bulk-population method
Quick Summary
The term "bulk-population method" in agriculture refers to a plant breeding technique where seeds from a population of plants are harvested and mixed together to create the next generation. This method differs from the pedigree method because no record of ancestry is kept.1
During the bulk propagation period, natural selection tends to eliminate plants with poor survival rates. Breeders may also apply artificial selection, such as destroying plants with undesirable major genes or using mass harvesting techniques to select for earlier maturing plants or increased seed size.1
The primary advantage of the bulk population method is its cost-effectiveness in handling large numbers of individuals. This method is a form of mass selection, which is one of the simplest and least expensive plant-breeding procedures.12
Ask Britannica AI about this topic
Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.
