Expertise and advice on plant resources
Genetic diversity is essential if we are to future-proof agriculture and horticulture. Crops need new properties in order to adapt to climate change, be resistant to diseases and pests, and meet consumer demands.
We work on maintaining and providing access to diversity in various ways. This diversity is found in genebanks, on fields and in nature.
CGN manages the genebank for plant genetic resources: a large genetic reservoir which breeders can use to develop varieties that are more resistant to diseases or pests, crops that are less susceptible to climate change and products with a specific flavour.
Crop collection
Our crop collection consists of almost 24,000 varieties and wild populations of more than 30 different crops. The lettuce collection alone totals 2,500 different samples, from modern varieties to those that grow in the wild. CGN has expanded its vegetable collection in recent years with melon, lamb’s lettuce, salsify and carrot.
Broadening diversity
We retrieve seeds wherever possible – from breeding companies, from the wild, from local markets abroad and from horticultural gardens. The aim is to collect varieties or wild populations with the broadest range of properties of every crop. We carefully select new accessions, evaluate them for usable properties, describe them in detail and conserve them under the best conditions, all in close cooperation with breeders and partner genebanks.
CGN invests in collecting new material and researching conserved material to offer users the best possible service
Heritage varieties
A selection of Heritage varieties has been made: old Dutch varieties that are rarely grown today, including old bitter Brussels sprouts and old varieties of tomato, pea, bean and wheat. The Heritage varieties are propagated and seed samples are made available for the general public, including the hobbyist, to grow and consume. Stories about and seeds of heritage varieties can be found on Erfgoedrassen.nl. The selection of heritage varieties is based on varieties from the CGN's Orange List.
Crop Wild Relatives in the Netherlands
Wild plant species related to our cultivated crops constitute an important source of novel traits for crop improvement, anticipating on a changing climate, emergence of new diseases or changed consumer demands. Such wild species are usually referred to as "Crop Wild Relatives" (CWR).
Because the continued existence of many wild plant species is uncertain due to influences such as pollution, urbanization and climate change, it is important that CWR do not get lost and remain available for crop improvement. Prior to the development of protective measures, one first has to know which CWR are actually occurring within national boundaries. Therefore, CGN carried out a CWR inventory in the Netherlands for the economically most important agricultural and horticultural crops. This inventory is available at CWRnl.nl.
Sharing our knowledge and experience
Since Plant Genetic Resources conservation is a global collaborative effort, CGN is ready to share its knowledge and experience whenever possible. Apart from publications in scientific, technical and popular publications, our staff is available for advice and training. We teach in various courses and can also organise tailor-made courses.
Read about
Sharing knowledge and experience: Genetic resources courses by CGN
CGN offers tailor-made courses on the conservation and management of plant genetic resources and related policies. These courses can be organized in Wageningen, the Netherlands, or on-location in your country.
Research at CGN: Core collections and niche modelling
CGN does research supporting the ex-situ conservation of plant genetic resources. This research concentrates on issues related to the composition of collections and accessibility of those collections.
Regeneration of CGN genebank material
Regeneration is the renewal of a seed sample by taking a random sample of seeds, sowing and growing the resulting plants under conditions so that the seeds harvested will possess the same characteristics as the original population.
Safety duplication of the CGN seed collections
Safety duplicates of a genebank collection are of great importance to safeguard germplasm from loss in case of disaster. Therefore, CGN has duplicated nearly all (99%) of its accessions and has accommodated these safety duplicates at different genebanks.
CGN seed cleaning, drying and packaging procedures
CGN seed processing and storage facilities
Material Acquisition Agreement for collecting missions
The following section contains the text section of the Material Acquisition Agreement. It is used for collecting expeditions and sometimes for other material uptakes by CGN.