Question

Which is the oldest breeding method ?
a. Hybridization
b. Selection
c. Mutation breeding
d. Introduction

Answer 1

Hint: Plant breeding is an art or science of improving genetic makeup of the plant for the benefit of mankind. Many breeding methods have evolved till date and it generally started with domestication of plants by people in ancient times to meet their requirements. All the breeding methods are done to manipulate the plant species for the desired character we require.

Complete answer:
We have known what breeding actually is. Now, let us get to know about different breeding methods. These methods include introduction,selection,mutation breeding,polyploidy breeding and hybridization etc. Firstly, we shall discuss selection. As the name indicates, selection is nothing but choosing a plant that will meet your requirements. Introduction is the process of introducing species into a new place and observing its growth. Mutation breeding is where you expose the propagules to mutagens in order to create a mutant variety. Hybridization is the method of breeding two different species to create a hybrid. Since people started rearing plants and animals as a part of agriculture, they started to select and cultivate the plants and observed that characters were being passed from parent to progeny. This has been a part of evolution and we call it plant breeding today. In any breeding method, the first thing we do is select the parents of desirable characters and then proceed for the required steps. So, by this we can conclude that selection is said to be the oldest breeding method.

The correct option is B.

Note:
It is also known as German method. In all the crop improvement programmes,selection is priorly done and hence said to be the basis for the all breeding programmes. Only after this selection process, you can either go for hybridization,tissue culture or any other methods you desire. It was started many years ago when people started selecting different wild species and hence is said to be the ancient method of breeding.