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(Pollination Status :C - Cross pollination , OC-Often cross pollination, OS - Often self-pollinated, S-self pollinated , VP - Vegetatively propagated)
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Biodiversity deals with all life forms at large while domesticated plant biodiversity, out of the total biodiversity, concentrates only to the domesticated plant species in particular.
Domestication is a process of bringing wild species into human management. All domesticated plants may not necessarily be the crops while the crops are essentially the domesticated plants Crops are therefore, the domesticated plants which were evolved through continuous domestication and selection for the best use of mankind. Hence, domesticated plant species cover all the plant forms or species which are now brought and to be brought under human management.
Domesticated plant biodiversity may be recognized at three levels, viz., within species, between species and among the agro-ecosystems. The competing ability of a species and its survival depend largely upon the genetic variability available in the species. Hence, augmentation and conservation of domesticated plant biodiversity is of utmost importance for their improvement. Survey and collection of domesticated plant genetic resources (PGR) are an essential pre-requisite for their conservation. Although there is existence of a number of plant species in Manipur, very little record is available on the biodiversity of domestic plant species. However, a list of domesticated plants species available in Manipur is presented in Annexure – Singh and Sharma (1998) collected characterized and catalogued, 300 local land races of rice (Oryza sativa L.) of Manipur including two wild rice locally known as Wainuchara (Oryza rufipogon) and Murshi (Oryza sativa f. spontanea). Scientists of the Central Agricultural University, Imphal have recently started plant exploration and collection particularly of agri-horticultural crops of Manipur under National Agricultural Technology Project (NATP) on the conservation of agro-biodiversity. The issues of domesticated plant biodiversity, their conservation and sustainable use have a very high relevance particularly in the state like Manipur where hill and valley agricultural ecosystems prevailed with different production system or agricultural practices from time immemorial.
Therefore, immediate attention is called for on the conservation and sustainable management of domestical bio-resources of Manipur in relation with Indigenous technical knowledge (ITK) particularly of production system or agricultural practices prevailing under hill agricultural ecosystems, adaptability and adaptation of domesticated plants, problems of valley agriculture on the sustainability of crop production pests and disease problems, environmental problems, etc.
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