**Session VI -- Plant Breeding, Germplasm Utilization and Cereal
Genomics -- Talk: Diederichsen**

**Trends in Conservation and Utilization of Oat Genetic Resources**

Axel Diederichsen\* and Christoph U. Germeier^1^

\* Corresponding author: Plant Gene Resources of Canada, Agriculture and
Agri-Food Canada, 107 Science Place, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada,
S7N0X2

PH: +1-(306)-956 28 39; E-mail: <diederichsena@agr.gc.ca>

^1^ Julius Kühn Institute, Institute of Breeding Research on
Agricultural Crops, Erwin Baur Str. 27, 06484 Quedlinburg, Germany;
E-mail: <c.germeier@jki.bund.de>

The high value of oat (*A. sativa* L.) in human nutrition is unique
among the cereals. It is an environmentally friendly crop because it is
a non‑host for major cereal diseases and pests. The replacement of
horses by tractors in agriculture went hand in hand with a reduction of
the world oat production by 80% to 11.3 Mio. ha from 1945/49 to 2006. In
Northern countries, the reduction was less severe than in most parts of
the world, because these regions with short growing seasons and often
marginal soils do not have many crop alternatives. Oat breeding
programmes in many countries are continuously being terminated. Oat is
currently not a staple food for poor people in the developing world.
These trends may lead to two contradicting conclusions: (1) Oat genetic
resources do not deserve high priority, as this crop is about to
disappear and has decreasing economic and social impact; or (2) it is
extremely important to preserve diversity of oat related species and in
particular of cultivated oat, as we are about to loose this diversity
for good. By default, genebanks tend to favour the second conclusion.

Oat as a crop is and was most important in industrialized countries of
the northern hemisphere. In these countries, the replacement of
landraces by breeding cultivars was, compared to developing countries,
very drastic. Thanks to early collecting activities by N.I. Vavilov and
other genetic resources pioneers, some of this diversity entered
existing genebank collections. Until the early 20^th^ century, line
selection out of oat landraces was the strategy of oat breeders. Already
by 1917 breeders had directly or indirectly selected 17 cultivars from
the landrace 'Probsteier', which originated from Northern Germany. Such
diverse landraces deserve priority in *ex situ* conservation, as
breeders keep and farmers grow modern cultivars which are, for the most,
genetically closely related.

Interestingly, the wild relatives of cultivated oat occur in countries
where *A. sativa* as a crop is not of relevance. Domestication
experiments have been started with the tetraploids *A. maroccana* Gand.
and *A  murphyi* Ladiz. The western Mediterranean area, in particular
Morocco, is very rich in crop wild relatives of *A. sativa*. The wild
species, so far mostly *A. sterilis* L., have played an important role
in crown rust resistance breeding in North America. Some of this *in
situ* preserved diversity is threatened and measures to protect it are
required.

An initiative by the Global Crop Diversity Trust brought together
genebank curators and oat experts from several countries. An overview of
the status of *Avena* germplasm in *ex situ* collections around the
world was obtained. These results are reported by Germeier *et al.* in
this conference. Another result of these meetings was to establish the
Global Oat Diversity Network. Priorities were set for initial activities
that would be of benefit to more efficiently preserve oat diversity.
These include: (1) Establishing an internet accessible global index for
oat germplasm; (2) geo-referencing of oat accessions for more efficient
use of databases; and (3) a strategy regarding intra- and inter-
collection duplication of material.