Selection for root hair length in white clover (Trifolium repens L.)

Summary Results are given which show that the root hair length of a white clover population can be increased and decreased by selection. An increase of 50 m in root hair length over the mean of an unselected population of the cultivar Tamar was achieved resulting in an 11% calculated increase in the volume of soil explored by root hairs. The realised heritability for selection in the long root hairs was 0.33, and for the short root hairs 0.44.