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Green revolution: the way forward

Nature Reviews Genetics volume 2, pages 815–822 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

The origin of agriculture led to the domestication of many plant species and to the exploitation of natural resources. It took almost 10,000 years for food grain production to reach 1 billion tons, in 1960, and only 40 years to reach 2 billion tons, in 2000. This unprecedented increase, which has been named the 'green revolution', resulted from the creation of genetically improved crop varieties, combined with the application of improved agronomic practices.

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Figure 1: Sketches of different plant types of rice.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biochemistry, International Rice Research Institute, DAPO PO Box 777, Metro Manila, the Philippines

    Gurdev S. Khush

Authors
  1. Gurdev S. Khush
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Related links

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DATABASES

Oryzabase 

bph2

Gs

Pib1

Pib2

Pita

sd1

se1

Sub1

wx

Xa4

FURTHER INFORMATION

Food and Agriculture Organization

Future Harvest (a charitable and educational organization)

Gurdev Khush's website

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center

International rice functional genomics working group

International Rice Research Institute

Rice bioinformatics

Rice Genome Research Program

Rice Insertion Mutant Database

Glossary

GERMPLASM

Term used by breeders to refer to the collection of varieties and breeding lines.

HARVEST INDEX

Ratio of dry grain weight to total dry matter.

LANDRACE

A locally adapted strain of a species selected and adapted by farmers.

LODGING

The collapse of top-heavy plants, particularly grain crops.

PANICLE

The terminal shoot of a rice plant that produces grain.

PHOTOPERIOD-SENSITIVE PLANTS

Those that do not flower unless exposed to a day-length that is longer or shorter than a crucial period (in this case, plants that flower only during the short day-length of about 8 hours).

TILLERING

Production of shoots from the lower part of the plant.

VEGETATIVE PHASE

Non-reproductive phase of the life cycle of a plant.

YIELD STABILITY

A measure of consistency or reliability of performance.

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Khush, G. Green revolution: the way forward. Nat Rev Genet 2, 815–822 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35093585

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