ABSTRACT
For plants exposed to freezing stress, two survival mechanisms have been distinguished, namely tolerance and avoidance. The physiology of the three components of freezing stress resistance, namely tolerance, avoidance, and acclimation abilities, has been investigated in several plant species. The mode of inheritance of freezing stress resistance has been investigated in several plant species. This chapter suggests that progress in the improvement of freezing stress resistance can be made by individually selecting for various components of the resistance and then recombining them to get the desired plant. It also suggests genetic variability for the traits in germplasm of several plant species. The chapter shows that breeding to improve freezing stress resistance can be accomplished by separately selecting for the traits and recombining them to get the desired genotype. Starting in the early 1900s, researchers have sought various morphological, anatomical, physiological, and biochemical characteristics related to freezing stress resistance and cold acclimation.
