UNIT II
DUS TESTING- DUS DESCRIPTORS
FOR MAJOR CROPS; GENETIC
PURITY CONCEPT AND
MAINTENANCE BREEDING
DUS TESTING
A variety shall express distinct character(s) for verification,
uniformity within population and stability for expression of such
characters over the year and at different locations, then only its
genetic purity is confirmed.
Requirements:
Authentic seeds of existing varieties, pure seeds of variety under
tests, list of characters to be examined and their expression.
This test is conducted in the most optimum conditions of soil
and climate and the crop is exposed to the best agronomic
management conditions to ensure full expression of the
characters.
DISTINCTNESS
The variety under test is compared with the existing varieties (having similar plant
height, growth habit, days to flowering, days to maturity and reaction to diseases) for
qualitative morphological characters at seed, seedling and plant levels.
Biochemical differences may also be considered.
To establish the distinctness, the test is performed for 2 years for self pollinated crops.
UNIFORMITY
The tolerance limits for the establishment of the uniformity are as follow.
Self-pollinated crops (except cereals): 1% offtypes are tolerated.
Cereal: Variant ear rows are tolerated upto maximum of 3 in 150 rows
Cross pollinated crops: A variety is considered sufficiently uniform where the standard
deviation of each character examined for distinctness is not repeatedly greater than the
pooled standard deviation of the same character in comparable control varieties, in
same season and test at 0.01% probability. For visually assessed characteristics, the
uniformity of the variety under test is checked against known comparable varieties.
STABILITY
Stability of a variety is inferred from uniformity.
Stability for the expression of qualitative characters and quantitative
traits is estimated over the year.
In cereals, more than 8 variants in 150 ear to row progeny of the variety
is considered as unstable.
DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERS OF
DIFFERENT CROPS
WHEAT: Growth habit, auricle pigmentation, flag leaf angle, waxy bloom,
angle colour, hairiness, shape and density of ear, shape and stiffness of awn,
hairiness colour, beak curvature, shoulder shape, apical spikelet and size of
glumes, colour, texture, size, shape, brush end profile and presence of ridge
on seed.
RICE: Colour of blade, basal leaf sheath, ligule, auricle, internode, awn
apiculus, lemma and palea and seed coat (bran). Colour of pubescence and its
presence on blade and lemma and palea. Angle of leaf, flag leaf and culm.
Presence, shape and type of ligule, panicle and awn.
SORGHUM: Colour on basal part of stem, leaf, leaf midrib, glume and seed,
shape of peduncle and earhead, bloom waxiness, compactness of earhead,
part of grain covered by glume.
BAJRA: Presence of pubescence on leaf, leaf sheath, ligule and node,
colour of midrib node, internode, anther and seed, presence of bristle,
shape of spike and seed and angle of flag leaf.
SOYBEAN: Colour of seed coat, hilum, hypocotyl, stem, flower, leaf and
pubescence. Presence of pubescence, shape of leaf, pod and stem.
CHICKPEA: Plant pigmentation, plant hairiness, leaf type, number or
seeds/pod, flower colour, seed shape, testa texture, seed colour, presence of
minute black spot.
GROUNDNUT: Growth habit, branching pattern, stem pigmentation,
stem surface, type of inflorescence, standard petal colour, peg
pigmentation, leaf colour, leaflet shape, leaflet surface, leaflet margin,
leaflet tip, pod beak, pod constriction, pod reticulation.
COTTON: Size, surface and fuzz of seed, seedling colour, growth habit,
branching, pubescence on stem, colour, shape, incision, hairiness of leaf,
petal colour, petal spot, anther colour, position of stigma, bract size, bract
margin, serration in flower and shape, size and surface of boll.
