Vikash went to vegetable market with his elder sister, a M.Sc. Botany student. There he saw many varieties of different vegetables such as different kinds of chillies (short, long, round, pungent, less pungent, green, reddish, orange), several varieties of potato and tomatoes. He asked his sister the following questions:

(i) What is the need of producing so many varieties of different crop plants.

(ii)What is the name of branch of science which deals with crop improvement?

(iii) What are the methods used by plant breeders?

(iv) What is hybridization?

(i) There exists a great variety of agro climatic conditions and different varieties of a vegetable are suitable for preparing different food items. A particular variety of a crop plant generally gives good yield in a particular set of agro climatic conditions. Therefore, different varieties with varying traits are produced in keeping in view the agro climatic conditions and market demands.

(ii) Plant breeding ( a branch of Genetics).

(iii) Techniques of plant breeders include following steps:

(a) Introduction

(b) selection

(c) Hybridization

(d) Recombinant DNA Technology or Genetic Engineering by which GM crops of genetically modified crops are produced.

(iv) Hybridization is a technique in which the two plants having the desired characters are made to cross and develop hybrid seeds. These seeds are used and hence modified breed of the desired plants are obtained.