ABSTRACT
Plant breeders have successfully recombined the desired genes from cultivated crop germplasm and related wild species through hybridization program, and have been able to develop new cultivars with superior agronomic traits, such as high yield, biotic and abiotic resistance etc. Even though conventional breeding is the main traditional method, so far, these methods have managed to feed the world's ever-growing population. Tissue culture provides an excellent opportunity to create the range of genetic variability in crops that can be used in breeding programs. In the past, tissue culture cycle was offered as a method for cloning a specific genotype and today this is a common method for propagating plants with commercial importance. Somaclonal variation has widely been used for improvement of crops for superior agronomic traits. Somaclonal variation has been most successful in crops with limited genetic systems and/or narrow genetic bases. The somaclonal variation has not only been used in field crops but also in important horticultural and ornamental crops for genetic improvement. This chapter elaborates the use of this technique and its scope of genetic improvement in important crop species in a very simple and holistic manner.
