To develop improved forage cultivars for the southern Great Plains, and in the process, advance the science of plant improvement.

Strategies:
Cool season perennial grass cultivars. Develop cultivars of cool season perennial grasses useful across a range of ecosystems throughout the southern Great Plains region. Use of these species would have the largest economic impact for region's livestock producers.

Legume cultivars. Develop cultivars of different legume species capable of growing with grasses and supplying improved nutrition and nitrogen to grass pastures.

Small grain species for use in forage systems. Small grains currently are the most used species for cool season grazing in the southern Great Plains region. The Noble Foundation also has a long history of releasing useful cultivars such as 'Elbon' and 'Maton' cereal rye. These efforts will continue, but with an emphasis on forage and less on grain production.

Miscellaneous warm season species. Due to the complexity and diversity of ecosystems in the region, it is necessary to develop cultivars of some warm season species that have potential for use as improved pasture, as an integral component of native range, and as a feedstock for the new biofuels industry.

Switchgrass as a feedstock for the biofuels industry. Since the biofuels industry, and production of switchgrass, appears to be a good fit for the southern Great Plains, we will investigate not only development of improved switchgrass cultivars, but also the agronomic and economic feasibility of switchgrass cropping systems. We recently signed an agreement with Ceres, Inc., a biotechnology company with a goal to make switchgrass a main biofuels crop, in order to accomplish these goals.

Future Growth and Programmatic Addition. Our Non-Resident Fellows suggested adding a new program in the area of breeding and to complete additional lab and office space on the second floor of the Forage Improvement Division building to accommodate this expansion. The enhancement of the switchgrass, alfalfa, and small grains breeding efforts justified this recommendation. With Board approval, we would therefore like to move forward with plans to establish this new program and complete the required second floor lab and office space.