Few crops dominate the crop rotations worldwide. Following the goal of an increased agricultural biodiversity, species such as buckwheat but also medicinal plants might become more important in future. The biology, physiology, stress tolerance and central aspects of the value-added chain of the above-mentioned and of other alternative crops will be depicted.

Successful plant breeding requires a sound knowledge of the biology and physiology of a crop, the necessary agronomic status that has to be attained and the genetics of a plant species. Furthermore the statistical and molecular tools to be implements have to be known. This knowledge will be dealt with in this course on chosen model crops of worldwide importance as well as for neglected crops.

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