Abstract:
Plant breeding, both the art and science, is an important asset to the floriculture of the United States.
Research is conducted by public and private organizations.
The United States Department of Agriculture and the state agricultural experiment stations are responsible for most fundamental research.
Private organizations such as botanical gardens and research institutes also contribute to the fund of knowledge.
Commercial industries, both seed companies and propagators, do most of the cultivar development.
In addition, amateur breeders develop cultivars of many flower species.
Research is conducted on both sexually and asexually propagated species.
Much of this research effort is dependent on basic advances in associated fields such as biochemistry, plant pathology, entomology, and botany.
Past and present research on specific flower crops and the importance of associated plant science studies are discussed.
|