Molecular & Conventional Breeding to Improve Peanut Yields & Production Efficiency by Reduced Disease & Water Usage

The ultimate purpose of this breeding project is to develop high oleic, early maturing, multiple disease resistant cultivars with drought, heat, and salinity tolerance for U.S. peanut producers. 
We are evaluating or developing several populations for drought tolerance. We evaluated two populations for drought tolerance, and have identified accessions that yield numerically or in some cases statistically better than check varieties. We will continue with these tests, evaluating materials both under water deficit and full irrigation, with the goal of releasing varieties that can be grown profitably under reduced irrigation, but also are competitive where sufficient water is available.