is a semi-dwarf

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...

with very large ears that was bred by at an experimental station in

Iwate Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture at , with a population of 1,210,534 (as of October 1, 2020). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefectur ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Its parents were a semi-dwarf Japanese

landrace A landrace is a domesticated, locally adapted, often traditional variety of a species of animal or plant that has developed over time, through adaptation to its natural and cultural environment of agriculture and pastoralism, and due to isolation ...

that may have originated in Korea in the 3rd or 4th century AD, and two varieties from the USA. In 1935 it was registered as a numbered cultivar by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry . Norin 10 grew to just two feet (60 - 100 cm) tall, instead of the usual four (150 cm). It provided two genes, ''Rht1'' and ''Rht2'', that resulted in reduced-height wheats, thus allowing better nutrient uptake and tillage, since when heavily fertilised with nitrogen, tall varieties grow too high, become top-heavy, and

lodge Lodge is originally a term for a relatively small building, often associated with a larger one. Lodge or The Lodge may refer to: Buildings and structures Specific * The Lodge (Australia), the official Canberra residence of the Prime Ministe ...

. The ''Rht1'' and ''Rht2'' genes have been used in wheat breeding programmes worldwide to provide shorter plants with higher yields.

Cecil Salmon Samuel Cecil Salmon (1885–1975) was an agronomist who was attached to the American occupying forces in Japan after World War II. He worked for the Agricultural Research Service and during his time in Japan, Salmon collected 16 varieties of wh ...

, a biologist and wheat expert on General

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

's team in

after 1945, collected 16 varieties of wheat including Norin 10. He sent these seeds to

Orville Vogel Orville Vogel (1907–1991) was an American scientist and wheat breeder whose research made possible the "Green Revolution" in world food production. Life and career Orville Alvin Vogel was born in Pilger, Stanton County, Nebraska, one of the four ...

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

and they were used within USA breeding programmes in the 1950s. Norin 10 was also provided to the

International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (known - even in English - by its Spanish acronym CIMMYT for ''Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo'') is a non-profit research-for-development organization that develops im ...

in Mexico. It was used here by

Norman Borlaug Norman Ernest Borlaug (; March 25, 1914September 12, 2009) was an American agronomist who led initiatives worldwide that contributed to the extensive increases in agricultural production termed the Green Revolution. Borlaug was awarded multiple ...

and collaborators in crosses with local varieties to produce dwarf varieties that were also daylight-insensitive and had resistance to

rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH ...

disease. These were subsequently distributed worldwide. These included high-output varieties tested in India (Lerma Rojo 64 and Sonora 64) during the

Green Revolution The Green Revolution, also known as the Third Agricultural Revolution, was a period of technology transfer initiatives that saw greatly increased crop yields and agricultural production. These changes in agriculture began in developed countrie ...

. Norin 10 helped

developing countries A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreem ...

, such as India and Pakistan, to increase the productivity of their crops by approximately 60% during the

References

External links

Rht1 gene

Ears of plenty: The story of wheat

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

, December 20, 2005 {{Wheat Wheat cultivars

See also

References

External links