Daucus carota subsp. maximus

This study is the first field-based, multi-year experiment to evaluate shoot-growth trait variation over a 100-day growing season in a carrot diversity panel (N=695) that includes genetically diverse carrot accessions from the United States Department of Agriculture National Plant Germplasm System. This study provides the first broad-sense heritability estimates for early-season seedling vigor and early-season canopy coverage on a diverse collection. We also develop a method for characterizing flowering to identify accessions that are predominantly biennial, which could be incorporated into biennial breeding programs without substantially increasing the risk of annual growth habits.