diff --git a/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/kernel/FetchConfigurationImpl.java b/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/kernel/FetchConfigurationImpl.java
index f8e662b4c..0975f875f 100644
--- a/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/kernel/FetchConfigurationImpl.java
+++ b/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/kernel/FetchConfigurationImpl.java
@@ -604,6 +604,8 @@ public class FetchConfigurationImpl
         int cur;
         for (int i = 0; max != FetchGroup.DEPTH_INFINITE 
             && i < groups.length; i++) {
+            // ignore custom groups that are inactive in this configuration
+            if (!this.hasFetchGroup(groups[i])) continue;
             cur = meta.getFetchGroup(groups[i]).getRecursionDepth(fm);
             if (cur == FetchGroup.DEPTH_INFINITE || cur > max) 
                 max = cur;
@@ -625,7 +627,7 @@ public class FetchConfigurationImpl
             return avail;
         return Math.min(max, avail);
     }
- 
+
     /**
      * Return the relation type of the given field.
      */
diff --git a/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/meta/FetchGroup.java b/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/meta/FetchGroup.java
index 400b3c88f..69c91bb3e 100644
--- a/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/meta/FetchGroup.java
+++ b/openjpa-kernel/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/meta/FetchGroup.java
@@ -21,9 +21,11 @@ package org.apache.openjpa.meta;
 import java.io.Serializable;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Iterator;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
 
 import org.apache.commons.lang.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.commons.lang.ObjectUtils;
@@ -74,6 +76,7 @@ public class FetchGroup
     private final ClassMetaData _meta;
     private final boolean _readOnly;
     private List _includes;
+    private Set  _containedBy;
     private Map _depths;
     private Boolean _postLoad;
 
@@ -172,6 +175,32 @@ public class FetchGroup
         }
         return false;
     }
+    
+    /**
+     * Sets this receiver as one of the included fetch groups of the given
+     * parent. 
+     * The parent fecth grop must include this receiver before this call.
+     * 
+     * @see #includes(String, boolean)
+     * @see #addDeclaredInclude(String) 
+     */
+    public boolean setContainedBy(FetchGroup parent) {
+    	parent.addDeclaredInclude(this.getName());
+    	if (_containedBy==null)
+    		_containedBy = new HashSet();
+    	return _containedBy.add(parent.getName());
+    }
+    
+    /**
+     * Gets the name of the fetch groups in which this receiver has been
+     * included.
+     * 
+     * @see #setContainedBy(FetchGroup)
+     */
+    public String[] getContainedBy() {
+    	return (_containedBy == null) ? new String[0] 
+            : (String[]) _containedBy.toArray(new String[_containedBy.size()]);
+    }
 
     /**
      * Return the fetch group names declared included by this group.
diff --git a/openjpa-persistence/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/persistence/AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser.java b/openjpa-persistence/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/persistence/AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser.java
index e549bc430..c8998a7ee 100644
--- a/openjpa-persistence/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/persistence/AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser.java
+++ b/openjpa-persistence/src/main/java/org/apache/openjpa/persistence/AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser.java
@@ -875,6 +875,14 @@ public class AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser
 
     /**
      * Create fetch groups.
+     * If FetchGroup A includes FetchGroup B, then a bi-link is set between
+     * A and B. Both A and B must be declared in the same Class. 
+     * <br>
+     * Call {@link #parseFetchAttribute(ClassMetaData, 
+     * org.apache.openjpa.meta.FetchGroup, FetchAttribute) only after the
+     * bi-links have been established, because a field f will not only add the
+     * fetch group A which explictly includes f to its custom fetch groups but 
+     * also will also add any fetch group B that includes A.  
      */
     private void parseFetchGroups(ClassMetaData meta, FetchGroup... groups) {
         org.apache.openjpa.meta.FetchGroup fg;
@@ -885,12 +893,25 @@ public class AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser
             fg = meta.addDeclaredFetchGroup(group.name());
             if (group.postLoad())
                 fg.setPostLoad(true); 
-            for (String s : group.fetchGroups())
+            for (String s : group.fetchGroups()) {
                 fg.addDeclaredInclude(s);
+            }
+        }
+        
+        for (FetchGroup group:groups) {
+        	fg = meta.getFetchGroup(group.name());
+        	String[] includedFetchGropNames = fg.getDeclaredIncludes();
+        	for (String includedFectchGroupName:includedFetchGropNames)
+        	    meta.getFetchGroup(includedFectchGroupName).setContainedBy(fg);
+        }
+        
+        for (FetchGroup group : groups) {
+            fg = meta.getFetchGroup(group.name());
             for (FetchAttribute attr : group.attributes())
                 parseFetchAttribute(meta, fg, attr);
         }
     }
+    
 
     /**
      * Set a field's fetch group.
@@ -904,6 +925,9 @@ public class AnnotationPersistenceMetaDataParser
                 meta, attr.name()));
 
         field.setInFetchGroup(fg.getName(), true);
+        String[] parentFetchGroups = fg.getContainedBy();
+        for (String parentFetchGroup:parentFetchGroups)
+        	field.setInFetchGroup(parentFetchGroup, true);
         if (attr.recursionDepth() != Integer.MIN_VALUE)
             fg.setRecursionDepth(field, attr.recursionDepth());
     }