INTERSPECIFIC CROSSES INVOLVING ALFALFA. VII. MEDICAGO SATIVA × M. RHODOPEA

Abstract

On crossing Medicago sativa L. with M. rhodopea Velen., two hybrids were obtained. One was a triploid 2n = 24. It was produced by crossing a self-incompatible, diploid (2n = 16) M. sativa plant with an artificially chromosome-doubled (2n = 32) M. rhodopea plant. In this hybrid almost no fully analyzable MI plates were found. The range of observed univalents in 57 MI plates examined was one to seven per plate; in 38 of these plates one to four trivalents were seen. The chromosomes were doubled in the triploid to produce a hexaploid hybrid (2n = 48) which was self-sterile. This was probably the influence of the self-incompatible parent. The amount of plasma-filled pollen was approximately 64% in the hexaploid hybrid, as compared to less than 20% in its triploid progenitor. On backcrossing the hexaploid hybrid to hexaploid and tetraploid alfalfa, seeds were readily obtained. The other hybrid, which was obtained by crossing a tetraploid (2n = 32), male-sterile M. sativa with the chromosome-doubled M. rhodopea; had 2n = 31. It is assumed that in this and similar rarely successful crosses, some incompatibility factor/s is eliminated with the eliminated chromosome or the genic ratio is changed favoring compatibility. Transfer of M. rhodopea genic material to cultivated alfalfa may be through crossing over at meiosis involving chromosomes of the two species. Such occurrences were indicated on examination of meiosis in the triploid hybrid. Another way to include M. rhodopea chromosome complements in alfalfa would be to produce hexaploid auto-alloploids consisting of two sets of M. rhodopea (Rp) and four sets of M. sativa (S) chromosomes.