Interspecific hybridization and plant breeding: From historical retrospective through work of Mendel to current crops

There is a relatively long history of plant hybridization traced back to ancient time, both from theoretical as well practical perspectives. At first considered an evolutionary dead-end, it was soon recognized have important role in speciation. Beside his work on pea, G.J. Mendel also conducted interspecific using several species including Hieracium. Current knowledge shows that the frequent occurrence wide nature often connected with polyploidy. Interspecific has played domestication and numerous crops are allopolyploids, sometimes complex hybrid origin. This been used breeding, extending even intergeneric crosses which benefit heterosis, transgressive segregation introgression phenomenon. review aims provide historical retrospective summarize current usage crop breeding.