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The oat cultivar “URS F Flete” (Avena sativa) registration number 32980 from the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA), was developed from the cross ‘LA 9339E17 x LAO-591-NZ 0553’ and is the first cultivar bred for the environmental conditions which predominate in southern Brazil. The cultivar hashigh forage production and good resistance to the main diseases that occur in the region.

“BRSURS Entrevero” is a white clover cultivar, indicated for intercropping with winter grasses and for oversowing natural and subtropical pastures in areas with high fertility and humidity. It has high quality and forms a mat of stolons that covers completely the soil, with a prostrate habit with the growth buds close to the surface, resulting in a high grazing aptitude.

Paspalum notatum Flugge (bahiagrass) is the most important forage grass in the native grasslands of southern Brazil; the native germplasm is tetraploid and apomictic. Breeding to produce cultivars has been possible due to chromosome doubling of sexual diploid accessions, allowing hybridizations with apomictic genotypes, generating progenies with variability for agronomic traits and segregating for reproduction mode. The aim of this study was to determine the reproduction mode of selected hybrids derived from intraspecific crosses through cytoembryological analysis and to evaluate the level of apospory expres¬sivity. Eighty one tetraploid hybrids corresponding to 21 families of sexual and apomictic parents were generated and 28 most productive plants based on their superior agronomic performance in the field were evaluated. Sixteen hybrids were reproduced sexually and 12 of them were highly apomictic or facultative apomictic. Sexual hybrids may be used for further crosses in the breeding program while highly apomictic plants produce uniform progeny and become candidates of new cultivars to promote pasture diversification. Key words: Aposporous apomixis, bahiagrass, intraspecific crosses, plant breeding.

An interesting aspect of the biology of Trifolium polymorphum, an endemic species of the natural pastures of Rio Grande do Sul State in Brazil, is that it is amphicarpic. Amphicarpy is a fascinating reproductive strategy in which aerial and subterranean seeds are produced by the same plant. We evaluated the number, size and weight of aerial and subterranean seeds of two populations (Bage and Santana do Livramento) of T. polymorphum which have grown from the regrowth of storage roots and in the absence of herbivory. Aerial flowers produced more seeds than subterranean flowers, about 14 times in the Santana do Livramento population and nine times in the Bage population. However subterranean seeds were heavier than aerial seeds. We suggest that in the natural pastures of Rio Grande do Sul, where intense grazing and trampling can periodically destroy the aerial part of the plants, the occasional formation of subterranean seeds in T. polymorphum provides an alternative safety system in terms of population persistence. Although amphicarpic, T. polymorphum invests early in asexual reproduction through the production of storage roots, which favors the persistence in unfavorable habitats for sexual reproduction, and thus plants may persist vegetatively year after year without the need of regeneration by seeds.

Alfafa plants with symptoms of Alternaria leaf spot from the Atlantic forest biome and Pampa biome, Brazil, were collected to identify the pathogen associated in this disease. The pathogen was isolated, analyzed morphologically according to literature and later molecularly identified. After that, pathogenicity tests were conducted in a greenhouse to confirm the Koch’s postulates. The first symptoms occurred after five days of inoculation. Initially the symptoms were dark formations becoming rounded blotches about 1 mm to 3 mm in diameter that appeared on both edges and in the center of the leaflets. From this data, we concluded that this is the first report of Alternaria alternata in Brazil. Key words: Forage legumes, fungal disease, inoculation, pathogenicity.

O cornichão (Lotus corniculatus L.) tem sido apontado como uma das forrageiras mais promissoras para o uso no Rio Grande do Sul. No entanto, pouco se conhece a respeito da interação dessas plantas com os rizóbios nativos em condições de campo. Este estudo visou a avaliar a eficiência das interações entre rizóbios e plantas de Lotus corniculatus cv. 'São Gabriel' em condições de campo. O experimento foi conduzido na Estação Experimental Agronômica da UFRGS com delineamento de blocos ao acaso com quatro repetições. Os tratamentos estudados foram: dois controles sem inoculação (um com a adição de 80kg ha-1 de nitrogênio na forma de uréia e outro sem a adição de nitrogênio); inoculação com rizóbios: estirpes SEMIA 816, recomendada no Brasil, U510, recomendada no Uruguai, U512, em estudo no Uruguai, e quatro isolados de rizóbios nativos (UFRGS Lc322, UFRGS Lc349, UFRGS Lc269 e Iso 7). O isolado UFRGS Lc322 e a estirpe U510 são mais eficientes do que a estirpe SEMIA 816, recomendada para cornichão no país. Além disso, a produção de forragem das plantas inoculadas com o isolado UFRGS Lc322 e a estirpe U510 superou a obtida com a adição de 80kg ha-1 de nitrogênio.The bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) has been pointed as one of the most promising forage plants for use in Rio Grande do Sul. However, there is lack of information about the interaction of those plants with the native rhizobia in field conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of interactions between rhizobia and plants of Lotus corniculatus cv. 'São Gabriel' in field conditions. The experiment was carried out in the Agronomic Experimental Station (EEA) of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), using random block design with four replications. The treatments were: two controls without inoculation (one with the addition of urea corresponding to 80kg ha-1 of nitrogen and other without nitrogen addition); inoculation with rhizobia: strain SEMIA 816, recommended in Brazil, U150 recommended in Uruguay and U512, being studied in Uruguay, and four rhizobia isolates (UFRGS Lc322, UFRGS Lc349, UFRGS Lc269 e Iso 7). The rhizobia isolate Lc322 and the strain U510 are more efficient than the strain SEMIA 816, which is recommended for bird's-foot trefoil in the country. Furthermore, the forage production of plants inoculated with the isolate Lc322 and the strain U510 surpassed that, with the addition of 80kg ha-1 of nitrogen.

O objetivo neste trabalho foi analisar a diversidade genética de 14 materiais de Lotus corniculatus L. por meio de marcadores microssatélites. Foram analisados quatro cultivares e uma população de L. corniculatus e seus respectivos genótipos selecionados visando tolerância e sensibilidade ao alumínio. Foram utilizados 17 pares de primers que detectaram 36 alelos nos 17 locos microssatélites, com média de 2,25 alelos por loco. O resultado da análise de agrupamento com base nos índices de similaridade mostrou a formação de três grupos: um englobando germoplasmas e genótipos selecionados para sensibilidade ao alumínio e outros dois formados por genótipos selecionados visando tolerância ao alumínio tóxico. A análise molecular foi eficiente para detectar e quantificar a variabilidade entre os genótipos, acrescentando informações úteis ao programa de melhoramento. O uso de marcadores microssatélites permite a distinção de genótipos oriundos de um programa de seleção visando tolerância à toxidez por alumínio. As seleções realizadas originam genótipos polimórficos em relação às populações originais.The aim of this work was to analyze the genetic diversity of 14 Lotus corniculatus L. materials through microsatellite markers. Four cultivars and one population of L. corniculatus and their respective genotypes selected were analyzed aiming aluminium tolerance and sensibility. The 17 markers used detected a total of 36 alleles, with an average of 2.25 alleles per locus. The result of the similarity analyses showed the formation of three groups: one enclosing germplasm and selected genotypes for aluminium sensibility, while the other two groups were formed by selected genotypes for aluminium tolerance. The molecular analysis was efficient in detecting and quantifying the variability among the genotypes, adding useful information to the breeding program. The utilization of microsatellite markers permitted the distinction of genotypes originated from a selection program aiming aluminium tolerance. The performed selections originate polymorphic genotypes in relation to the original populations.

O objetivo neste trabalho foi analisar a diversidade genética de 14 materiais de Lotus corniculatus L. por meio de marcadores microssatélites. Foram analisados quatro cultivares e uma população de L. corniculatus e seus respectivos genótipos selecionados visando tolerância e sensibilidade ao alumínio. Foram utilizados 17 pares de primers que detectaram 36 alelos nos 17 locos microssatélites, com média de 2,25 alelos por loco. O resultado da análise de agrupamento com base nos índices de similaridade mostrou a formação de três grupos: um englobando germoplasmas e genótipos selecionados para sensibilidade ao alumínio e outros dois formados por genótipos selecionados visando tolerância ao alumínio tóxico. A análise molecular foi eficiente para detectar e quantificar a variabilidade entre os genótipos, acrescentando informações úteis ao programa de melhoramento. O uso de marcadores microssatélites permite a distinção de genótipos oriundos de um programa de seleção visando tolerância à toxidez por alumínio. As seleções realizadas originam genótipos polimórficos em relação às populações originais. The aim of this work was to analyze the genetic diversity of 14 Lotus corniculatus L. materials through microsatellite markers. Four cultivars and one population of L. corniculatus and their respective genotypes selected were analyzed aiming aluminium tolerance and sensibility. The 17 markers used detected a total of 36 alleles, with an average of 2.25 alleles per locus. The result of the similarity analyses showed the formation of three groups: one enclosing germplasm and selected genotypes for aluminium sensibility, while the other two groups were formed by selected genotypes for aluminium tolerance. The molecular analysis was efficient in detecting and quantifying the variability among the genotypes, adding useful information to the breeding program. The utilization of microsatellite markers permitted the distinction of genotypes originated from a selection program aiming aluminium tolerance. The performed selections originate polymorphic genotypes in relation to the original populations.

Amphicarpy, a specialized form of dimorphism where fruits and seeds are formed in underground and aerial flowers, has been reported in only ca. 50 flowering plants. Trifolium argentinense Speg. is an amphicarpic legume species that occurs in native pastures of Southern Brazil. Data on seed dimorphism, chromosome number and karyotype of the species are presented for the first time. T. argentinense is diploid, with 2n = 2x = 16. Chromosome size range from ca. 2.8 to 1.6 μm, the karyotypic formula is 3 metacentric + 1 satellite-bearing metacentric + 3 acrocentric + 1 subacrocentric and a TCL (total complement length) of 18.10 μm. All the subterranean, but around 70% of the aerial legumes formed seeds. Subterranean seeds were larger and heavier (2.1 mm and 0.0029 g, respectively) than the aerial ones (1.8 mm and 0.0016 g, respectively). As a follow up to this work, we plan to characterize aerial and subterranean-seed-derived plants regarding aspects such as growing rate, height, leaf size and forage production, as well as to determine the exact mode of reproduction of T. argentinense by pollination experiments and the use of molecular markers.

Leaf anatomic characterization of populations of Bromus auleticus Trin. Ex Nees (Poaceae). This work was carried out to characterize the leaf anatomy of eight Bromus auleticus populations collected in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and called A5, A6, A8, A17, A23, A26 and A27. Totally expanded leaves were collected from plants in the vegetative stage and were sectioned and stained with basic fuchsine and alcian blue. A single layer of epidermis with a smooth and fi ne cuticle on both surfaces, short tricomes, vascular bundles in three sizes, and the presence of cells with lignifi ed walls along the bundles and on the leaf edge were observed in all populations. The number of bulliform cells varied from three to fi ve, with the exception of population. A25, which ranged from fi ve to eight cells. Three populations presented long tricomes (A6, A23 and A27) and palisade chlorenchyma (A6, A7 and A26), fi ve had grooves on the leaf surface (A8, A17, A23, A26, A27) and homogeneous chlorenchyma (A5, A8, A17, A23, A27), two presented a large intercellular space in the mesofi le (A7 and A17), and two showed a more visible cuticle on the abaxial surface (A7 and A8). These variations could refl ect differences in relation to the nutritive value of the populations and be used in plant breeding programs for the genetic improvement of bromegrass. Este trabalho teve como objetivo caracterizar anatomicamente a lâmina foliar de oito populações de Bromus auleticus coletadas no Rio Grande do Sul e denominadas de A5, A6, A7, A8, A17, A23, A26 e A27. Folhas totalmente expandidas foram coletadas de plantas em estádio vegetativo, seccionadas e coradas com fucsina e azul de Alcian. Verificou-se em todas as populações a presença de epiderme uniestratificada, com cutícula lisa e delgada em ambas as faces, tricomas curtos, feixes vasculares de três tamanhos e células com parede lignificada junto aos feixes e no bordo foliar. O número de células buliformes varia de três a cinco, com exceção da população A26, com cinco a oito células. Três populações possuem tricomas longos (A6, A23, A27) e clorênquima em paliçada (A6, A7, A26), cinco exibem sulcos na superfície foliar (A8, A17, A23, A26, A27) e clorênquima homogêneo (A5, A8, A17, A23, A27), duas apresentam amplos espaços intercelulares no mesofi lo (A7, A17) e duas, cutícula mais evidente na face abaxial (A7, A8). Essas variações podem refletir diferenças no valor nutritivo das populações e serem exploradas nos trabalhos de melhoramento genético da cevadilha vacariana.

A análise da alocação da biomassa e a correlação entre variáveis morfofisiológicas permitem maior entendimento do estabelecimento, produção e persistência de espécies perenes, em trabalhos de melhoramento genético, manejo e ecologia de plantas forrageiras. Este trabalho teve o objetivo de analisar a alocação de biomassa em leguminosas forrageiras (Adesmia latifolia, A. punctata, A. tristis, Lotus corniculatus, L. uliginosus). O experimento foi conduzido em casa de vegetação durante 210 dias (4000 graus-dia); as plantas foram cultivadas em caixas de 1 m2. Nesse período, foram retiradas amostras periódicas para avaliação dos componentes morfológicos e descrição do hábito das espécies. A alocação da biomassa em raízes, caule e folha foi expressa em percentagem de massa seca. A maior alocação em folhas ocorreu nas espécies estoloníferas, A. latifolia (63,53%) e A. punctata (61,42%), que, por sua vez, mostraram a menor alocação em raízes, 10,90 a 14,77 %, respectivamente. Maior alocação de biomassa em caule (39,38%) e raízes (24,39%) foi verificada em L. uliginosus, espécie rizomatosa. Para todas as espécies, o índice de área foliar (IAF) esteve correlacionado positivamente com número de folhas das hastes secundárias e biomassa aérea. A. latifolia e Lotus spp. são exemplos extremos da relativa importância dos componentes morfológicos na formação do IAF e da biomassa. O padrão de acúmulo e alocação de biomassa nas leguminosas estoloníferas é caracterizado, principalmente, pela produção de folhas, indicando a importância do alongamento e enraizamento dos estolões, enquanto em A. tristis e Lotus spp., as frações caule e raízes apresentam igual importância. The biomass allocation analysis and the correlation among morphophysiological variables allow greater understanding of the establishment, yield and persistence of perennial species in plant breeding projects, management and ecology of forage plants. To analyze the biomass allocation of forage legumes (Adesmia latifolia, A. punctata, A. tristis, Lotus corniculatus, L. uliginosus), an experiment was carried out under greenhouse conditions for 210 days (4000 degree-days); the plants were cultivated in 1 m2 wooden boxes. Plants were harvested to evaluate the morphological components and to describe their growth habit. The root, stem and leaf biomass allocations were expressed as dry mass percentages. The greatest allocation on leaves occurred for stoloniferous species, A. latifolia (63.5%) and A. punctata (61.4%), which presented the smallest allocation for roots, 10.9 and 14.7%, respectively. Largest stem biomass allocation (39.4%) and roots (24.4%) were found for L. uliginosus, a species with rhizomes. The leaf area index (LAI) was positively correlated with the number of leaves, secondary stems and aerial biomass. A. latifolia and Lotus spp. are extreme examples of the relative importance of morphological components in the formation of LAI and biomass. The accumulation pattern and forage allocation of stoloniferous legumes are mainly characterized by leaf production, pointing out the importance of stolon elongation and rooting, while for A. tristis and Lotus spp., the stem and root fractions had the same importance.

O gênero Adesmia DC. possui várias espécies de leguminosas nativas do Sul do Brasil, algumas dessas apresentando um grande potencial forrageiro. Dentre os vários fatores a serem avaliados nessas espécies, está a tolerância ao alumínio, uma vez que grande parte dos solos dessa região são ácidos, possuindo altos teores desse elemento. Neste trabalho, uma população de A. latifolia e uma população de A. tristis foram submetidas a cinco doses de alumínio (0; 0,15; 0,45; 0,75 e 1,5mg l), em solução nutritiva contendo apenas cálcio (25mg l) e foram avaliadas quanto à massa e ao comprimento de raízes. Ao final de 13 dias de cultivo, foi observado que ambas as espécies sofreram inibição na emissão de raízes secundárias, sendo que A. tristis evidenciou sintomas de toxidez do alumínio, demonstrando engrossamento e tortuosidade da raiz principal em relação a A. latifolia. Houve efeito significativo para o fator espécie, para o comprimento e massa de raiz, e interação significativa de espécie-alumínio para a taxa de crescimento relativo da raiz (TCR), indicando resposta diferencial das duas espécies às doses de alumínio. A. latifolia não apresentou decréscimo significativo na TCR, sugerindo tolerância para as doses testadas, enquanto A. tristis foi sensível, diminuindo o alongamento radicular.Among the several native legume species found in the Southern part of Brazil, one of the most important is the genus Adesmia DC., which has several species with a great potential as forage plants. Among the several factors to be studied in these species, the aluminum tolerance is one particularly important because the soils from this region are acid with high levels of aluminum. In this paper it is reported the response of A. latifolia and A. tristis to five aluminum doses in nutritive solution (0; 0,15; 0,45; 0,75 and 0,75mg l) containing only calcium (25mg l). The aluminum tolerance was assessed by measuring the roots weight and length after 13 days of growth in the solution. At the end of this time, it was observed that both species showed an inhibition in secondary roots development, with A. tristis having symptoms of aluminum toxicity, showing roots stubbier than A. latifolia. There was a significant effect for the species factor over root length and dry matter and also a significant effect upon the species-aluminum interaction to the relative root growth (RRG), pointing out the differential response presented by both species. A. latifolia did not show a significant decrease in the RRG, pointing out to the tolerance to the aluminum levels used. A. tristis was more sensitive, with a significant decrease in the root elongation.

O gênero Adesmia DC. possui várias espécies de leguminosas nativas do Sul do Brasil, algumas dessas apresentando um grande potencial forrageiro. Dentre os vários fatores a serem avaliados nessas espécies, está a tolerância ao alumínio, uma vez que grande parte dos solos dessa região são ácidos, possuindo altos teores desse elemento. Neste trabalho, uma população de A. latifolia e uma população de A. tristis foram submetidas a cinco doses de alumínio (0; 0,15; 0,45; 0,75 e 1,5mg ℓ-1), em solução nutritiva contendo apenas cálcio (25mg ℓ--1) e foram avaliadas quanto à massa e ao comprimento de raízes. Ao final de 13 dias de cultivo, foi observado que ambas as espécies sofreram inibição na emissão de raízes secundárias, sendo que A. tristis evidenciou sintomas de toxidez do alumínio, demonstrando engrossamento e tortuosidade da raiz principal em relação a A. latifolia. Houve efeito significativo para o fator espécie, para o comprimento e massa de raiz, e interação significativa de espécie-alumínio para a taxa de crescimento relativo da raiz (TCR), indicando resposta diferencial das duas espécies às doses de alumínio. A. latifolia não apresentou decréscimo significativo na TCR, sugerindo tolerância para as doses testadas, enquanto A. tristis foi sensível, diminuindo o alongamento radicular. Among the several native legume species found in the Southern part of Brazil, one of the most important is the genus Adesmia DC., which has several species with a great potential as forage plants. Among the several factors to be studied in these species, the aluminum tolerance is one particularly important because the soils from this region are acid with high levels of aluminum. In this paper it is reported the response of A. latifolia and A. tristis to five aluminum doses in nutritive solution (0; 0,15; 0,45; 0,75 and 0,75mg ℓ-1) containing only calcium (25mg ℓ-1). The aluminum tolerance was assessed by measuring the roots weight and length after 13 days of growth in the solution. At the end of this time, it was observed that both species showed an inhibition in secondary roots development, with A. tristis having symptoms of aluminum toxicity, showing roots stubbier than A. latifolia. There was a significant effect for the species factor over root length and dry matter and also a significant effect upon the species-aluminum interaction to the relative root growth (RRG), pointing out the differential response presented by both species. A. latifolia did not show a significant decrease in the RRG, pointing out to the tolerance to the aluminum levels used. A. tristis was more sensitive, with a significant decrease in the root elongation.

Trifolium polymorphum Poir. is an amphicarpic forage legume from southern Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay and Chile. Information on the genetic diversity of natural populations in natural grasslands in southern Brazil is limited. In order to increase the knowledge about this species, an analysis of the genetic diversity was carried out in 10 natural populations of T. polymorphum with the use of 20 microsatellite markers. The expected heterozygosity in T. polymorphum populations ranged from 0.40 to 0.43, with a mean of 0.42. A total of 193 alleles were detected with a mean of 9.3 alleles per locus and polymorphic information content (PIC) for these markers of 0.62 to 0.89 with a mean of 0.84.The grouping based on the Jaccard’s coefficient of similarity classified populations, regardless of their regions of origin, into two groups with a mean similarity coefficient of 0.32, reflecting the high genetic variability of the populations, especially those located in the Campanha phytogeographic region. This information on diversity can be used to plan future germplasm collection strategies for conservation purposes and also for the breeding of the species.