Does Cross-Pollination Occur During Seed Regeneration at the International Rice Genebank?

Preserving genetic integrity of accessions through cycles of conservation and regeneration is a major objective of the International Rice Genebank (IRG). The careful management of seed lots at all steps of the conservation- regeneration process contributes to this objective. Although cultivated rice is a self-pollinated crop, cross-pollination between accessions can potentially occur during seed regeneration when numerous accessions usually flower at the same time. To estimate the outcrossing rate in Oryza sativa and determine whether the plot design currently used at IRG for seed regeneration permits outcrossing between accessions, an experiment was conducted at IRRI during the 1996 dry season.