Cytogenetic Studies of Crosses between <i>Lolium multiflorum</i> Lam. and <i>Festuca arundinacea</i> Schreb. III. The Generations C₁, C₂ and C₃

Abstract

Abstract Meiotic observations of 56‐chromosome plants of the C 1 , C 2 and C 3 generations of the amphidiploid Lolium multiflorum × Festuca arundinacea showed that most of the chromosomes paired as bivalents. However, uni‐ and multivalents were frequently observed. No difference in meiotic regularity and stability could be detected between the different generations. The average chromosome number and; the percentage of 56‐chromosome plants decreased with increasing generations. The direct use of the 56‐chromosome amphidiploids of L. multiflorum and F. arundinacea in a breeding programme appears to be quite difficult, but these plants can be used in a backcross programme with Lolium and Festuca.