The present invention provides methods and composition for preparing seeds that when cultivated produce pepper plants with seedless fruits. These plants may further be male sterile and contain a stable non-Peterson Cytoplasmic Male Sterility (CMS). The invention also provides essentially pure populations of seed that, when grown, produce pepper plants with seedless fruit. Methods are provided comprising crossing a stable non-Peterson CMS plant as a female parent with pepper lines displaying a parthenocarpy trait. The invention also includes the seeds produced by such a method. Methods for breeding and using seedless pepper plants for enhancing the production of fruit under suboptimal temperature conditions are also provided.

The invention provides Catharanthus plants comprising a male sterility allele and methods for producing a plant produced by crossing such plants with themselves or with another plant, such as a plant of another genotype. The invention further relates to seeds and plants produced by crossing Catharanthus plants comprising a male sterility allele. The invention further relates to parts of such plants.

A cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant is provided having a growth ability equivalent to that of a Brassica rapa plant having a normal cytoplasm or a progeny of the cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant. For example, it is possible to improve the deterioration of growth ability which has been observed in the conventional cytoplasmic male sterile B. rapa plants and provide a cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant having an improved growth ability.

This invention describes a new method of grain production in corn wherein a designated female corn plant is pollinated with designated male corn plant pollen from an unrelated genetic background. In the method, a designated female plant having both female and male components is grown. Intentional pollination may occur on one more days, is intentional, and occurs at a time when male components are not male sterile and are not shedding pollen. Accordingly, the process involves the intentional delivery of unrelated designated male plant pollen at will, as available either in a preserved pollen bank or real-time collection from male plants as they become available, in a growth chamber for example. The delivered designated male plant pollen is in such amounts and fortuitously timed that it preferentially cross-pollinates the designated female plant.

The present invention provides a Stevia plant having a low ability to form pollens as compared with the wild type Stevia species. The present invention also provides a method of producing such a Stevia plant having a low ability to form pollens, and an extract or a steviol glycoside purified product obtainable from such a plant.

A cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant is provided having a growth ability equivalent to that of a Brassica rapa plant having a normal cytoplasm or a progeny of the cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant. For example, it is possible to improve the deterioration of growth ability which has been observed in the conventional cytoplasmic male sterile B. rapa plants and provide a cytoplasmic male sterile Brassica rapa plant having an improved growth ability.

This invention describes a new method to generate cereal crop seed. The process involves the delivery of pollen of the male parent at will, as available either in a preserved pollen bank, or using real-time collection from male plants as they become available. Desired pollen is delivered to fertile females during the period when viable pollen from the females and locally proximal unrelated plants is not being released. The delivered male pollen is in such amounts and fortuitously timed that it preferentially pollinates the females. Such fortuitous timing may involve the intentional application of pollen to females a day or two prior to female parent pollen becoming viable, and/or during several periods wherein female parent pollen and/or other proximal plant pollen is not being shed.

This invention describes a new method to generate oilseed seed. The process involves the delivery of pollen of the male parent at will, as available either in a preserved pollen bank, or using real-time collection from male plants as they become available. Desired pollen is delivered to fertile females during the period when viable pollen from the females and locally proximal unrelated plants is not being released. The delivered male pollen is in such amounts and fortuitously timed that it preferentially pollinates the females. Such fortuitous timing may involve the intentional application of pollen to females a day or two prior to female parent pollen becoming viable, and/or during several periods wherein female parent pollen and/or other proximal plant pollen is not being shed.

The present invention relates to linked gene pairs for use in plant breeding, such as hybrid breeding. The present invention in particular relates to the Myb80 and Dwarf11 genes, mutations of which respectively result in genetic male sterility and dwarfism. Combined mutations allow selection of genetic male sterile plants based on a dwarfism phenotype.

The present disclosure discloses a method for breeding a recessive genetic male sterile line of a sporophyte. The method comprises the following steps: linking a sporophyte male fertile gene Y, a down-regulation expression element Xi of an endogenous gametophyte male fertile gene, a herbicide A resistance gene A.sup.R, a down-regulation element Bi of a herbicide B resistance gene, and an anthocyanin gene C or a down-regulation element Ci thereof, and transferring the linked genes into a sterile mutant of the sporophyte fertile gene Y, and pollinating a sterile plant with a positive plant to breed a genetic sterile line of a sporophyte. The method is universal and suitable for all plants, can obtain a genetic sterile line of a sporophyte with a sterile plant rate of 100%, reduce a cost for separating a sterile line from a maintainer line, identify purity intuitively, rapidly, accurately, and economically at an early stage.