has served the industry in numerous capacities, a few of which include: secretary-treasurer of Turfgrass Producers International, vice president of the Oregon Seed Trade Association Board of Directors, past chairman of the American Seed Trade Association's Lawn Seed Division, past president of the Pacific Seed Trade Association, and past chairman of National Turf Evaluation Program. INCOTEC and Eurofins STA Laboratories enter into agreement for seed health testing INCOTEC and Eurofins STA Laboratories (ESTA) have joined forces to promote seed health testing capabilities to the European seed market. "We are very pleased with this alliance," says Rob Pronk, managing director of INCOTEC Analytical Lab at Zwaagdijk, the Netherlands. "It will broaden our product portfolio and give Eurofins STA better access to the European market." The partnership is designed to provide European seed companies with easy access to quality seed health testing, provided by ESTA. This alliance allows INCOTEC to offer ESTA's seed health testing services on an exclusive basis to its customers, while INCOTEC will handle the daily contact with customers, and all other marketing activities to promote the high quality testing capabilities of ESTA. "This is a major step for our company and we believe that with the extensive sales and marketing network of INCOTEC in combination with their extensive knowledge, our high quality testing services will get greater exposure in the European market," says John Mizicko, ESTA president. "The aim of our agreement with INCOTEC is to offer high-quality seed health testing services for a competitive price and a rapid turnaround time to European seed companies." Research may lead to crop varieties that make better use of nitrogen-supplying bacteria An international team of researchers, including several Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists, has sequenced the genome of Medicago truncatula, a clover-like plant used as a model in research to answer fundamental questions about the basic biology and genetic underpinnings of important legume species, including alfalfa, soybean, peanut and pea. The team, led by professor Nevin Young of the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, reported the advance in a recent issue of the scientific journal Nature. According to ARS geneticist Steven Cannon, a contributing author, potential spinoff benefits of the sequencing project include new research tools for developing superior crop varieties that make better use of nitrogen-supplying bacteria. M. truncatula's fast growth, small stature and genetic simplicity make it an ideal plant model for extrapolating information about more complex, or harder-to-study members of the legume family, notes Cannon, with the ARS Corn Insects and Crop Genetics Research Unit in Ames, Iowa. Of particular interest is improving the understanding of rhizobial symbiosis. It's a mutually beneficial relationship between the plant and specific strains of soil rhizobia, which induce the plant to form specialized root nodules. There, nitrogen is fixed through the activity of an enzyme produced by the bacteria. The plant can then use this fixed nitrogen for some of its essential needs. In cultivated legumes, this plant-bacteria partnership can also help offset the need to apply synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. The team's examination of M. truncatula genes involved in rhizobial symbiosis suggests the relationship became more specialized following an evolutionary event called genomic doubling, during which legume species diverged from a common ancestor some 60 million years ago. Although M. truncatula's genome is about half the size of soybean's genome, the tiny Mediterranean plant boasts just as many genes. It's also more genetically diverse, the researchers found. The team, representing 30 different research organizations in the United States and abroad, applied two methods-BAC-to-BAC assembly and whole-shotgun genome sequencing-to decode 75 percent of M. truncatula's genome, and 94 percent, or approximately 62,000, of its genes. The project began eight years ago with partial funding from the National Science Foundation. ARS,the U.S. Department of Agriculture's principal intramural scientific research agency, contributed technical assistance and source materials via the Legume Information System, a database Cannon manages together with colleaguesat the National Center for Genome Resources, in Santa Fe, N.M. Martha "Marty" Hart Harvey W. Mauth Georgia Rea Walker, Jr.
ASTA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact ASTA at (703) 837-8140.
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130th Annual Convention • 2013 Farm & Lawn Seed Conf. • CSS 2012 & Seed Expo • 52nd Vegetable & Flower Seed Conf. |