About the use of Longitudinal data Analysis in Forage Legumes Breeding: A Review

Forage breeding is more complex than that practiced in other plant species. In addition to assessing the effect of superior genotypes through animal performance, there is a need to evaluate genetic materials over time, which requires the use of appropriate tools and statistical methods so that all effects of the environment are captured and analyzed due to the perennial character of these species. Another significant factor with regard to forage legumes is the analysis in pure or mixed stands, which may facilitate the conduction of trials in the first case and improve the adaptive ability evaluation of species with associated plant and the environment effects in the second case. In this context, the interaction of the genotype with the environment, which differs for the temperate and tropical legume species, is discussed from the point of view of the longitudinal data analysis by application of the mixed model methodology, also considering the employment of mixed pastures in the tropical region of the globe.