A Genetic Study of Linkage and Inheritance in Barley

With the exception of corn, barley has probably been used more than any other cultivated plant in genetic studies. It was one of several plants with which Erich von Tschermak-Seysenegg was working when he discovered Mendel\u27s paper. Barley is excellent material for use in genetic studies. It is adapted to many environments and has a large number of contrasting characters. Large populations can be grown on a small area of land in one season. It is a diploid with seven chromosome pairs. Each of these seven chromosome pairs can be identified cytologically. There are seven linkage groups corresponding to the seven chromosome pairs. Previously a Roman numeral was assigned for each linkage group. However, in 1954, Kramer, Veyl, and Hanson (25) conducted an experiment involving translocation stocks which suggested linkage groups III and VII were actually located on the same chromosome. Since that time a new system using Arabic numerals to designate linkage was adopted by the Fourth Annual Barley Research Worker\u27s Conference. This latter system will be followed throughout this study. Many barley genes have been mapped and assigned to their appropriate chromosomes. Some of the genes involved in this study have not yet been assigned to a particular chromosome. Information regarding the inheritance and linkage relationships of the genes examined in this study should add useful information to our knowledge of barley genetics. It is also possible that some of these genes may be linked with economically valuable factors and might serve as marker genes