Dynasty, a University of Guelph dark red kidney bean innovation recognized for its high yield, disease resistance and adaptability, has earned the school’s 2024 Innovation of the Year.
Dr. Peter Pauls, professor in the Department of Plant Agriculture at the Ontario Agricultural College, developed Dynasty with research technician Tom Smith. The cross that led to Dynasty was initiated in the early 2000s by retired U of G researcher Dr. Tom Michaels.
Following Michaels’ retirement, Pauls took over the University’s dry bean breeding program in 2003, advancing the testing and selection process with support from Ontario Bean Growers and in collaboration with Hensall District Co-operative Inc., ultimately bringing Dynasty to market.
“The success of Dynasty reflects our commitment to research excellence and collaboration, bringing high-yield, disease-resistant crops to market while supporting farmers and advancing sustainable agriculture,” says Dr. Shayan Sharif, interim vice-president of research and innovation.
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Developed at the Ontario Crops Research Centre in Elora, Dynasty was created for Ontario producers, but it has shown versatility by also performing well in the state of Michigan.
To create Dynasty, the researchers combined traits from multiple parent plants to produce a 15 per-cent-yield increase. “We mix up the genetics to increase the diversity of the gene pool we work with,” says Pauls. “Dynasty was developed from four parent plants as part of a crossing scheme designed to introduce greater genetic diversity into the breeding pool by producing all possible combinations of eight parents.”
Pauls and his team recently released a new bean variety, Gallantry, designed to compete with Dynasty. Derived from a cross with Dynasty, Gallantry has a slightly smaller seed size, matures a day earlier and delivers an additional 2.7 per cent yield improvement over five years.
