Genetic insights into adaptation of alfalfa

Climate change is increasingly affecting agricultural outputs,as evidenced by the changing global temperature and extreme weather events that significantly impact crop yields(Lesk et al.,2016).To address this challenge,there is a growing interest in developing crops that can endure these adverse conditions to ensure food security.Numerous examples in nature show how crops have adapted to diverse environments(Gutaker and Purugganan,2023),leaving behind a rich genomic legacy.Population genomics has started to provide insights into these adaptive processes from evolutionary and genetic perspectives(Savolainen et al.,2013;Aguirre-Liguori et al.,2021;Sang et al.,2022).Recently,Zhang et al.(Zhang et al.,2024)investigated alfalfa(Medicago sativa ssp.sativa),known as the"queen of forages,"for its broad adaptability.By analyzing whole-genome sequencing data of 702 accessions from 24 Medicago species,this study enriches our understanding of how to develop crops and meet the challenges of climate change.