Determining the Mechanism of Yield Stability in Alfalfa

Year-to-year stability of crop yields is important for farmers and, hence, is an important goal of plant breeding programs. Especially in perennial crops like alfalfa, farmers need to know that they can count on consistent yields over a period of three or more years. Alfalfa varieties are composed of a population of many genetically distinct plants (or genotypes), unlike corn hybrids or soybean lines, which are genetically uniform