Tainan, Taipei
May 3, 2011
Source: AVRDC Newsletter
Under the leadership of Narinder Dhillon, AVRDC’s cucurbit breeding program was shifted from headquarters to AVRDC East and Southeast Asia in May 2010. Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) and pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata L.) are the major target crops with less emphasis on cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). The bitter gourd breeding objectives include the development of open pollinated varieties (OPs) and hybrids with superior yield and fruit quality, improved disease and insect resistance, earliness, ability to high temperature fruit set and high concentration of nutrients and antidiabetic compounds. The pumpkin breeding activities focus on developing OPs and hybrids possessing short vines, superior yield, earliness, fruit size and shape uniformity, thick flesh, high intensity of carotenes, and field resistance to viruses and drought.
Narinder Dhillon trains staff in bitter gourd breeding techniques.
Inset: Bitter gourd from the AVRDC genebank is being evaluated by Dhillon and his team in AVRDC’s East and Southeast Asia office, Thailand.
Located on the campus of Kasetsart University in Kamphaeng Saen, Nakhon Pathom province, AVRDC’s research and training station is ideally situated to achieve these breeding objectives. In the absence of typhoons, bitter gourd can be grown throughout the year, while two pumpkin crops can be sown, in May and November. The presence of geminiviruses as well as leaf spot, mildews, gummy stem blight and fruit fly allow screening of germplasm against these major economic pests. Thailand also hosts several international and local seed companies with cucurbits in their portfolio that have expressed keen interest in closer cooperation with AVRDC.
The overall objective of the AVRDC cucurbit breeding program is to develop genetically broad-based and superior germplasm best suited to the needs of growers and consumers by:
(1) building an elite germplasm base using commercial varieties and AVRDC genebank collections,
(2) developing OPs and hybrids,
(3) conducting mainly field selection with emphasis on improved yield, fruit quality, field disease resistance, and
(4) scoping to improve nutrient content.
The latter aspect is one of the components of the new AVRDC-Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) project, “A better bitter gourd: Exploiting bitter gourd to increase incomes, manage type 2 diabetes, and promote health in developing countries,” which attempts to identify bitter gourd lines with high and stable concentration of antidiabetic compounds and other health promoting nutrients.
After arriving in Thailand, Narinder sought to create a solid cucurbit research group by training staff in various aspects of cucurbit breeding, such as field layout, agronomy, crossing techniques, seed harvest and processing, documentation, and database management. Research fields were enhanced by using laser leveling and improving the existing irrigation facilities. The program hopes to breed better bitter gourds and tropical pumpkins for resource-poor farmers of developing countries that meet the nutritional needs of consumers as well. “The technical skills and innovative approach of the cucurbit field staff and Ms. Supunsa Phethin, my research assistant, are admirable,” said Narinder. “It is my pleasure to work with such hard working, polite staff members that have a firm belief in team work.”
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