Domestication of Australian grasses as bioenergy crops Due to
geographic isolation and a short agricultural history, plant
species from Australia have not been subject to domestication in
the same way as species from other parts of the world. Around
10% of the world’s grasses, over 1000 species, are found in
Australia. Traits that have been selected in the domestication
of major cereal crops have now been defined and key genes
characterized. These loci are being targeted in an effort to
accelerate the domestication of selected Australian grasses for
a range of uses including pastures, food and energy. Biomass
traits for energy production include some of the traditional
domestication traits but also extend to other traits not
selected in domestication for food or feed. Microlaena
stipoides, a distant relative of rice is currently a key target
for domestication. The rice genome sequences and genomics data
for other Oryza are key genomics resources for this species.
Natural variation and targeted mutagenesis are