Question

Which of the following is not used for crop improvement?

• A. Inbreeding
• B. Introduction
• C. Hybridization
• D. Mutations

Answer 1

The correct option is A

Inbreeding

The correct option is A.

Explanation of correct option:

1. Inbreeding is a biological term that refers to the mating or crossover of highly related animals or plants of the same breed for a period of 4-6 generations.
2. Self-fertilization is the most persistent form of inbreeding in plants.
3. It's common in monoecious plants i.e., a single individual or plant has both male and female flowers.
4. Inbreeding is not used for crop improvement.

Explanation of incorrect options

Option B:

1. Introduction in plant breeding refers to introducing a genotype or a collection of genotypes to a new location or habitat where they have never been grown before.
2. Thus, new kinds of a crop presently farmed in that location, a wild related of the crop species, or a whole new crop species for that region may be introduced.

Option C:

1. Plant hybridization is the method of constructing a hybrid by crossing two genetically different parents.
2. The goal of hybridization is to mix good genes from two or more unrelated varieties to produce pure-breeding children, which is better than the parental types in many ways.

Option D:

1. For agricultural development, plant breeding necessitates a genetic variety of valuable features.
2. However, in many cases, the desired variation is missing.
3. Mutagenic substances, like radiation and some chemicals, can be used to cause mutations and create genetic variants from which desirable mutants can be chosen.

Final Answer: Inbreeding is not used for crop improvement.