ABSTRACT
On-farm management of agricultural biodiversity is a complementary strategy to ex situ conservation of genetic resources in genebanks. It is especially important for two roles: (1) the conservation of species whose seed cannot be maintained in genebanks (such as fruit tree species with recalcitrant seeds); and (2) the continuation of the evolutionary processes affecting local crop diversity through natural and human selection, which is essential for building local adaptation and resilience into production systems. Furthermore, on-farm management maintains associated traditional knowledge and practices which contribute to the appreciation of crop genetic diversity, and to its cultivation and use in ways that can be transmitted by farmers to future generations. Agricultural biodiversity contributes to reducing malnutrition and hidden hunger, alleviating poverty and combating climate change challenges, but this diversity is in danger of disappearing. The global economy’s heavy reliance on small numbers of crop species, and to the narrow genetic diversity of these, puts future food and nutrition security at risk. While on-farm approaches can be appropriate for the conservation of many forms of agricultural biodiversity (livestock, pollinator, soil microfauna) our discussion in this chapter will focus around the conservation of plant genetic resource diversity.
