Breeding of Fruit and Plantation Crops

Advantages and disadvantagesof self incompatibility

Advantages of self incompatibility

• Where male sterility is non existent, self incompatibility can alternatively facilitate the production of F1 hybrids.
• Self fertility can be induced temporarily or permanently by mutation of S alleles to S1 through artificial irradiation in clonally propagated orchard species like cherry and apple
• Seedless varieties, such as in pineapple, grape etc. can be evolved if self incompatibility is present.

Disadvantages

• Variations in seed set due to poor fertility.
• Poor preservation of genetic purity of improved varieties since cross pollination is non-restricted.
• Uneven quality of fruits because of mixed planting of different varieties based on their cross compatibility.