About Lesson
Acclimatization
- The process that leads to the adaptation of a variety to a new environment is known as acclimatization.
- Acclimatization is brought about by a faster multiplication of those genotypes (present in the original population) that are better adapted to the new environment.
- Thus, acclimatization is essentially natural selection.
- Variability must be present in the original population for acclimatization to occur.
- Therefore, land varieties are likely to get acclimatized, while pure lines are not likely to.
The extent of acclimatization is determined by
(1) the mode of pollination,
(2) the range of genetic variability present in the original population, and (3) the duration of lifecycle of the crop. Cross-pollination leads to a far greater gene recombination than self-pollination.
As a result, cross-pollination is much more helpful in acclimatization than self-pollination.